Peace Corps Philippines: Grocery Shopping

No matter what happens the rest of the week. I can always count on Market Day to make me feel productive.

Market Day is a specified day of the week where the town market is the most active. In Laua-an, Market day is on Tuesday and the public market transforms into a small metropolitan city. Vendors from other towns come to sell their products. You can find almost anything on this day. Fish, chicken, baked goods, salt, brooms, tsinelas (flip flops), and toys are all available on Tuesday.

The market is open 7 days a week and fruits, vegetables and rice are available for purchase, however, on non-market days   the prices are inflated and there are fewer vendors which limits the variety of produce. 

A common part of the market day experience is haggling. This is when you bargain for cheaper prices. For example, eggs are priced by piece so if you purchase a large amount you can get discount on the final price.

What you see here is a weeks worth of groceries, minus a few specialty items which requires an hour and a half bus ride to the provincial capital. This may not seem like a ton of food but there are other things not pictured. This is just what I buy on market day.

Are you wondering how much it all costs? Lets take a look.

Eggs are sold by the piece meaning you can purchase 1 single egg. Peppers, Cucumbers, Garlic and Okra are also sold by the piece. I will list the price for the individual items in the local currency, Philippine Peso (Php) and then provide the grand total in both Pesos and U.S. Dollars

Exchange Rate: 1 US Dollar ($)  = 44 Philippine Peso (₱) 

10 Regular Eggs                                                                          ₱50

2 Red Peppers                                                                             ₱2

2 Cucumbers                                                                               ₱15

3 Cloves of Garlic                                                                       ₱15

6 Pieces of Okra                                                                          ₱10

1 Kilogram of Tomatoes (Appx. 20)                                       ₱30

1 Kilogram of Potatoes (Appx. 7)                                            ₱130

1 Bunch of Bananas                                                                   ₱30

1/4 Kilogram of Kalamansi                                                      ₱20

1/2 Kilogram of Onions                                                            ₱15

2 Bags of Black Beans                                                               ₱20

Grand Total:                                                           ₱327/$7.43

Not Shown but frequently purchased

1 Kilogram Mangos                                                                      ₱70

1 Watermelon                                                                                ₱60

Market Day

Non-Market Day

My Pinoy readers would say this post is incomplete because rice is missing from my grocery list.

Would you shop for your groceries by the week?

- The Natural Travelista