To market, to market

It used to be that Saturdays were the only market day for me. I would get somewhat dressed and then cross Ayala Avenue to Salcedo Park. There, I would buy cooked food from several booths – Bessie Cruz’s, the pritchon and roast duck guys, the Laurel Mamas, the Thai kitchen and, occasionally, the Chinese lumpia vendors. Then I would buy fruit – mangoes, lanzones, lately lychees, and coffee once a month. On my way out, I would always stop to buy one flowering plant. Last Saturday it was a tangerine rose, so pretty on my porch. It was the first-year anniversary of the Salcedo Park market last Saturday. Noise was added by a band. There were so many people milling and shopping around. That market was established by the Bel-Air Village Association’s youth arm. It has done wonderfully well in its first year.

But what was the market I saw open on Independence Day? It was less than a block from where I live now, at the parking lot bordered by Legaspi, Salcedo, and Gamboa streets. I was on my way to somewhere early when I saw the white tents up, but I could not stop. I made it a point to drop in the following week.

It calls itself the Sunday Market @ Legaspi Park, to make it look like an e-mail address. It is run by the San Lorenzo Village Association, whose chair is a charming young man, Mr. Santiago. The tone of the new market is slightly different from the Saturday one. It features more restaurants. Kusina ni Maria, was there, and Bollywood, Larry Cruz’s latest restaurant on the third floor of Greenbelt 3, was also there. He gave me biryani and lamb curry, a delicious mix that I had for lunch on Monday. I had it with mango chutney from Blue Kitchen. It was delicious, Larry.

Many other restaurants, whose names, thanks to my stroke, I forget. Some were also at the Saturday market. There are many empty tables now though I suspect that will change as this market grows. There was Rosemarie Hugo selling Tita Becky’s cakes, definitely a plus over Salcedo Park. Mara Pardo de Tavera has also moved her organic market over. I used to enjoy her organic market when it was near Max’s, but when it moved to the Garden Square, the smell drove me dizzy and I stopped going. It was great to discover the ethnic wares, the candles and soaps, and the hand-painted clothes that were there still. There is something about seeing people you bought from before once again.

I saw a booth selling T’Boli things. Since I have enough of the necklaces and earrings, I thought about the black and white blouses I had seen. They had a few though not yet on display. "How much?" I asked. "Three thousand," they said. "That is expensive," I said. "It’s for a school at Lake Sebu," they said. Well, I have been in marketing 32 years. Nothing irritates me more than a little boy selling sampaguita who asks me to please buy so he can buy food because he is so hungry. Ma’am, he whines continuously, please, I need to buy food then go home. I rap sharply on the glass three times for him to leave. My reason? It is terrible marketing. You do not ask anyone to buy anything just to keep you alive. No one has that obligation except your parents. Why don’t you ask them to keep you alive? They have no money? Tough! You can ask me to buy that sampaguita by telling me it will make my car more fragrant, how wonderful the scent of fresh jasmine is. Then I will buy it, will budget P20 every so many days to keep my car smelling good, but not just to give you food. I cannot give all the people who need food money any money. Why make life more difficult for me?

In a way, that incident on the blouse led me to think about the little sampaguita children. Would I spend so much on a blouse to support a faraway school? Why am I buying the blouse in the first place? Maybe it will look good on me, fit me well, keep me cool, make me look glamorous. If it did all that well, I would pay the price you want. But if it will support a school for the T’Boli’s, let me bring out my list of causes. Oops, I’m sorry, but T’Boli is not among the top 10. Maybe sampaguita is. And remember, I was chairman and president of Coca-Cola Foundation Philippines Inc. once, so I know what I’m talking about. You must have a strategy that works.

At mid-morning, ten-ish, there are just a few people around. Well, it is also just the second time the market opened, only the beginning. There are plant stores, but the people don’t seem to be as friendly as the ones at Salcedo Park. Yes, that is the difference, I feel. The people, or maybe the layout, appear to be less chaotic, less friendly. I will give it time to grow. For now, I will just play it by ear. Definitely, I will go to the Salcedo Market on Saturdays and then maybe I will return to buy some fruit at the Sunday market. The fruit lady was very friendly. I will go back to see her.

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