The Snozberries Tasted Like Snozberries!

Miam miam miam!


They were waving "bonjour!" at me.


Cabbage can be beautiful. Who knew?


The mysterious fluffy chicken

Something I have always wanted to do, but have somehow neglected up until this past Sunday, was a trip to the Richard-Lenoir market by the Bastille. This is the largest food market in Paris with so many vendors I honestly felt overwhelmed after an hour wandering around. Fruit, fish, poultry, wild game, red meat, eggs, cheese, prepared stuffs, bread, desserts and more were available in ridiculous quantities from multiple stands. Even with my total lack of genuine knowledge and experience, it wasn't hard to pick-up on the crowd favorites— these were the ones you had to boldly shove your way up to. Fortunately, C and I are deadly serious when it comes to food.

All of the produce was gorgeous and full of bright, natural color. The strawberries were truly red and the pumpkin looked a rich orange, clearly not pumped full of artificial anything. Part of the fun was interacting with the crowd, sampling mango and aged pecorino, complimenting each vendor on their work. I bonded with one over his intensely beautiful zebra eggplant, explaining that I had never seen anything like it before. But the selection of fish amazed me the most. This came as a surprise, since I typically avoid the ocean altogether. But this didn't smell at all. The fresh fruit had a stronger odor, while boeuf bourguignon simmered in the distance. It was only later upon closer examination that I realized why this was. Much of the shrimp and clams were still alive, their legs waving and shells opening and closing. We were promised fresh, and that was what we got.

In the end, we left with bags of clementines, plums and some caramel buerre salé, promising to return and make a full meal from whatever we grab. Apparently, at the end of the market at 1 p.m., it is Parisian law that everything that is unsold must be reduced in price (so much so that it is practically free) or given away, so that nothing is wasted. I was wondering where it all goes.

Continuing the outdoor market trend, we headed to the (pet) bird market by Notre-Dame. I found this sight depressing in contrast. It was much more empty than Richard-Lenoir, and I had to fight my urge to release all of the animals from their cages. I suppose I'm not a zoo person after all. The one bright spot was an odd menagerie of a petting zoo, including a goose, a chicken, a disturbingly large rabbit and this... perfectly round puff of feathers. Perhaps I will go back in the end. I could use another souvenir.