Magic of the Market

IN OAXACA, SHOPPING and the market place are cultures in themselves. Within the marketplace there is the merchants' internal subculture which is very complex, with a camaraderie of common interests and proximity stimulated by competition and sometimes not so friendly rivalry. Add to that the shoppers' culture of hunting for price and quality, bartering and socializing and you get the ever changing, dynamic mix that has been evolving for millennia. No matter how many markets you go to, there is always something new to see, smell, hear, taste or learn. Puerto Escondido's Benito Juárez market is fairly typical of Mexican markets, but perhaps somewhat better ordered than most. Puerto's original market was located just off of Av. Oaxaca on 1st North Street, at the plaza now known as Parque de Idilio. Almost 20 years ago, it moved some 7 blocks uptown, into what then seemed to be the huge Benito Juárez building.

But as the town grew, this market proved inadequate to meet the needs of a rapidly expanding resident and visitor population. Five years ago a modern annex was added, so that now the market sprawls over an entire city block, bounded by 8th North, 4th West, 9th North and 3rd West Streets. The market is open every day, but Wednesday and Saturday are the days that suppliers from around the state and beyond bring in their fresh produce. On these days the market is busier, the surrounding streets more congested as itinerant merchants peddle every kind of product you didn't know you needed. The new, airy, high-vaulted market structure is where you go for your food shopping: Rows of stands neatly piled with fruits and vegetable in a mosaic of shapes and textures rendered with a palette of every conceivable hue, sections for meat, chicken, fish, cheeses and baked goods. You'll find a row of fresh juice and licuado stands, where the proprietor can mix you up a nutritious, therapeutic or merely delicious concoction of your choice. There's glorious row of flower stalls which is a feast for the senses. And don't miss the adjacent rows of "regional products." Here you'll encounter everything from brown ranch eggs, sunflower seeds, beans, dried shrimp, garlic, chocolate, moles, herbs and medicinal plants to charcoal, banana leaves for cooking tamales, metates for grinding corn and pestles for mixing your salsa. There's also a section of small restaurants serving extraordinarily good food at the cheapest prices in town.

[mercado] The old original market building also has some good eating. Here you'll also find a large selection of arts, crafts and souvenirs, including great clothing: embroidered peasant blouses, colorful print dresses, shawls, shirts and loose cotton pants. There is a section of eclectic services: watch and shoe repairers, piñatas and party supplies, locksmiths, scribes, jewelers, stationers, as well as those ubiquitous stalls of cheap clothing, plastic and other imported trash, which seem to proliferate at a deplorable rate.

[mercado] It truly is one-stop shopping; the original mall, but without the muzak, where you can buy sandals, a hat, a saddle or medicine for your sick goat. We each tend to have our favorite juice stand, favorite place to nibble sopes, our regular fish, chicken and vegetable ladies. The market might not be the most efficient place to shop, but it is a deeply rich and satisfying experience. Shopping involves meaningful human interaction and becomes part of a timeless ritual.

[to page top]