Written by Ashley:

Over the weekend, Nisheet and I decided to check out the Saturday Morning Market in St. Petersburg. We had heard a lot of good things about it including a co-worker of Nisheet’s who said “I hate going there because my wife spends soo much money there.” I took that to mean it was an awesome farmer’s market. So I checked to make sure we had lots of cash on hand and headed that way. There was a bit of confusion before we found it. You see, unlike in the Midwest, summer is the off-season for farmer’s markets in Florida (who knew?), so the market is smaller and located in a shadier area.  It was cute and charming, but it was a definite let down for me when compared to the massive farmer’s markets of Chicago.  One positive was this amazing Key Lime popsicle that I got from a cute little cart called Pop Craft.  Maybe it was the blistering heat and humidity but my boiling soul was instantly cooled off with each lick of the frozen confection. All in all, because of all the rave reviews, I was just expecting something more. Perhaps we will give it another shot this winter.

Afterwards we wandered over to the St. Pete Pier (aka The Pier). It has been in the news a lot recently since we moved here because the city just got permission to demolish it. It was built in the 1970’s and has a giant brightly colored upside down pyramid at the end of it. Supposedly the odd building used to house an aquarium and restaurants among other things. I’m not clear on the details, but The Pier was closed in 2013 with promises of a new city-front attraction. Over two years later they are finally demolishing it and have plans for what looks to be an awesome “Pier Park” with a tram, biking/walking paths, fishing spots, and restaurants.

On our way home, we ran across the highlight of the day. TRADER JOE’S! You know the old saying “Don’t know what you got ’till it’s gone”? Well I didn’t realize how lucky I was with respect to grocery stores until I moved to Florida. You probably think I’m ridiculous and silly for obsessing over grocery stores, but it’s true. I was absolutely spoiled in Chicagoland. My local grocery store Mariano’s had organic everything for reasonable prices and had a huge variety of ethnic foods. So seeing Trader Joe’s was like seeing a dear old friend. I had to stop and grab the essentials: organic virgin coconut oil, kale & butternut squash pizza, organic fruit, sparkling French berry lemonade, and peach moscato!

 

What’s something you miss when you are away? Do you miss a particular food or a grocery store? An activity found only in your hometown? Comment below!