Markets

Saw two markets today, sort of a study in contrasts. We walked into Old Jaffa, a lovely stroll down the beach. After walking the hill which contains an area dedicated to horoscope-named streets, artist studios, and most of the tourists, we wandered down the hill, ending up in the Jaffa flea market. This place is Rummage reincarnated. There is a treasures area, kitchen, small electrical, every department is well-represented. It is as chaotic as rummage ever was, though, it did have an area under-represented at Catlin......food stalls selling everything from home-baked bread to fresh juice. The one overwhelming sense was that everything was full. Junk stalls were full to overflowing, food stalls had lines, and every restaurant was filled. Streets on the periphery were clogged with traffic. Noa's description of the Jaffa market is fun to read. The market serves people of all classes. On our walk home, we passed the new boutique Neve Tzedek Hotel. The maids invited us to look at one of the suites......which had been furnished with pieces gleaned from the flea market. Polished and cleaned up, the suite was one of the nicest we had ever seen.

And then we walked through the lower half of the Carmel Market in Tel Aviv. It makes every farmer's market I have ever seen in the US look like a kid's version. In contrast to the Jaffa market, everything was polished, orderly, new, and available in unbelievably bountiful qualities. Smells were separated which meant I could savor those I wanted, move on from those I chose to avoid. Pam's description is also interesting to read. The Carmel Market is a great advertisement for eating fresh every day! Enjoy the pictures!