Market Day!

Buonasera! Today was the weekly village market day. There is a large traveling outdoor market here that moves from town to town every day, and every Wednesday it is our turn. Normally set up one block down, for the next month due to the month-long annual Festeggiamenti di Maron, the market will be held right in front of my house!

We woke up early today so that we could get to the market bright and early for the best quality things. As soon as we stepped out of our footgate we were right in the market. Vendors lined both sides of the road and carried everything from clothes and shoes to fresh fish and cheese. I was promptly enamored with the wide and colorful displays of fresh fruits and vegetables. My only saving grace today was the fear of the unknown and the language barrier...I might have gone way overboard if I felt more confident in what I was doing and spending. Trying to convert kilograms to pounds in my head, calculate the euro to dollar difference, and then figure out how to request it all in Italian proved to be quite daunting.

Don't worry, though! I still walked away with plenty of goodies. At one stand, Ashton and I picked up two containers of strawberries and some white peaches, and the kind purveyor threw in a large handful of bing cherries for free. At another stand, we picked up fresh figs, apricots, and melon. We acquired a large bouquet of flowers for the kitchen table with a most unusual center flower (it's gorgeous, but I told Ashton we probably just spent 6€ on weeds hehehe). Finally, we stopped by a stand attended by a cheerful, rotund Italian man selling all sorts of cheeses and cured meats. If you are a fan of cheese, it would be a small slice of nirvana to be standing there. I'm not the biggest cheese eater, and still managed to feel pleased down to my toes! Communication proved to be quite challenging here, and finally, we both gave up trying to speak and communicated through gestures. I ended up with a gorgeous wedge of fresh Asiago and a large wedge of the king of cheese, Parmigiano-Reggiano.

We came back to the house, and I prepared a little bit of everything for us to have for breakfast. Fresh fruit and cheeses makes for a mighty fine repast. I have heard that simple meals made from high quality, fresh ingredients are sometimes the best meals...that was certainly true this morning!  Ashton and I enjoyed our familiar favorites (melons, cherries, etc.) as well as the new items (figs, fresh (not aged) Asiago, etc.). I'm very thankful that she has a well-developed palate and an adventurous attitude when it comes to food!

We are already counting the days until next week's market. Hopefully I will know more Italian by then - we may even try to make a purchase at the fish monger's stand next time. Festeggiamenti starts tomorrow so I'm sure I'll have a lot to share! Until next time...ciao, ciao!

Here are just a few pictures of the stash from my first market excursion including the flowers!