The mere mention of the town of Lewes brings forth a string of
memories of my time in England during my University days there. An emotion,
that I am pretty sure would be shared by quite a few of my housemates and
friends who used to frequent this market every month on a Saturday.
My housemate and a good friend in University who was from Thailand
introduced me to the Lewes farmer market. She was a major food enthusiast and I
believe still is. A random visit to this place on a Saturday morning when I had
practically nothing to do struck a life-long interest in local culture and food
and for which, I am heartily grateful to her.
Lewes – a quaint little town in Sussex and short train ride from
Falmer village – near University of Sussex reminds you of the quintessential
English Village with small cobbled streets, greens and houses. A short walk
from the station and you end up in a street that for the better part of the
morning has been taken over by locals to market their home grown, homemade
produce. The street by itself isn’t long and its really a rather small market
as compared to some of the other markets I have been to but this one has a
charm that I have yet to experience in the other places. Its almost cosy and
warm – if that term could be applied to a market. Not to forget the fact that
it was my first ever experience of a local farmers market and first experiences
are hardly ever forgotten.
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| Lewes |
The visuals filled my senses almost instantly. The colours, sights
and smells – I can still remember as they were then. The shop selling fresh
homemade preserves and marmalades, to another selling homemade mustard and honey, to another gentleman selling fresh breads to
another shop selling homemade aromatherapy soaps and similar paraphernalia –
all of these had something memorable to offer.
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| Handmade Preserves and Marmalades |
My particular favourite was the Orange marmalade, Strawberry jam and the Lemon Curd being sold. These were to die for. Chunky bits of fruit made this a wholesome treat with no synthetic feel that would generally be found in the store bought jams and preserves. The lemon curd was a sweet and tart mix that I was completely ignorant of. It was on one of these trips that my Thai friend introduced me to it and got me addicted to this simple treat that subsequently used to find way in my bakery experiments and even do today. ( Of course, today - I make my own lemon curd but I learnt quite a lot form my experiences at these markets)
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| Handmade Aromatherapy Soaps |
The smiles of the gentleman
behind the honey counter or the talk with the lady selling potted plants
and flowers – all of these imprinted my memory with a sense of being one of
them and understanding what made them do what they did. It wasn’t always for
the money. It was about meeting new people, making new friends or just catching
up with the old ones already present.
Local fruits, vegetables and breads, toys and trinkets were some of
the other stuff marketed. We usually went for the food part and occasionally for
the potted plants. Strolling along the cobbled pathways, discovering new
sights, understanding the people – all of these has contributed vastly to what
my understanding is of local cultures across the world today.
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| Shop selling honey |
It’s been almost 8 years since my first brush with the Lewes Farmer
market but the visuals, sights and sounds of the market still thrive in my mind
even today. These local markets sometimes are the best places to understand
local culture, mindset and behaviour. The articles, food etc. made and
marketed, the people selling them and their manner of approach – all add to the
experience and understanding of the local culture of that place.
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| At the Lewes farmer market |
Having bit by the local market bug after the Lewes market, I usually
make it a point to raid a local market any place I travel to. These are the
best places to pick up local culture as opposed to merely travelling around the
places and visiting the touristic monuments.
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