Notice that my first two entries on this countdown is about shopping. Day 7 is about my experience and relationship with Robinsons Place Ermita and today, Day 6, is about going to Paco market where I buy my produce. Since me and my siblings moved here a year ago, my love-and-hate relationship with Manila has become more intensed. Why? I can answer in too many ways. For one, Paco market has the cheapest price for fresh produce: fruits, crops, vegetables - most especially, vegetables! You know that my weekend therapy involves going to the market and later on, cook them for the day? I mean, yes, seriously. I do this on weekends for my family. And since I discovered how cheap it is to buy vegetables in Paco Market, I try to buy as much as I can bring to Cavite during weekends.
Did you know that in Paco Market, you can even find Taiwan pechay, different variety of lettuce, basil, and basically almost all kinds of leafy vegetables? There is one stall that sells only leaves and it's amazing because at the end of the day, they're all sold out!
Fruits are also great to buy from Paco. You can find whatever is in season and I can buy a piece if I'm just consuming it alone or perhaps in bulk if I want to bring some for my pamangkins. Their favorite: MANGO! As soon as I arrive in Cavite with two kilos of mango, my pamangkins will kiss me on the cheeks and bring the mango in the kitchen, sit at the dining table and wait for me to slice the mango for them. Isn't that sweet?
On the other hand, I hate the mud in Paco Market. Even if it's dry season, still the market is in chaos with this mud. Be careful not to slip because you will look like you've stepped on a manhole if you get all the mud. Plus the punget smell of the market. If you just stay inside the market for one hour, the smell will stick to your hair, to your clothes and every inch of you. So, should you decide to go, be ready to get dirty and smelly! Anyway, that's the beauty of a marketplace. You'll find the first harvest in a filthy place like this. How ironic, eh? I hate the crowd too aside from the mud and the smell. It's just plain chaos. People just don't care if they bump to you. More than that, the people at the marketplace fight over small things and it's a big deal! They fight from their stalls talking oh so loudly it almost looks like you're watching from big screen. Haha, sometimes, I find it entertaining and other times, annoying.
But whether its the mud, the smell, the loud fights or the freshest pick, the greenest greens, the biggest discounts, you'll soon discover that Paco Market is a place with scenes not too far from a stock trading floor - where negotiating happens a lot in between deafening noises and filthy floor.
More love to life,
Bella Donna
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