Add-a-lane on the Road Less Traveled: 4. The Fresh Markets

I absolutely LOVE these!! I’m really going to miss this the most. I wish there were more in VA. I know we have them but only on Sundays and for usually during the summer months. They have them here year round…Farmers, butchers, deli’s, hand craft artisans, vendors, etc come together in these large markets and sell their fresh produce or unique crafts. The whole experience was overwhelming when you first go. It was just so expansive. The two that I have been to are Queen Victoria Market and South Melbourne Market. The first time I went to the Victoria Market was a quick trip. We got there too late and it was closing by the time we arrived. I heard some great things about it from many of the locals and they also mentioned that during the summer on a Wednesday was the best. I looked forward to this for a while. When summer time came a month or so later, I went with a handful of friends to see what the fuss was about.

It was one of the best nights I’ve had here in Melbourne. Jo, Laura, Stuart, Shami, Kieran and I were shocked to see how many people were already there; especially considering it was an evening during the week. The buzzing of conversations, music, and the evening atmosphere was full of energy. You could barely make your way through the crowds, but when we did the first thing we hit were the bountiful food booths. We saw foods from Africa, Australia, Mexico, Greece, Italy, Spain, and the list just went on. We finally decided on the booth with authentic Aussie food and treated our taste buds to Croc, Kangaroo, and Emu. Much to our dismay, it was interesting and oh so delicious ;) We continued on to visit the plethora of craft vendors scattered within the chaos of the VIC Market. There was jewelry, art, clothing, we had fun trying on sunnies, and finally worked our way outdoors to the open stage. They have local artists play on 3 different stages spread throughout the market. I would never go out looking for the type of music we saw perform, but the different styles of funky upbeat sounds of blues, country, jazz and bohemian all sounded amazing. At one point during the performance, Jo and Laura got on the dance floor and were dancing in the rain. I for one have always wanted to do this so I gave the boys my umbrella and bag and hit the floor to join the girls. It was hilarious! Jo was trying to keep up with the dance moves of this old school gangsta and did a fine job too. We topped off the evening by devouring luscious chocolate and cream crepes to share. It was a lovely evening of great new experiences, friends, music, food, and not an ounce of alcohol involved. GRAND…just GRAND I tell ya.

My most recent visit was to the South Melbourne Market located near where I currently live. Finally getting some time off in the weekend and a bonus that the weather was pleasant, I made my way to the market in the late morning. It was already bustling with the weekend crowd. Lucky for me I had all day. While everyone was hastily making their rounds, time seemed to slow for me as if I were in one of those movie scenes where, I was the only one standing still while people were whirling all around. It was nice, because most times that I’ve gone to the grocery store I was in a rush to check the items off my list, check out and go home. Here, it was at turtle pace. There were no direct isles or neat and clean signs that listed which items were located there, only hand painted ones of each unique stand. It was smaller than the Queen Vic Market, but that brought an intimacy about the atmosphere. After looking through a lovely and expensive artificial flower vendor and a small luggage dealer, I found my way to a quaint wine stand (surprise, surprise) to see what they had to offer. Many of the wines were locally made and some labels took initiative and used reusable glass bottles. The wine tasting was free so I had to try a few of the whites on hand and the lady was nice enough to bring out a Rose´ since she knew I was looking for something sweet. It definitely hit the spot! “That’s the one,” I said. She pointed out that when I bring back the reusable bottle, I receive $3 off my next bottle. Whoo hoo! Being green and being rewarded for it…some combination. After making my way around the market, I was delighted with my small purchases and headed home. It was another wonderful experience at the markets.

Here are some photos from the Queen Victoria Evening Market :)