Although they made regular trips to a large supermarket downtown, Missy's family made near-daily trips to the local market just a few minutes driving distance from their house.

At the market were several stands -- this particular one, which sold vegetables, meat, and fish, another that sold only fruit, and a small grocery store with bread and fresh noodles and packaged goods.

Each stand was covered and had a small store front. One of the things I found most interesting about Chinese markets was the meat. All meat that I encountered in China was what Westerners call "free range," in that it wasn't farmed. As far as I know, China has no meat industry, just small farms and distributors. The interesting bit, though, comes with how the meat is displayed or sold. Even in the big supermarkets downtown, meat was often left on a large counter or wood block with no refrigeration or ice -- just slabs of meat sitting out on a surface, which any shopper can touch and examine before asking for assistance. 0:42 provides a good example.