The Market

When our class first went to the market in Cuzco, I was struck by the amount of food out in the open. There was a section displaying pig heads, donkey muzzles, and basically any other form of meat you can imagine. Across from that was an area where you could buy fresh squeezed juices. These juices (along with all juices in Peru) were always fresh made and contained just fruit and sugar—they were rarely watered down. This made them the tastiest drinks you can imagine. The fresh fruits used in these beverages were available just across the market. I have never seen such large avocados, such juicy oranges, and such an exotic selection of unusual produce as were available in this local food hub. Gazing over the massive selections of beautiful Peruvian grown fruits and veggies, it was easy to understand why Peru is sometimes referred to as the “land of plenty”. In addition to all of the meat, juice, vegetables, fruits and grains, there was an area to buy handmade bread (which was delicious, of course) and some hot made food (interestingly, one of the most popular appeared to be Chinese cuisine). At the periphery of the open-aired building people sold handbags, chompas, notebooks and other handcrafts. Basically, you could buy anything and everything in this market, and visiting there was always a good time.