"The produce market smelled so bad today I almost hurled. Nice." Yes, this is my life in China.
However, before you feel too sorry for me, I do have to say that this doesn't happen very often. Mainly because I'm a wimp and stay away from those places as much as possible. As a former vegetarian who still hates to cook meat, I can barely stomach shopping at places that have slabs of meat laying around. And smelly meat - no way!!
Yes, I usually shop at the most "western" grocery store possible - Tesco. It's (mostly) clean, has chicken breasts wrapped in plastic, and good yogurt. And unless you are near the durian (it's a smelly fruit) or the fish tank, it doesn't smell! It's a bit more expensive than the "local" markets, but I accept that trade-off. Some friends accuse me of avoiding the "real China." I'm ok with that.
But, lest you think my Tesco shopping trips are "normal".... there are still slabs of meat hanging in the aisle, platters of chicken heads (just in case you didn't get enough heads with your regular chickens?), and live frogs and turtles. I've learned to just walk by and not look.
Here are a few pictures(taken with my phone in a hurry, sorry for the quality).
Slabs of meat at Tesco:
Chicken heads at Tesco:
So, if I can shop at Tesco, why was I at the stinky produce market??? It's a small, local market in the town closest to our house - I just needed a few fruits and veggies, so instead of making the 30 minute trip into town, I decided to go to the local market. Last time I went was a few months ago. You think it would smell worse in the heat of the summer, eh? Nope! In the summer, they open all the doors, so the smell escapes. In the winter, they keep the doors covered with very thick blankets, so the smell just stays and stays and stays (until it's strong enough to make me hurl).
When I got a whiff as I walked in, I almost turned back (should've), but I stuck it out, bought my carrots and bananas, and skedaddled. Lesson learned.
Just another day in China.
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