The other day I went to the market in Perez with Muharrem, his nickname is Boncisk and this is the name I know him as since that is how he introduced himself to me when we first met and shook hands.
We drove to the market in Perez in his car, I could see that Boncisk’s car was very, very old, it had most certainly seen better days but I liked its vintage feel of low seats with a tattered interior, a hole where the radio once was with dead wires oozing out and a very worn out paint job on the outside. The drive to the market was not that quick but it was nice and scenic, mountains surrounded me as I gazed out into the Mediterranean Sea as Boncisk did his best to give me a guided tour. I enjoyed the ride, it was different.
We arrived at the market, there were lots of different stools with many Turkish people each selling a variety of different things, many stools selling the same types of things such as vegetables and fruits.
The purpose of me going to the market with Boncisk was so that I could get the type of things that I like to eat since I am fairly fussy compared to your average person. In my opinion I am not fussy, I simply like natural foods, not the processed garbage they sell on supermarket shelves and I would rather not eat than eat bad food, not to badmouth Turkish food, i am not saying it is bad but it just really is not for me and my body.
Anyway, we wondered around the market comparing the quality of vegetables, fruits and the prices on each stool before we made any purchases. I wanted to get some nuts and dried fruit since I am not a fan of the traditional Turkish food, I find it very heavy, highly starch based and full, full, full of salt and so I wanted to stock up on my bird food so that I would not starve to death.
There was a lady standing behind a counter where the nuts and dried fruit was, Boncisk kept picking up different types of nuts and fruits for me to try, he told me to take control and just try everything before I buy it, I liked how he did this. He kept saying “control, control’ he speaks extremely minimal English and so the same few words kept on being repeated, nevertheless his English is far better than my Turkish, I am making an effort to learn the language though. I tried a variety of things such as dried cranberries, all sorts of different coloured raisins, almonds, pine nuts and so on. I bought walnuts, almonds, dried apricot (there were two different types to choose from, one type was very orange and this is how I know them to be usually, the other apricot was very dark and so I went for that type as this one looked far more tasty and much more appealing), I also bought some raisins. Boncisk made a deal with the lady so I could buy the amount I wanted rather than the amount she was proposing i should buy which simply felt like way too much fruit and nuts. All in all I spend 10 Turkish learer, I was happy with this price.
After I was satisfied with what I had bought we wondered around the market a little more, going from stool to stool, pretty much trying everything in sight since Boncisk just kept handing me things to eat and since this was a place filled with all of my favourite types of food, I had no problem in eating all that I was handed. We ate string beans, carrots (I like to eat around the whole carrot until there is only the sweet centre left and then eat that by itself), Erik (a type of green, sour Turkish plum), apricots, apples (red and green), cherries, bananas, kiwi, peppers, tomatoes and melon. I was pretty much in my element since I don’t believe the foods at the market come more fresh and natural. Boncisk and I made many purchases and so we had many bags to carry included a whole crate of tomatoes. I am staying at a windsurfing centre in Turkey and there are many mouths to feed so this is why we bought so much and made sure to get the best prices and the best quality fruit and veg. I enjoyed my experience of being at the Turkish market, it was great being handed all those different types of foods and I got exactly what I went there for. Here is to good food and clean insides.
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