Tourist for a day

            I decided to do my "Tourist for a day" assignment at a very local place which like China Town and other commercial entities tourist tend to visit: The Arecibo Flea Market. My choice may seem strange, but it  is the largest one in the Caribbean and it gets its share of tourism. The flea market is home to a variety of interesting food, products, services and activities you can find there.

            When I paid the parking entrance I identified myself as a tourist  to the security guard and I asked for recommendations for kiosks to visit. Immediately he mentioned a list of places I should not to miss. It was interesting that on the way out when returning the ticket he asked me "how was it?", I of coursed answered him "It was great , thank you" and moved on.

            Once inside I headed to the kiosk that sold native fried food and asked her what she had, she answered but I hesitated, so she went on to explain to me each plate. I finally grabbed an "alcapurria" and kept moving. 

Next stop was "la pica", a typical gambling game that simulates horse races. Again I asked the vendor about the game and he explained the rules and how prices worked. This is almost miraculous because if you have played "pica" at a full table you should know that the "collector" never go out of their way for a client or talk too much since he is focused on the bills that are                                                                                           moving around the table.

                        

Then I strolled down the aisle with kiosks selling DVD's and "fakes". I felt some looks on me, more than usual while going through kiosks which had products that "illegal", more than usual. Anyhow they were not really alarmed or worried about my presence. One of the main reasons I picked the flea market, was because I was genuinely curious on this specific reaction. I wouldn't expect any different, since they are used to selling to tourists, still the illegal distribution and piracy is  a taboo that lies in the gray zone of legality. I would have liked to bargain also as a tourist but didn't plan on spending more money. This would have been interesting because i have  bargained as a tourist any times and enjoyed it and find it interesting.