Just when you all thought we had done everything there was to do here (and, by the way, there is still SO much more to do), we ventured to the Mercado Central Fishmarket. There were literally thousands of people there, and I don't know how many fish. One would have assumed that the smell would be a problem in this mostly open air market, but the fish odor was minimal. I have never seen so many species of fish, and so many special things we in the US would consider harder to get. Strange crabs (so COLORFUL!) and urchins. There were barnacles that were alive with something that had pinchers, and urchins broken open to expose fleshy orange insides and octopus and eels. Some, well, I guess really ALL of the fish, were names we hadn't heard of, but these are pacific fish, so they might be called something else in the Atlantic. The tuna here, as well as salmon, has a different taste, as they say the pacific tuna is very strong in flavor. In the middle of the market area are a bunch of seafood restaurants. You tell them what you want, and they cook it fresh. From soups ("Don't ask what is in it- just eat it" was the suggestion from our friends about the fish soup) to baked or poached seafood of any kind. No fried fish. Period. There were men in front of each restaurant promoting theirs as "The Best". They would assure us that if we didn't like whet we ate, they would pay the bill themselves.
There is also a group of resident cats that clean up any raw bits left when the fishmonger hacks your choice to pieces. Not a bad deal. The cats looked happy.
I have included as many pictures as I can. The open air building was fascinating, and the young employees were all eager to pose for the blonde lady from Texas.
