First-time inside Cambodia’s markets

…with interesting finds!

When the third blog carnival of the Lonely Planet blogsherpas rolled out, hosted by Orange Polka Dot I picked from among my travels which best suited the topic of interesting finds in a market I’ve visited abroad. I browsed through my photos and I remembered a trip I made last year, when I visited four cities and three countries in Southeast Asia.

For four days that I stayed in Cambodia, I happen to get inside three or four markets. Right after we checked-in in our hotel in Siem Reap my friends and I walked the length of Pokambor Avenue as we headed to the Old Market to find some souvenir items.

Going from stall to stall, we got into the food section of the market. Vegetables, fruits, root crops, spices, and other raw food materials were placed side by side. As we went further, something suddenly caught our attention. We took a closer look and saw fried crickets, bugs, and tarantulas sold by some of the vendors. There are bizarre things seen in Philippine markets but I haven’t found anything like these back home. Or, maybe I haven’t explored enough.

When we were en route to Phnom Penh, we again found the same kind of food sold in the market during our stopover. We were tempted to try the fried arachnids but as we would still be on the road for hours, we didn’t want to gamble with it.

It’s interesting to observe a country’s culture just by visiting its market. Vendors have their way of selling their stuff and shoppers have their respective styles in choosing their goods. Haggling is often a common practice in marketplaces.

Although markets may sometimes sell the same kind of stuff from one country to another, there are some variations when it comes to food products since they rely on their respective produce and the demands of their populace. Calamansi, which is widely used in the Philippines to enhance the flavor of food, could not be found in other countries. I had to substitute it with lemon when I lived in Jakarta. Singapore, known for its chili crabs, sells food flavoring for this kind of menu. Sugarcane juice is sold fresh in Manila markets, but I was able to buy one in tetra pack at Kuala Lumpur.

Often the difference does not stop there. While metropolitan cities have malls and air-conditioned grocery stores selling food products that are tightly sealed and heavily branded, other smaller cities and towns have open-air market, often just stalls arranged by the side of the road, with their goods displayed for everyone to see, touch, smell and inspect.

So, next time you stop by a foreign place, take a good look at the products sold in its markets or grocery stores. You might find something unusual to bring home with you.