By Thomas Thorspecken
My friend Stella P. Alberaéz Tascón and I went to sketch and shop at the Webster Westside Flea Market. This produce sales area is just a fraction of what can be found at the market. We set up on and near a wooden bench.
Stella’s little grey dog, Boo Boo was a star attracting the attention of so many patrons who were entering the market. He would stretch out the leash to get all the attention and pets. Stella remarked that she heard the faint barking of dogs, but I couldn’t hear a thing.
The stand we were sketching has been at the market for three generations. There were green peppers, cucumbers, green beans and other assorted fresh produce. Some of the sellers had thick southern accents which they played up.
With our sketches complete we began to shop. Stella had a little granny cart which saved us the trouble of carrying so many bags of vegetables. I got some bananas, apples and Stella introduced me to three Colombian fruits, Tamarind, Passion Fruit and Mamey, also known as Zapote. I now have a jar of Tamarind which comes in brown pea shaped pods. The fruit is delicious, being a deep red and having a sharp and sweet taste. Mamey is an amazing sweet snack, being bright yellow inside with soft edible seeds and the passion fruit is bright orange inside and easily scooped up with a spoon. Stella, who was born in Colombia, and came to America when she was 15, explained that you could have a different fruit every day of the year in Colombia and never run short of varieties.
Next to these market stalls there were many young puppies for sale in cages. Some pups looked playful while other looked like they were desperate to escape. Behind all these stalls is a vast array of stalls called the Swaporama, for flea market items. I haven’t explored this area yet. I am imagining it is like Renninger’s in Mount Dora but multiplied by 10. I enjoy shopping at this market where you can get fruit at a fraction of what you would pay at Publix. There is also an area of a cattle auction which I hope to return to and sketch.