Mercado Central | Santiago | Chile

Despite the major setback of being robbed in Valparaiso, we forged on with the rest of our trip. Up next on our itinerary was the Uncorked Cooking Workshop. As it was the off season in Chile, we had the whole tour to ourselves and after our previous day, it was just what we needed!

We began our tour by meeting Eliana outside of the Mercado Central and had a tour of the local, fresh seafood. Each vendor had their own stall and and tried to entice the passersby. The lovely gentleman in the hat below told us the folk tales surrounding the historic space as we browsed the fish in his stall. We walked through the restaurant area and continued across the bridge to the other market areas.

Because it was a down time in terms of holidays requiring flowers, the next space we visited was rather empty but featured beautiful floral arrangements nonetheless.

We continued wandering through each of the other market stalls and saw new varieties of fruits and vegetables. Every time I visit a new open air market, it amazes me how many varieties of tomatoes and potatoes and peppers there are all over the world. And oh, the color! I can never get enough.

We purchased a few fresh items and headed back to the kitchen for our cooking class, which should definitely have a spot on your itinerary in Santiago. More on that in the next post!

Below: pumpkin tomatoes, dried seaweed (which is apparently a popular vegan protein substitute), black corn that is a staple of Peruvian cuisine and the coolest potatoes you've ever seen.