Australia and Tasmania: Night Market

This is the Melbourne Night Market. At first glance, one could assume that the primary attractions are greasy food and clever t-shirts.

Nice to see gangs of motorbike riders on this side of the Earth too. They look a bit cleaner and friendlier than their American counterparts.

Check out those huge boxes of vegetable oil. Make way for greasy food!

… And clever t-shirts!

My mission, as given to me by the locals, was to attend the Night Market and procure a sausage-inna-bun. At first I thought I was out of luck…

… But then I found a booth with plenty for sale.

Sitting around on the ground chomping food is apparently a Night Market tradition. Can do!!

The evening’s entertainment was a klezmer/gypsy band hailing from Russia. Hey look; more redheads!

The performance included a traditional wedding dance.

It was a fun way to spend an evening, and it got me thinking about all the things that I would insist a foreign visitor go see if they were staying in Oakland. One of the local farmer’s markets? A ride in Bike Party? A walk around Lake Merritt? The botanical gardens? These are all things that I enjoy as a local, and in that way they constitute both local color, and a good time in general.

But then I thought about what happens when I go traveling: Often there are small, surprising experiences that affect me in ways no one could predict. A local might direct me to an event like the Night Market, knowing I could enjoy things as they do, but what about my own biases and history?

When I visited New York I was told, “You’ve got to see something on stage here. It’s a classic and unique New York experience.” With help from my sister and our hosts, I got to see Les Miserables live on stage, and I enjoyed that for sure. But one of the most insightful experiences I had there was when I got up in the morning seeking breakfast, and walked in the deep shadow of the towering buildings for less than half a block before I ran into sidewalk deli that was crammed so full of produce and candy and drinks and papers that there was hardly room to breathe inside, and a guy in a suit was having an animated conversation in Italian with the guy behind the counter.

That little experience gave me a sense of uniqueness of place, and of history, and of my own limitations, all at once, and I remember it just as clearly as I remember anything about my time in New York.

As a local, well-established in your own environment, what are the experiences that you can recommend for visitors that are not just a good time, not just impressive or unique, but are truly insightful? Experiences that might lead a visitor to some new personal understanding?

Tough question!