For fun today, I thought I'd take you shopping in Nueva Gorgona, Panama. Fish and seafood shopping to be specific.
Of course in Panama, you can get your seafood at the big chain groceries stores, like in North America.
But why would you, when you can walk down the beach to the local fish market and buy it right off the boat?
Today, the Gorgona market's little more than a few tiny houses and a bunch of fishermen returning from a busy night on the water. There's also a little restaurant serving fresh fried fish, but mostly catoring to the locals.
At one time, not long ago, the Gorgona fish Coop had a building you could visit for buying your fish and seafood. But that changed when a wicked storm combined with high tides and enormous waves tore the concrete building to shreds, leaving it as a crumbling ruin a couple of years ago.
These days, fisherman heave their catch ashore, where they pack them into plastic milk crates. After a long haul up the beach, and a steep hill of decrepit steps and tattered asphalt they’re loaded into pickup trucks with big coolers in the back.
If you’re vigilant watching for the returning boats though, you can intercept them before they've even hit shore, for the freshest seafood imaginable.
$2.50 / lb gives you delicious corvina (sea bass). Its delicate white flesh doesn't even show a hint of fishy flavor and melts in your mouth either on the barbecue or in the frying pan.
For the more gourmet-inclined, $7.00 / lb delivers succulent langostinos (prawns) the size of lobsters, just waiting for your lemon and butter.
From Pompano to Pargo (Red Snapper) each day brings new surprises to your pallet. They'll even filet or clean your catch for an extra 50 cents.
Nueva Gorgona is only one of a number of fish markets dotting the Pacific Beach area of Panama. San Carlos and Farallon have small ones, and there is a large distributor on the Panamerica Highway just outside of Rio Hato.
The Rio Hato market has a number of vendors inside. It's like a smaller version of the Mercado del Marisco (seafood market) in Panama City, minus the boats.
But there's something special about buying your seafood directly off the panga, the type of fishing boat popular in Panama.
That way you know its the freshest available.
Plus you get to interact with the local fishing culture. A culture full of hardworking men and women, kids playing in puddles beside the boats, and dogs and cats looking for any scraps.
Panama literally means an abundance of fish. And any trip to one of the Pacific Coast fish markets is sure to be a highlight of your vacation.
Bring your own plastic bag and cash, and you're sure to not leave disappointed.
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