Culture Post #2: The Market!

     Hi there!  In every German city, there are weekly markets which meet regularly in major city squares.  Here in Leipzig, there are sixteen such markets, which meet on different days of the week.  Depending on

the city and season, the stalls can contain everything from painted eggs (our lady in Leipzig is still going
strong), to various meats and sausages (they all seem to have something that is "Grandma's" recipe), to fresh flowers and vegetables, and occasionally sweeter things, like honeys and candy.  No matter what the weather, be it cloudy, or cloudy, or even cloudy here in Leipzig, there is always a steady stream of people stopping in to pick up some vegetables, bread, cheese, or flowers for a change from the store brands.

Vege-topia!

     At the Augustusplatz (city center)  Wochenmarkt, the market is set up in a "U" shape around the fountain in the middle, with the actual carts, selling things like bread, cheese, and meats, set up on the outer edge, and the stalls under tents set up on the inside edge.  The vegetable sellers all have approximately the same selection, with root vegetables like carrots and potatoes and asparagus (white and green) being the major staples.  It was a little strange for me to see at first, considering that at the farmers markets which I am used to back home, they tend to be more specialized, with certain types of vegetables being limited to one (or a small group) of sellers, rather than being spread among multiple stalls.

Orange anyone?

 
   The similar selections here made a little bit more sense when I got to the fruit stand, as much of the fruit for sale was both out of season and clearly from other countries, which means that while some of the produce is local, a fair amount of it is not.  Regardless of its origin, it was all fairly priced, and you could buy exactly the amount you needed of anything available; a nice change from the packaged bundles that you have to get most other places.

It's not a pretty sight in there...

     As I walked around the market, it was obvious that even though the produce and other goods aren't all local, which tends to be one of the big draws for people in the United States, everything was definitely fresher that what I have seen in the grocery stores here (they don't refrigerate fruits and vegetables at stores here in Germany).  Combined with the ease of access (one of the city's major streetcar intersections is right across the street from the market), and the opportunity to try new and (relatively) unusual foods, its no wonder that much of the foot traffic in the city center passes through to pick something up on their way by.

Germans and their flowers.  A love affair for the ages.

     Now can someone explain why it seems that the entire German population regularly buys large quantities of flowers?  Its mind blowing!

For your Amusement:

He was too busy chewing on his hair to chat.

Nanananananana Spice Man!

See the music box guy?  He's not fooling anyone with a stuffed monkey.

Just a duck waiting for some crumbs.

I have called Guinness, these are in the running for a record.

Who needs a house when you could haul your wood oven everywhere?

Vocabulary which doesn't come up in Class:

der Wochenmärkt - weekly market

die Bonbons - a general term for small sweets

 die Gewürze - spices

carmin - beetle juice (used as red food dye.  Also gross)

Proverb of the Day:

Double check the ingredient list before you buy bonbons from the candy and spice lady.

She uses beetle juice in them.  I wish I was kidding.

*Don't forget to look around for the best prices first!
**The background music is from a personal music project in progress.