The Five Day Market

I've done a post on this before, but I figure since it's winter and I never leave the house, if I do leave the house I might as well take my camera.  Every five days there's an awesome market an I-Dong where you can get twice the food for half the price as E-Mart!  Seriously, E-Mart is terrifyingly expensive and if you can save some money by shopping at a market or at Costco, get on it.  I like this market because if it's fresh, they've got it.  Fish, meat, chicken, tofu so fresh it's still warm, kimchi, nuts, fruit, vegetables, weird popped rice snacks, everything.  I have to be honest, I almost never go, it's Sara who does the shopping, she's the best.  Now she's a regular, everybody knows her face and what she likes to buy.   If you do go to the market, make sure you go more than once.  The first couple of times you're there, you're likely to get slightly higher prices.  Keep going back every five days and you'll see those prices come down.  As always, here's 10 pictures and some foolish comments.

You've got to have the little wheelie cart to market right. How else are you going to carry all those potatoes and onions?

Every five days they set up these tents and tables and then tear it down. Four days a week it's a parking lot and then, it's a market.  

Almonds, peanuts, whatever those black beans are, they've got it. That thing of nuts probably costs 5,000 won. Although if the guy doesn't like your face, 10,000.  I usually pay 10,000.

Oranges are in.  The big deal are the ones from Jeju Island.  They have a special name. They're some tasty oranges.

Because shopping is hard, there are a ton of snacks.  Meat on a stick, and more meat on a stick. This is one of my favorite Korean street foods, but it is super messy to eat and I usually end up with fiery hot grease all over my clothes.

This is Sara's vegetable lady, she's got the best deals.  Plus she taught Sara all the Korean words for the vegetables, so that's cool.

Traditional medicine stuff is big here.  You can get something for everything. Here's some wood chips for weight loss.  There are remedies for everything, from decreasing weight size to increasing everything else.

Popped rice, I think, in a hundred different forms.  This is usually bar food, it goes well with beer. It just kind of disappears in your mouth when you eat it, and you just keep eating it, and drinking more beer.

Some more meat on a stick.  There was a whole crab in that red sauce.  

Sara ponders Kimchi.  We never get it at the market because it's incredibly potent when placed inside the fridge. Most people have their own little mini-fridges just for Kimchi, but we don't.