Bloomington Farmer's Market

On Saturday morning, we had the opportunity to attend the largest farmer's market in the state of Indiana. The Bloomington Farmer's Market was an awesome experience. I am familiar with farmer's markets because I have been working with a vendor at the Carmel farmer's market. This market had a lot of similarities as well as differences. Some similarities included the things that were being sold like produce and maple syrup.

Even though there were a lot of similarities between these two farmer's markets, there were some things that popped out to me as being unique. One of these things had to be Charlie, the best parrot I've ever met. Also the music scene was different. At my market, there is a single stage, and the music is broadcasted on speakers throughout the market. In Bloomington, there were various "stages" where artists just set up and did their thing which seemed more participatory than presentational. "Information Alley" was another thing that was unique to the Bloomington market. I was not expecting to see politicians at the market, this just goes to show that the Bloomington market is a big part of the Bloomington community. 

Some of the similarities included things that are common in most markets including fresh produce, ready to eat food, and music. I loved seeing that each farmer's has their own sense of community where buyers know the name of the farmers. It's great to see someone go up to a booth, and say "Hey! (name) gimme the same as we got last week it was really good!". That type of conversation is completely normal at the Carmel market and I like knowing that it's common here in Bloomington as well.

This is our map of the market showing the different sections and aspects of it. It was interesting to see that there were actually sections of the market, because in Carmel, everything is mixed in together. For example, the booth that I work at in Carmel sells flowers, produce, ice cream, frozen meats, and ready to eat food. There are a lot of similarities as well as differences but all in all they are both great experiences.