Typical Peruvian Street Market

While Beverly was teaching her music lesson at the church in La Oroya two weeks ago, I (Scott) wondered to the nearby street market because no one came for my Book of Mormon class. La Oroya (12,200 ft) is a famous mining and refinery city in the central highlands and is well known for its polluted air. Nevertheless, it has bright, colorful street makets similar to the mercados found throughout the Peruvian highlands.

Here a woman sells her flowers, which come from Tarma:


This stand specializes in fruits, many of whose names I don't know in English or Spanish. I did recognize bananas, mangos, limes, and pineapples:


This woman has fresh fruits and vegetables from the nearby farms. Here you can see tomatoes, red peppers, hot peppers, apples, grapes, onions, and limes:


These women have huge sacks of the numerous species of potatoes grown in Peru:

I chatted with this 69-year-old merchant for about twenty minutes and invited him to church. He was as charming as his face shows in this pictures:

The man's wife is shown here. She looks angry, but she's just trying to get the attention of a fellow worker for some change. Her apron serves as her cash register and the pouch hanging around her neck holds a cell phone:

Farther into town, this colorful market sells everything you can think of---fruits, vegetables, clothing, electronics, hardware, etc.:

I love the sights, sounds, and smells (usually) of these Peruvian markets.