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Welcome to my Virtual stroll down Kochi's World Famous Sunday Market! I have been wanting to make this page, for quite some time now. The plan was to take some pictures of the market in every season. Because everybody knows that different foods are grown in different seasons. But I found my schedule to be nearly always busy, and only got around to taking pictures of the market in the Summer of 2007. When I first strolled down the long street on a Sunday morning, my mouth never quite shut all the way. I had entered a world of different foods and customs. I vowed that I would make a page to bring that same amazement to the people who couldn't come to Kochi and see it for themselves. Now please imagine yourself on a sweltering late- July morning and starting down a street filled with unusual fragrants, cheery elderly folks, and all the atmosphere of friendliness..
Here we go...
Some farmers slip away from their wives and food stalls to meet up with friends for a game of Shugi, or Japanese chess...
We walk along the narrow path, filled with the sounds of laughter, all the while peering into the stalls occasionally. The Sunday Market in Kochi city has a history of 300 years. The number of outside stalls along the street, which runs about 1.3 km along Otesuji Street, is said to be over 600 now. Even on these unbearable July summer mornings, all the farmers seem to have come to try their hand at the market. This market begins just across the street from the main gate of Kochi castle, so it must have been very convenient for castle employees in the feudal era.
Here the stall keeper contemplates how much Tea Leaves she has sold thus far
Luckily, at one section of the market, the stall keepers put up a Sun roof to protect us customers from the sweltering sun.
These are some delicious Kochi Sweet Potato's. In the winter, this is Kochi’s local specialty: imo kempi, or deep-fried sweet potato strips with icing. Each potato is only Y100, or about 88C. Care to buy some?
This is definitely one of the more expensive stands I have seen all day. The grapes are the real expensive item. At that size, the normal price is Y600. Though they aren't the grapes we are used to. In fact these grapes are twice the size of the ones we eat in America. And in Japan, they have huge pins in the middle. To top it off, you are supposed to peel off the skin before you eat the fruit. This goes back to the ancient belief that the skins will make you sick. Most Japanese are repulsed at me when I eat the whole thing, without feeling off the skin.
The tomatoes are what they call “fruit tomatoes” which were bred to improve sweetness. These boxed fruit tomatoes have become a popular souvenir/gift recently, and they can be delivered.
Delicious Kuri, or cucumber for only Y100. A real bargain!
This friendly stall owner invites us to try some of his home grown tea leaves.
I was told by one of the venders that they have an unspoken rule here which is: keeping a laid-back, almost outdated harmonious atmosphere is very important in this market. Thus, they do not make outrageous efforts to advertise their products to win more customers than neighboring venders. They don't shout for attnetion and beckon customers with the usual Japanese, "irashiamase." Winning more customers and sales others is not the biggest priority here. For them, this is a place where people who got tired of individualistic competitions can indulge in a nostalgic atmosphere of good old ways in a small countryside. The small countryside of Kochi. I hope that this never changes. It such a more friendly atmosphere. I’m counting on the local folks to keep this laid-back way.
Delicious Bonita fish straight from the ocean and into the market. The owner laughs when I tell him I can eat everything but the eyes of the fish. He tells he that is his favorite part...
I was sure these are potato's. But the stall owner told me I was wrong. She called them something else, which I didn't know in Japanese. I have a feeling that these aren't actually potatoes though. Paula Fabian once told me that people from Kochi eat alot of unusual things that even normal Japanese people wouldn't eat it. She called this category the 'weed' category.
Apples and Banana's fresh from the groves.
The venders are friends with one another, and you can see them chatting with each other and helping each other out. When you see an unattended stall, venders at the neighboring stalls will tell you where the stall owner went and when she will be back. Even though they are supposed to be competing for customers, this factor doesn't seem to make a difference.
And even 11 and half months of living in Japan, experiencing it head on, in all of it's little twists and surprises, there is always something that manages to shock me. I have no idea what these items, if they are edible, and what not.
Dried fish. You can eat it just like it is on the stand.
Occasionally there are farmer who bring their most beautiful favorite or beautiful plants to display and sell.
I especially like the colors of this stall...
Watermelons are the specialty of this stall. In the next stall, you can see long brown type things. This a type of root, very much loved by the country folk of Kochi
Tea leaves for cheap!
Yuzu is the world renowned citrus grown in the Kochi prefecture. It can be made into a delicious drink and sold very cheaply at the market. I'm thirsty and I'll think I'll but a bottle.
These are the fried specialty Omiyage type things of Kochi. The most famous ones are long sweet potato's fried with flavoring. You can get any type of flavor, and my favorite is the Coffee flavored ones. This particular stand is famous for it's Sesame flavored fried Sweet Potato.
On first glance, I see a baseball bat. But really, this is a Daikon Radish. Pretty crazy, right?
Street markets are common throughout the world. Visit a street market, and you get an honest, unguarded glimpse of the people and their society. What are you likely to find at a street market? Just about anything that can be grown or caught or made by hand in and around Kochi. The vendors are mostly real country people who speak in the local Tosa dialect. And the one thing they aren't is shy. It's noisy, crowded, stinky-- and wonderful! Even though you didn't end up buying anything, I hope you had a wonderful experience!
These are old-school sweets of Japan, not just the Kochi-ken. In fact, Kyoto is well known for these candies. I had to fight to get a look in, because kids were swarming around the table begging their moms for money. They are just basically little sucker candies made of sugar, but the Japanese eat them in nostalgia
