I went shopping with the family a few days ago at a local mercado (market) here in Quito. Ecuador at times can be very expensive for certain items because of import tax. Example would be when I bought a Snickers and Twix bar that cost me $2.60. I thought I had heard the lady wrong and because of my limited Spanish I just handed her a $5 bill. When I got the change back I about cried because in the USA a candy bar like that would cost at worse $0.75. Asked Lucy about it and she said I didn’t get ripped off but that I had bought an import item and that’s Ecuador for ya.
So lesson learned was buy local products and you’ll save a ton of money. So Sunday I asked if we could go to a local market and buy some fresh veggies and fruits. 1) I need to work on my Spanish and start getting familiar with words and since you eat everyday food items are best to learn first. 2) I wanted to help out with the grocery bill for the house but also wanted my money to go far. They have big grocery stores like in the USA here in Ecuador but why pay high prices when you don’t have to? In the USA it’s hard to find a local produce market that will save you any money and be worth anything but in Ecuador you can get a ton of produce vs. buying it at the Super-Maxi grocery store here.
Since being in Ecuador I have eaten healthier in the last month compared to the last 10 years of my life. If I could only give up the cervezas here (beers only cost a $1 and their 1 liter big) I would be doing perfect. I guess some deals you just can’t say no to.
Below is what we got, all listed out (and pictured). Guess how much it would total in your country and see at the bottom of the picture what it costs here in Quito. If your total is higher (or cheaper) then leave a comment at the bottom of this post telling us what it would cost in your area. The bad thing is you can get it even cheaper at different markets if your willing to travel further out of Quito.
Fruits:
- Frutillas (Strawberries): 3 pounds
- Naranjillas (a sour fruit): 1 pound
- Mandarins: 1 pound
- Lemons: 1 pound
- Oritos (a small banana): 2 pounds
- Pinas (Pineapples): 2 pieces
- Papayas: 2 pieces
Vegetables:
- Cebollas (Onions): 1 pound
- Papas (Potatoes): 4 pounds
- Zanahoria (Carrots): 1 pound
- Pimientos (Green Peppers): 4 pieces
- Choclo (White Corn): 6 pieces
- Mote (White Corn Kernels): 1/2 pound
- Tomates (Tomatoes): 2 pounds
- Broccoli: 1.5 pounds
- Habas (Beans): 1 pound
- Lechuga (Lettuce): 1 pound
- Pepinillos (Cucumbers): 2 large pieces
- Tostado (Toasted Corn): 1/2 pound
Total Cost: about $20 USD
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