Carrying that “fruit-sickness” inside for a while, my heart misses a beat when we see those fresh fruit and juice stands inside La Boqueria Food Market. The product placement manager did a great job because he “showcased” the many eye-catching colors of food up front, making us, the thirsty and hungry travelers, drool profusely. Therefore, when we walk through the entrance, we immediately spend money on food. They know how to take our money right away to generate their tourism revenue. Lovely!
La Boqueria Food Market
La Boqueria Food Market, for me, is like an oasis in a desert that saves us from hunger, thirst, and the boiling heat of Barcelona.
During those days in Europe, I got so accustomed to the atmosphere of supermarkets or CVSs where things are so organized, clean on duty, and some products are, understandably, quite expensive, namely fruit and vegetables. If I can eat as much tropical fruit as I want with a wide range of variety like mango, dragon fruit, watermelon, etc.. in my country, I just simply can’t afford them here. One mango can cost me around three euros, and with that money I can purchase around three kilograms of mango which are fresh, flavorful, juicy, mellow, and scrumptious.
Anyway, there is a reason why fruit here is pricey, and I can’t complain or change anything. Just have to take it or leave it. I pick a mango up, adoring its glossy skin, thinking about its melt-in-the-mouth flesh, giving it a second thought, and 9 out of 10 times, I put the mango back to where it belongs. I am traveling on a tight budget, so I will save those three euros for something else or perhaps a meal (not a fruit). I console myself with the thought that as long as I am back in my country, I’m gonna swim, eat and sleep in that heaven of fruit.
Because this is a food market, it surely has everything you can eat from seafood, fruit and vegetables, to meat, offal, spices, pastry, chocolate and nuts. However, there are certain things you should take into account.
- For pre-cut fruit and juice: They taste extremely good in the morning as they are cut and prepared in the morning. If you buy them in the afternoon, they are tasteless, often a little sour, and not fresh anymore (an entire day has passed)
- For pastry: They look so good, but I’m not sure if they all taste as good as they look. The one we tried are cold, oily outside, dry inside, flavorless, and expensive; the rest we don’t know. So, you decide! Walk pass those stands till the end and try food at the booth where it’s prepared after you order. It doesn’t take long.
- For chocolate and nuts: Yes please!!! They are a little costly, but some of them are really sick. We finished up a big bag of chocolate-covered nuts after we bought it and came back to buy more the next day. However, I think it would be wiser if you walk around to take a look at all those sweet stands (take free samples of all of them, haha) and check out prices! I would rather buy them at a small stand than a big one because I have more interactions with the seller who can show me what I should try. But at a big stand, I always feel like I need to hurry in making choices. ( I don’t even know what to choose ‘cuz I can’t sample them.) Then, I have to quickly pay or even worse, I keep friends waiting while I stand in a long line waiting to pay. It is so stressful 🙁
- For someone who needs a restroom (hihi), Palau de la Virreina next door has a free one. If searching from La Rambla street: swing by Palau de la Virreina, walk to the end, look to the right. If inside the market already: walk to the middle, turn right into Placa de Saint Galdric, look to the right: it’s the back door of Palau de la Virreina. The restroom is on the left.
Map for restroomMap for you here.
Map for restroomSo, I’m tellin’ ya, it’s all about La Boqueria Food Market. Find this post useful?
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AnhThy
AnhThy(Tea) started to travel at a very young age, but things get serious during her years living abroad where she was exposed to majestic nature and wonderful people from all walks of life. Apart from photography, writing becomes part of her life in which she relives all of the memories built up along the way, and in which she can become as many different characters as she always wants to be.
Following her journey to discover more of the personality that comes across in her work.
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