To Market, To Market

Girl and Hens - Kerikeri Market

The farmer's markets have become an integral part of New Zealand life in recent times; in many ways a harking back to much earlier days before the advent of general stores and supermarkets.

The appeal of them is that they tend to have much fresher and cheaper produce than the supermarkets, and home-baked goodies are very tempting.

This morning we paid a visit to the Sunday Farmer's Market in Kerikeri where we are staying for a few days.  The town and its environs are well know for the abundance of citrus and sub tropical fruits that thrice here.

Add to this wineries and macadamia nuts, boutique cheese operations, peace and tranquility and you get the general idea of why celebrities like Michael Crawford buy into the area.

Chilies -  Kerikeri Market

Nature' Bounty - Kerikeri Market

Makeshift Showers And Rain For Hours

It is perhaps fitting that our last ramble along Orchard Road should culminate with a food fair; not an unusual occurrence in Singapore.

We navigated our way under the eaves of available buildings as the rain was both long and heavy. With one small umbrella between us we had to wait on the porch of Lucky Plaza until the rain eased.

Watching the lengthy taxi queue snake its way along Orchard road was entertainment in itself.

The weather has been quite unseasonal. June and July are usually hot months but this year they have been very wet and the trend continues.

This rain must be playing havoc with the showering arrangements of foreign workers in Mandai who, according to the Electric New Paper, have been living in shipping containers and using "makeshift showers created out of water tanks and pipes which snaked along the length of the canal"

Our mission late morning took us to Takashimaya's centre court where row after row of earnest sales staff cajoled us to try abalone macadamia, D24 durian ice-cream and other challenging delights.  For the record the ice-cream was delicious.

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