Downtown Friday Market in Tampa

TGIF- Indeed, thank goodness it’s friday. Time to hit up the outdoor market in downtown Tampa. If I weren’t skilled enough at eavesdropping on other people’s conversations, this would be yet another typical friday, with your requisite after-5 happy hour drinks at the bar.

But no, this isn’t going to be one of those fridays. This will be a hearty, healthy one — full of greeny-licious organic booty. The happy hour is from 10am to 2pm, outdoors, in a patch of green right in the heart of downtown Tampa. The market first opened back in Ocotber 2008, and is set to run tentatively until May 2009.  I simply adore the logo, which makes you think of citrus-scented orange farms and sunny days in Florida:

The logo was enticing enough for me to brave the “cold” and ( at 66°F, it’s chilly by Florida standards) venture outdoors to explore. Florida, being the agricultural state that it is, has the temperate climate to grow a variety of crops pretty much all-year round. Yet I am puzzled as to why locally-grown crops is not more accessible to your average Joe, or Jane. Shouldn’t this be one of the perks of living in an agricultural state — to have relatively easy access to local produce? I can very much empathize with one Chowhounder’s frustrations on the availability of local mangoes, for instance. That being said, it was with a mixture of anxiety and excitement that I strolled towards the market, in anticipation of what it had to offer.

It looks very similar to your typical weekend market with the nice white vendor tents. The atmosphere was very welcoming and laidback:

Colorful banners with my favorite logo were in the front, setting a casual yet festive mood:

There was a good variety of vendors. About a fifth of the enitre place was devoted to fresh produce — most of which looks to be locally grown, like the strawberries from Plant City. There’s a stall selling kettlecorn and boiled peanuts. Another selling british pies; One specializing in keylime sweets (yummy and tarty!) There was an Amish butter and German bread stand; A chocolate stand; A vegan stand selling oat patties, veggie burgers and other vegan treats; An ooh-la-la French patisserie; A sleek-looking spice booth, and there was even a booth selling healthy treats for your four-legged friend! There was a small corner for arts and crafts – like candles, ceramics and eco-friendly bags. Overall a great variety of vendors, I should say. I’d like to keep coming in the future and see the market grow to have more local produce. Below are some pictures I took. Enjoy!

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A Hindu Wedding

In a time and age where digital photography has become so accesible to everyone, one would think it should inevitably make life a lot easier and more eco-friendly. After all, organizing photos is just a click away, and there’ll be no more tons of paper wasted on unwanted prints, right?

I find it quite the opposite. I’ve been feeling this constant, nagging guilt from neglected pictures that sit in my digital camera’s SD card from the year before last. That’s right, circa 2007.  So, I finally decided to pull up a comfortable chair, get my tea ready (and get another pot going–yes, it is a long task ahead), and finally dig through the thousand-or-so pictures.

Voila! What a pleasant find — pictures of the wedding program my husband and I designed and made from scratch, for my sister in law. She was one of those lucky people who had two weddings at-a-time, a Hindu wedding, and the other one, a Catholic wedding. Both were equally beautiful. Theirs was a fall wedding, with plenty of vibrant oranges, scarlets and gold highlights.

The programs were laid out on the reception table for the Hindu ceremony.We used paper roses and red-dyed raffia to hold the programs together. Every single one was hand-tied and knotted.

..every single one was hand-knotted and assembled by hand..

The stage in the back was where the ceremony took place.

Heavy cream textured cardstock was used for the inside pages of the program.

It was so much fun doing the programs–all 120 of them! By the end, I had a much deeper appreciation of all things handmade… I am completely obssessed with paper –all kinds and colors–, and would have gone on to use different textures and maybe even some washi – Japanese paper – since Papersource has such a good selection of paper, including washi paper. However, the bride wanted to keep it simple, what with all the bright colors and patterns on the saris the bridal party was wearing.  It was truly special to have something handmade for a special occasion.

 

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