Local market sells organic food…
At the bottom you will see a long list of a few of the fruits and vegetables that you can find at the market that I have names for…
Market time is a special time of social interaction. It is at the market, that people tell stories, catch up on news, meet new friends, and sometimes just pass the time of day away.
Typically market is run by a man who charges everyone who sells a fee to sell. His job is to maintain order and settle any disputes that might arise. In general it is the job of a woman to sell the produce…however, sometimes you will find men helping out their wives who can’t make it to work.
In general, in the highlands where we are at…it is appropriate for women to wear long slacks or dresses.
Generally, when you buy produce at the market…you do not shop for quality…they will appreciate you more if you spread the wealth and buy from various sellers.
At some markets, you will find men who sell their hand crafted artifacts.
Strawberries
Raspberries
Rhubarb
Sugar Cane
Pineapple
Papaya
Grapefruit
Tangerine
Naval Oranges
Bananas (Various Types)
Coconut
Yucca Root
Sweet Potatoes
Potatoes
Cucumbers
Watermelon
Squash
Honey Dew Melons
Avocado
Melon
Lime
Broccoli
Lettuce
Greens ( A variety of green leaf grass)
Large Tomatoes, miniatures
Beats
Egg Plant
Ocra
Passion Fruit
Ginger
Onions
Celery
Zucchini
Peppers
Wild Apple (Jambu)
Goiava
Corn
Green Beans
String Beans
Peas
Did you know that CATS taste good
Well that is what a majority of the the locals think. I don’t care to find out. Cats are one of the ideal pets of choice in PNG. When they are young they eat a lot of pesty rats…because of such “fine dining” it is said that cats make great tasting meals when they get older. Cats raised by Americans are said to be especially tasty because they get all this special cat food…at least that is the word on the street. The locals appear to help themselves to our fat cats quite a bit. They think it is a shame to have a fat cat and not eat it! How about you? If you were invited for lunch and they served you cat stew…would you eat it?
What is for lunch?
You would ask yourself if you were headed to the village around 2pm. Typically women are given the responsibility to maintain and harvest their gardens. However, there are exceptions depending on the culture of that particular village. Quite often if they feel like they have an inside track on getting the spirits to bless their gardening work, the men may get involved as well. The kids always pitch in and make the work load easier. Usually the women will rise early and go to work in their gardens…while the temperature is cool and will return before noon to clean and prep the food for lunch. Our kids are helping prep this meal…
Typically they will collect “greens” which they harvest a long the path or in their gardens. They will mix bananas, sweet potatoes or manioc with it and usually if they can afford it will either add some fish or meat to it to give it a little more taste. Here is the pot of stew for our meal that day. Can you see the three little fish on the top.
