In quite a number of places, we found wonderful food markets (mostly in the open air). The photo above was taken in France in a sea town called Sanary-sur-Mer. Just to show how inviting the food looked, here are a few more photos from that market. I wanted to buy some of everything, but we couldn’t take it back to the cruise ship.
In addition to the fruit and vegetables, they had olives, spices, and, if you can read the signs, a couple of kinds of gluten-free macaroons mixed in with a wide array of French pastries.
We found another lovely market in Padua, Italy, which we discovered was a French market! That is, it was a place in Padua to buy French food and French products. Look what you can buy in this market. (Okay, I can only show you a few photos). The second set of photos of bread and sausage were taken by Gael.
One of the best parts of this French market in Padua was the hot food I was able to buy and eat. Look how the dishes are cooked–in huge vats in front of us!
In Barcelona at the Sant Antoni Market we found, among other things, these fresh fruit drinks. Notice the price. We each bought more than one, of course. The eggs (photo below) were piled high for–anyone to knock off the table? The sellers and buyers seem unconcerned.
They sold many items besides food in Sant Antoni market in Barcelona. The regular market site was being refurbished and so the goods were housed in temporary quarters, but it was still a very fun market.
Some times the markets don’t have a dedicated space or buildings, but are in carts, on boxes outside stores, or from trucks, like these in Greece on the island of Mykonos.
I actually saw fruit trucks all over, but didn’t get many pictures because I was buzzing by fast in a car or train.
I particularly enjoy the fruit and vegetables markets, including the one on the left which was nearly under my apartment in Naples. It was hard to get a good picture with the awning nearly always up. It is not always fruit and vegetables in the markets, though, as you would know. Sometimes it is a fish market (also in Naples).
Although fish markets are interesting (and smelly), I’ll end with our visit to Almalfi, Italy, where fruit and vegetables sellers line the streets with wares arranged artistically to attract us buyers.
Although we didn’t seem to get a photo, the Almafi region in southern Italy is famous for lemons and has some lemons that are huge, nearly the size of pomelo or small cantaloupes.
To me, in addition to enjoying the great taste of the things I bought, the presentation of the food in these markets makes beautiful art. I’ll end with some excellent photos by Gael of a market in Almalfi. Good enough for still-life paintings, eh?
What to come shopping with us?
bunkerwrites.com 