Kyoto Japan — pickled radishes
I am not a shopper. But when I travel, I love shopping — not at Zara or Desigual — but at local markets, where members of the community sell what they grow or make. Every market visit is an education in local culture and every market is a place to feel connected to the local community. People are happy — or at least hopeful. And that kind of shopping doesn’t require you to buy anything to make you feel good.
Nephew Devin at a public market during a quick trip we made from Lesvos, Greece to Ayvalik, Turkey
There are probably not many things in the world that you can’t buy in American stores, but the world is still full of stuff that isn’t familiar to an average American or, at least, isn’t so easy to find in an American store. Like chicken ass.
Chiang Mai, Thailand in a street market
It’s a lot of fun looking for unusual merchandise. See if you can guess what is in the photos before you read the captions — and let me know if I am mis-remembering!
Larnaca, Cyprus — candles for burning in Greek Orthodox churches
Tokyo, Japan — Rice wine
Inle Lake, Burma — Jasmine flower garlands
Molyvos, Lesvos, Greece — Sheep bells
Bangkok, Thailand — cockroaches
Moscow, Russia — Baboushka dolls
Fantan, Armenia — cow dung fuel for heating
Cairo, Egypt — A variety of herbs and root vegetables
Madaba, Jordan — Muslim Barbie dolls in hijab
Lima, Peru — maracas made from gourds
Venice, Italy — Meringue bells, a local dessert
Jerusalem, Palestine — Abaya, Muslim women’s dress
Amman, Jordan — dyed baby chicks
Ulaanbataar, Mongolia — racing saddles
Cusco, Peru — Gooseberries that grow in little paper lanterns
Lima, Peru — scallops with roe
Battambang, Cambodia — snacks of roasted bananas and sweetened rice
We do not see things as they are. We see them as we are.
–The Talmud
The Earth laughs in flowers.
–Ralph Waldo Emerson
Camino Milagro 
I betcha’ I can get all dat stuff at Costco. 🙂
Great theme and pics.
Lol. I didn’t post the photo of the donkey heads but I guess I should have.
Very interesting. Sometimes we just walk by unfamiliar goods without really paying attention – glad you photographed these. But, I’m curious about a couple of them. Not a fan of dying baby chicks, and are those cockroaches for sale – or are they customers?
The cockroaches are for sale alone with crickets and many other insects. The Thais — especially some of the hill tribes — eat a lot of insects.
Wow, what a wild assortment! I love that you found and photographed all of them.
Thanks WEndy!
Thank you Kim. I’ve spent some time on your blog since you commented on a post on my own. What a great way to spend a couple hours. Really thoughtful, well-traveled, erudite, worthwhile stuff. I’m glad to be able to follow you here and I admire your travels.
And hey, I’m afraid the chicken ass looks tasty.
Thank you for the nice comments. I don’t market my blog and don’t have much circulation so it is an especially nice surprise to get comments from another writer.