a malaysian abroad

Welcome to Part One (of Two) of a malaysian abroad’s participation in this iteration of World Blog Surf Day! If you’re following the chain, you probably got here from Emmanuelle, who wrote about 5 Ways Food Can Boost Your Expat Social Life.  Hi!!

From NASA, Public Domain

[A tip of the hat to Hospitalera who started it all, to Sher who is organising it this time around, and to Anastasia Ashman (Thandelike) who is our Twitter reporter for this edition of World Blog Surf Day. Anastasia is an American cultural producer based in Istanbul, and is a creator of Expat Harem, the anthology of foreign women about modern Turkey. Her Tweetstream focuses on women, travel and history, and she shares resources for writers/travelers, expats, Turkophiles & culturati of all stripes.]

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Here in Chicago, you wouldn’t know we’re almost halfway through the year, and that official summertime is only slightly over a week away - the weather has been unseasonably cold!  But summer it is, and for World Blog Surf Day I’d like to highlight one of the many events Chicagoans look forward in tandem with the warm weather: the Farmers Markets!

Although some start in May, most Farmers Markets start in June, and run weekly until the end of October.  There are no Farmers Markets on Mondays or Fridays.  The exception is the Farmers Market at the Museum of Science and Industry, held fortnightly on the 1st and 3rd Friday of the month in the Museum’s East parking lot.

[image source]

So, what can you expect to find at a Farmers Market?  Well, its objective is essentially to provide residents of the City of Chicago with access to fresh, locally-produced fruits, vegetables, plants and flowers…  While prices of these products might be comparable to what you might find at the neighbourhood generic grocery store, the pull here is the guaranteed freshness, and the fact that you’re helping the local economy.  These Farmers Markets are thus a boon to locavores.

Just how many markets are there?  I count 37 (*wink* at Clerks fans) in this brochure, spread over 20 neighbourhoods. I find it fantastic that four of them are conveniently and thoughtfully located in the heart of downtown, on Tuesdays or Thursdays, thus really making local produce accessible to folk who might otherwise not have the time or opportunity to make their way to their own neighbourhood markets.

I sheepishly admit that I haven’t officially visited a Farmers Market before.  I have walked through Daley Plaza during a Farmers Market day without stopping to really look around and explore its offerings…

This is why I’m doing a Part Two!

The Printers Row Farmers Market starts today… and that is just a stone’s throw away from where I’ll be in the morning!  So just for you, dear World Blog Surf Day, I’ll be making my way to that parking lot at Dearborn & Polk, in order to provide you with an up close and personal look at one of Chicago’s many Farmers Markets.  I should have that post up by 3pm Chicago time today, so please come on back for Part Two, k?

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In the meantime, I now pass the food torch over to Ivanhoe, a Czech currently living in Ohio USA, who writes about some of the Czech food she craves and misses.  Please click on through and say hi, k?

… and remember to come back for Part Two!!

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