Queen Victoria Market price watch

When I was younger, I used to read my mom's monthly subscription of the "Utusan Konsumer'', published by the Consumers' Assoc. of Penang. And one of those issues that they usually report on is the increase in goods prices, especially for essentials such as flour, sugar and rice. Hence as your current ''reporter'' today, I shall be walking around Victoria Market to determine current product prices.

Nah.. I'm just kidding.. I was doing some grocery shopping today, and I brought along with me.. [yep you guessed it] the Minolta MC Rokkor-PG 50mm f1.4 manual focus lens :)

As you wonder around the market , you will notice some common vehicles, such as a brand new rubbish truck...

[I wish Kuching had rubbish trucks as nicely painted as these]

and some nice bikes.

You can find virtually almost anything at the market, really.

From necklaces...

...to kangaroo hats. A good leather hat would set you back at least 50 bucks.

If you're lucky, you may find a kangaroo testicle being sold as a money pouch. No, I'm not kidding, and the sack is pretty tough too, like leather.

If you're really bored, you can have your caricature, while your mom and dad sit and enjoy the show.

For textiles, you may purchase a whole roll of cloth.

or just get the finish product off the shelf. Mind you, todays' Australian shirts come from China (Can you sense my irony here?)

Knee high socks, anyone?

Potatoes are a cheap cabohydrate substitute for rice (I'm refering to the asians, of course) at AUD1/- a kilo. I like the baby potatoes; they're easy to roast and eat.

Prawns come in many different sizes and colours, but the cheapest are the ones imported from Thailand, at $15/kg (frozen), while their larger, fresher local counterparts may cost up to $30 / kg.

Scallops are a popular ingredient in most Italian restaurants here.

If you're lazy to do your own marinara mix, you can purchase them at $15/kg (pretty pricy to me, but it has all the good stuff such as clams, prawns, calamari, and scallops). Its very easy to cook, either as a stirfry or to add to spaghetti.

Sweet and juicy oranges : at $1/kg

The guy at the orange store asked if I had a ''digital SLR''. I was like duh.. and really felt like doing the following:

Fancy a cute gift? Get these fit-in-your-hand succulents at $3/- a pot. I had one before, but it died due to the heat wave a few months ago :-/

Brussel sprouts, not something that would be first on my stirfry list, but at $3/kg, its affordable.

These are Adelaide tomatoes [I swear, that was what the sign stated!]. Its a pity that they don't look very.... attractive.

Another great local produce - Golden Delicious apples at $1/kg.

Thats it for the Queen Victoria Market price watch. Please remember that the prices are valid as of August 2009, and the author is not responsible for any price discrepancies :)