A Sparkling Diamond
Do you cook? How many days a week do you cook at home? One, two? Or you have hooked on the roadside food stands for so long that you’ve completely lost the smell of home cooking. Or if you are indeed a good cook, then can you tell me where do you go for your weekly grocery shopping? I am, for sure not a good cook, you can tell from my husband’s painful expression while eating every meal. However, to your surprise, I cook at least 6 nights a week and I go to the Taichung Traditional Third Market for my grocery shopping.
The third market is near the intersection of 復興路 + 台中路. It’s one of the largest and oldest traditional markets in Taichung. Every Saturday morning, I will ride on my scooter to the market. The first and final stop is always阿吉’s vegetable stand. 阿吉 is only one day younger than I am. His family has run the vegetable stand for more than 40 years. 阿吉 has 4 children, 3 girls and one boy. His number 3 daughter is the same age as my first daughter. While I wait for 阿吉 to choose all the “dry” vegetables, I’ll stand there and watch all the customers come and go.
Mr. Lin is the one arouse my interest the most. Mr. Lin is about 60, a retired banker. He, like me, goes to the market only on Saturday. Mr. Lin is an excellent shopper. He buys all sorts of vegetables and fruits. As long as阿吉 recommends, Mr. Lin buys. His shopping budget is astounding, more than $1500 each time. Now,you may start to wonder how he is going to finish so much vegetables and fruits. Let me tell you. . Mr. Lin didn’t buy those vegetable for his family; he buys for his two daughter-in-laws. You see, Mr. Lin has 2 sons, both of them live in Taipei, and both of their wives are working. Every Saturday they will come back to Taichung, and Mr. Lin will buy a one-week supply of vege and fruits for them to bring home. Now, your next question will be what happened to Mrs. Lin? Why isn’t she doing the shopping? According to 阿吉’s wife, Mrs. Lin is very weak; she hardly comes to the market at all. Mr. Lin does everything for the family.
My 2nd stop is 阿文’s fish stand. Again, 阿文’s is younger than me, 2 days. 阿文 is a very religious person. Are you guessing he is a Buddhist? No, in fact he is a Lamaist. .There is a Lama temple in 集集 and阿文 goes there almost every week. 阿文 is so faithful that he even goes to Tibet西藏 almost every year to see Little Lama, (小活佛) Last summer, he went there and brought me back this ring and the pendent, with Little Lama’s picture on it. They are all blessed by Little Lama and are supposed to be my lucky charm..
Across 阿文’s fish stand is the meat shop. Big sister is the owner. I don’t know her name. Everybody calls her Big Sister; I call her Big Sister as well. Big sister is an excellent cook and a very brave woman. One time, I saw her accidentally cut her finger. That was a very deep cut and the blood kept pouring out. Big sister did not scream nor cry. She borrowed a cigarette sub from her neighbor, and put the stub on the wound for 5 seconds. Oh, my goodness. I screamed. But would you believe that, the blood really stopped.
After the meat shop I have finished almost all the major shopping, I will then hang around the market and search for any goodies. If nothing can be found, I will go to my favorite and chat with 老婆婆. 老婆婆 opens a ready-to-eat food stand inside a tiny alley in the market. If you are not familiar with the 3rd market, you got lost easily. 老婆婆 is 75 years old. She haunches her back like this while cooking all the dishes. 老婆婆is also the oldest stand owner in the market. I once asked her when she opened the shop; she told me something about 228 incidents and those wonderful days when she was the main chef for former mayor Chang. (張啟仲市長) Talking to her is like reading a contemporary Taiwanese History. It’s not the food I buy. It is 老婆婆’s knowledge, kindness and humor that enchanted me.
So, I am all set, back to阿吉’s vegetable stand. By this time, 阿吉 will have the Chinese tea ready, and all the tea party members from the market will come. We chat ,laugh and gossip while 阿吉 pack everything I bought onto my scooter. Time to go, my friends, see you next week.
There is a Taiwanese old saying: 一種米養百種人. We see so many kinds of people everyday. However, if you like to see good people, diligent people, and have the sense of good old days, then come to the traditional market. People spend thousands and millions of dollars just for a tiny diamond. In the traditional market I can spot diamonds sparkling everyplace. I love to go to the traditional market with lots touching stories being told everyday, everywhere.