As always, one of my favorite things to do in order to really get a feel for the local culture is *not* to go on any lame sightseeing tour, but instead hitting up the local grocery stores and (preferably) open markets. That's where of course the real locals are interacting every day, and where one gets to see how food really looks without any restaurant trying to pretty things up.
So we hit up a couple spots in Chongqing today, including a big basement supermarket where lots of local basics including pickles and chili peppers were being sold. But what was also interesting was a live poultry section enclosed in fiberglass, where one could place an order for a chicken and have it slaughtered and plucked on the spot.
Then by sheer luck, we happened to wander over to a vegetable market a few blocks away, which was then followed by stall after stall of poultry vendors. Surprisingly, many of the geese and chicken were uncaged and just peacefully sitting there before awaiting their sentence (yes, it did make one feel like Chris Tucker in Rush Hour 2). Well, here's a photo of a lady grinding up whole chili peppers into the powder that no doubt pervades all this great food out here.
No comments:
Post a Comment