Another Sunday Experience

So for my second blog of the day:
This morning my mom, Josefa, invited me to go with her and Alfredo (my tico dad) to the Ferria (What we know as a "Farmer's Market") to buy all of their vegetables for the week. I jumped at the chance both to spend more time with my parents and to experience another aspect of "everyday life" here in San Jose. We arrived in the heat of traffic around 11:30 this morning and came upon the largest Ferria I have yet seen. It spanned an entire square block with rows and rows of vendors selling every kind of fruit, vegetable, meat, juice and lottery ticket. As soon as we got there I was regretting my decision to leave my camera behind.
Right away we came upon a booth selling Pipas. Alfredo turned to me and asked me if I would like one. I had no idea what a Pipa was, so of course my response was "Sure!" I've learned that it is better to error on the side of trying everything, than on the side of missing out on what could be the most delightful party of the taste buds. The Pipa was a round green object, slightly smaller than a bowling ball. Upon hearing that I would like one, the vendor took one of the Pipas from his stack and whipped out a machete. He then whacked off the top, put a straw in it, and handed it to me. I looked at my dad with wide eyes and he just laughed and said, "Pipa es muy rica" - Coconut milk is very delicious. Indeed it was. I then proceeded to follow my parents around the super crowded Ferria holding a giant coconut with a straw thinking "I just need some plastic swords with fruit, a couple of mini-umbrellas and a lawn chair, and I would have it made!". It was a very fascinating experience to watch my parents haggle over the price of tomatoes, pineapples, cabbage, blackberries, and potatoes. My dad would stop every few booths and point to some new fruit that I had never seen before and slowly pronounce the name until I said it correctly. They are so patient with me :)
I hope in the next couple of weeks I will have the chance to go with them again so that I can get some video of the exaggerated farmer's market to share with you all.