MEDIUM RARE
Jullie Y. Daza
First of all, there are five different meanings of market, but for our purposes market refers to “palengke” in the vernacular, that is, a place to buy goods and stuff, or merchandise of a particular type such as meat, fish, vegetables.
Trade Secretary Fred Pascual introduced himself to the marketgoers and vendors in the public market of Marikina last week, a time-honored ritual observed by his predecessors, none of them a woman. (Curious, considering women are more sensitive to price issues and consumer satisfaction.) Following tradition, Secretary Pascual’s “ikot” or tour of the palengke was meant to assure the public that DTI has its eye on prices, accurate weighing scales, maybe even cleanliness and health protocols. A pity he did not extend his visit to Marikina’s shoemakers.
I wish men would go marketing with a basket slung on one arm. The few men I see in the palengke carry nothing more than a thin-sheeted plastic bag. Nonetheless, check out the markets in Jakarta and Budapest and they look the same as the ones in Hong Kong and Manila; only the degree of their spotlessness makes the difference.
To the market or the mall? I’m not pushing for Divisoria – a marketplace large enough to be its own district – for there as a terminal, they have everything a mall should have, plus a supermarket. It used to be fun when haggling was the law, but nowadays streetwise vendors won’t budge from their “fixed price.” Watch the throngs doing their Christmas shopping – how they’re enjoying it, crowds and all!
To each his own.
My mother-in-law did her marketing in Paco though she lived in Quezon City. For her familiarity with the place, she said, and trust in the old, reliable vendors. My mother also lived in Quezon City but it was her practice to visit the butcher’s shop in Ongpin for the freshest meat cuts at the best prices. The real reason, I suspected, was the shopping she inserted into the exercise, buying siopao, jewelry, sweets, etc. with her sisters.
Three days after Secretary Pascual’s market day, I saw him at a happy birthday party, where the power of bling-bling made it irrelevant to bring out inflation and SRP, please, not even as a conversation starter.