Two farmers markets in three days – quite an adventure.
I arrived at my first farmers market ever. Not knowing what to expect, I walked onto that street ready to take it all in.
The adventure started off at the Concord Farmers Market located on Capitol Street in downtown Concord.
The atmosphere was warm and friendly, with new and old faces in the crowd. “You really get to know your regulars and what they will want to buy from you,” said Brenda Towle of Molly Lane Kitchen.
As I strolled up and down the street, I felt like a lost puppy not knowing where to start and where to end. The first thing I noticed was the sounds of singers filling the air. Then I made my way over to a booth that sold various fruit and vegetables.
As a first-timer to the farmers market, I didn’t know what to expect.
“My advice is to walk up and down the whole street, looking and tasting samples in order to find what you’re interested in,” Towle explained to me.
Some of the vendors have been at the market for 10 or more years, and for some of the others, it’s their first time there themselves.
Vendors like Towle and Maydene Koppel have been attending the farmers market selling their goodies for a long time. Brenda sells a wide variety of jams, and Maydene sells all kinds of dog treats.
Others, like Kirsten Anderson and Lior Sadh, have only attended for a few years. Anderson sells various vegetables, while Sadh sells herbs.
All in all, I learned a lot about the all the different aspects of a farmers market, and was ready to take on another one.
Now for the second one of the day, the Penacook Farmers Market located at Rolfe Homestead, 11 Penacook St.
This time with a little experience under my belt, I didn’t quite look like a lost puppy that wandered the crowd. I now knew to walk up and down taking in the sights of the place before doing anything else.
I was greeted by the sweet sound of singers entertaining the crowd, and the friendly faces of enthused vendors.
I made my way to all of the booths to stop and admire their setup.
This farmers market is a little smaller, but it still carried the same warm and inviting feeling that the other market gave.
The vendors here had only been coming to this market for a few years.
They take pride in what they have to offer their customers. Keith Descoteaux offers a wide variety of fruits and two kinds of syrup.
Jannet King sells many kinds of soaps. “Making these soaps is a creative process,” she said. And she loves doing it. I just had to buy one for myself.
“There are many good things to buy at a farmers market, and getting to share your product is quite exciting,” King said.
As my journey of two markets in three days came to a close, I had discovered the beauty of joining the community in the adventure of finding delicious and new things to try.
