The market — which sells black currants and tomatoes and porcini mushrooms by the bucket — is only closed one day a week, making it the inverse of a farmer’s market back home. I’m at my partner’s family’s place in western Ukraine, our first trip here in two years because of the pandemic. We stay in their [three]four-room apartment, which is small but has the most perfect balcony in the world, and leave primarily to walk the dog or go to the market. I don’t speak Ukrainian or Russian so I trail behind on these outings, carrying bags and observing everything around me. The men and women (mostly women) sit at covered stalls if they’ve paid for it or on tiny stools with their wares spread out on blankets if they haven’t. There aren’t so many rules about what’s sold here. It’s not only local — you see bananas and Turkish figs — but most of it is. The berries are tiny, the eggs are smeared with feathers and the women will tell you about the quality of their farmers cheese that day versus last week. Many of them have far fewer things to sell than the small businesses at my farmer’s market. We buy out all their berries or eggs and then they go home.
Old World
Old World
Old World
The market — which sells black currants and tomatoes and porcini mushrooms by the bucket — is only closed one day a week, making it the inverse of a farmer’s market back home. I’m at my partner’s family’s place in western Ukraine, our first trip here in two years because of the pandemic. We stay in their [three]four-room apartment, which is small but has the most perfect balcony in the world, and leave primarily to walk the dog or go to the market. I don’t speak Ukrainian or Russian so I trail behind on these outings, carrying bags and observing everything around me. The men and women (mostly women) sit at covered stalls if they’ve paid for it or on tiny stools with their wares spread out on blankets if they haven’t. There aren’t so many rules about what’s sold here. It’s not only local — you see bananas and Turkish figs — but most of it is. The berries are tiny, the eggs are smeared with feathers and the women will tell you about the quality of their farmers cheese that day versus last week. Many of them have far fewer things to sell than the small businesses at my farmer’s market. We buy out all their berries or eggs and then they go home.