Where can you get fruits and vegetables unbelievably cheap and fresh, feed the entire family breakfast for less than $9.00, and get a lession in culture at the same time? The supermarket? No, you need to go to the feria.
Each Saturday and Sunday in Plaza Viques in Central San Jose, and in Zapote, east of San Jose there are ferias, or open air markets, where you can take in the sights and the sounds of the everyday life of the Tico people.
There are farmers selling everything from ajo (garlic) to zanahorias (carrots), chanceros selling lottery tickets to the passersby, and artisans selling handmade jewelry. You can hear vendors yelling prices and people catching up on the latest news and opinions of day in the various stalls along the avenues. Among all of this is the smell of typical Costa Rican food like gallo pinto(beans and rice) and of course coffee! (Unfortunately the booth we stopped at only sold coffee with sugar.) All of the produce that is grown in the country can be bought at the feria.
We had the opportunity to drive to the feria this weekend with the kids and take much of what it had to offer. We came away with full stomachs, great strawberries, watermelon, and carrots, money left to spare, and a new perspective of life here in Costa Rica.
