Open Market in Agia Paraskevi, Athens, on the Saint's Name Day

Today 26th July (2010) is the name day of Agia Paraskevi, one of the Christian Orthodox Saints we treasure in Greece. I leave in a house very near the Church in the Central Square of this suburb some 10 km northeast of Athens.

It is the custom to have an open market in the area around the church, so that the faithful will have the opportunity to shop after paying their respect to the Saint. This post has this open market as its subject.

It is early in the morning, the stalls have been erected, but most of them are closed.

The itinerant merchants are still asleep, after an exhaustive night.

This is one of the major roads of the suburb, Agiou Ioannou (Saint John’s), leading to a church up the hill. It is 9 o’clock in the morning, and some of the pedestrians have already started looking at the merchandise.

Not all merchants however need a van or a stall. The pavement is good enough.

Bracelets in abundance.

For the well endowed.

By the truckload.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

“Hi Honey, I am home! I bought you a couple of pounds of rings!”

Enterprising nuns…

No words…

Good friends from the puppet theater of Karagiozis.

Belly dancing costumes are looking for dancers.

Feng – Shui fountains for exceptionally good home environments.

Some dolls for the kids to play, while husband and wife enjoy the Feng – Shui fountain.

I better get and some honey fritters (loukoumades) for desert tonight.

Odd partners: Che next to PAO, my football team!!!

And flowers for the living room. And they last quite a lot.

Some bits and pieces for the house.

Time to go home now. See you next year.

A Visit to the Paleo Psychico Open Market, Athens, Greece

I recently visited the open market in Paleo Psychico, near Athens. It is one of the best  – albeit small – open markets in the metropolitan area and I have a good friend there. I have noticed her many years ago as her stall had “real” vegetables and herbs, not the ones I call “Barbie” stuff. She is always ready to discuss a recipe, the latest developments in the country, or her daughters’ trip to Edinburgh.

 

My good friend
My good friend

I have been going to this market for years, although not regularly, as my job does not give this luxury.  

 

Carrots from my friends stall
Carrots from my friends stall

I hope these photographs of carrots and aubergines express what I mean by “real” as opposed to “Barbie” vegetables. 

 

Aubergines duo
Aubergines duo

 

Vlita - Βλήτα
Vlita - Βλήτα

My friend uses only natural fertilizers in her fields. The Vlita are tender and juicy, but most of all, tasty!

 

Hot peppers
Hot peppers

These babies are really hot! I was told that the best way to eat them is to preserve them. Here is how: bake them, take the skin off, and then can them in olive oil. I will try it this weekend, to see what comes out.

 

Real tomatoes
Real tomatoes

But before I try the preservation of hot peppers, I will try the preservation of tomatoes! I announced it to my friend that I will try to preserve her tomatoes, and that she will need to try the result. She accepted the challenge, so the clock has started clicking. There will be a separate post on the preservation of tomatoes!

As I was talking to my friend, a customer came about, grabbed one tomato and smelled it. He then put it back and left. I was surprised, because I know that the only way to smell a tomato is to cut her in half and then smell the flesh.

 

Basket Seller from Liviadia
Basket Seller from Liviadia

One of the most attractive features of the open market is that it attracts various sellers, and here comes one of them. He comes from Livadia, 100kms nortwest of Athens, and makes the baskets himself. I could not resist the temptation, and I bought the one with the handle for 10 EUROS.

 

Lemons and omelette
Lemons and omelette

A few stalls down the road is a lemon seller from the area of Corinth. I caught the moment when the nearby snack bar’s delivery girl was delivering an omelette.  As you can see although it is early for lemons, they are quite big and juicy! Nothing compared to the plastic things they import from Argentina and sell as lemons!

 

Grapes Seller
Grapes Seller

This lady also comes from the area of Corinth and sells grapes and olive oil. 

 

Colourful lettuce
Colourful lettuce

 

This comes from Pkistan
This comes from Pakistan

This baby comes from Pakistan. My friend got the seeds from her Pakistani friends. It is sweet and tastes like a white pumpkin. Apparently it is delicious with chicken, due to its light taste. Unfortunately I am not clear about its name. It is something like “opo”.

 

Stamnagathi - Σταμναγκάθι
Stamnagathi - Σταμναγκάθι

This is the famous “stamnagathi”, a weed that grows on the island of Crete, and has therapeutic properties. It costs 14 EUROS per kilo.