Sunday Market

Sunday morning. What comes to your mind as you read these words? Church. Dress up. Family time. Worship.

Before we came to Costa Rica these were the things that made up our Sunday morning. But for our family now, our weekly schedule looks very different.

Instead of going to Sunday morning church we go to Sunday Market.

Let me explain. For weeks we visited churches all across the San Jose region. After 4 attempts at various churches, some friends told us about a Vineyard church in an area of town called Escazu. The unique thing about this church was that the main weekend service is on Saturday nights. So one Saturday night we went. The worship was amazing, the preaching solid.  We had found our church.

But one of the most surprising things about finding this new church was what happened then on Sunday morning. All of a sudden, what was once a stressful time became a peaceful, delightful time of being at home with the girls doing nothing but have devotions, listen to worship music, spend time with friends and go to Sunday market.

Sunday market is amazing!  We have found Sunday market to be very fun and cultural. Here are some photos to show you what it is all about. Enjoy!

Color and design are everywhere.

Papya, pineapple, avocado, oranges and all the typical sorts of vegetables are available at this market. The girls have had cooking assignments where they had to cook a meal from the country they are studying in history.  Abi loves to cook as well as shop at Sunday market. She is a natural and everyone loves her.

Abigail, purchasing 'cas' for her Shephard Pie.

Flowers are very inexpensive so we try to keep some in our house as much as possible.

A banana seller.

Adundance!

 Along with the very common fruits are some that are very new to us. One of our favorites is the "mono chino," a small red fruit with a grape-like inside. It is very good and the girls have grown to like them.

Abi with a 'mono chino,'

Mono Chinos - chinese leeches

 The conversion rate of colones to dollars is 500 colones to 1 dollar. So here one bag of mono chinos is $2.

The squashes here are huge.

Mono chinos are like grapes inside with a big seed. Outside they are soft but prickly. 

Plantains are very popular and available in abundance.

 We are slowly but surely learning to cook the typical food here in Costa Rica. A typical meal always includes a rice dish such as gallo pinto, beans, plantains, a salad of some sort and a meat.

A busy day in the market.

Gabi wanted to buy herself a piggy bank. 

 Gabi is our money saver. She loves to work hard and save money. At the market we found some piggy banks that are traditional. The great thing about them is you have to crack it open to get your money out.

Huevos.

Grace and Abi are picking out onions for their meals.

We love Sunday market. It is so full of flavor, color, patterns and culture. It is truly a beautiful way to spend a Sunday morning. I am so often reminded of the verse, "Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good." At Sunday market we are experiencing just that -  in the life and culture of this beautiful country.