to Street Market

Every Thursday from 5-9 PM, Saipan holds a weekly "Street Market" in downtown Garapan (business center of Saipan). Let me share with you here of the trip I made (by foot) to street market. It's only a five-to-ten minute walk (northward) from where I am in this first photo.

Downtown Garapan
The first photo is taken where Beach Road and Garapan Street meet (I am standing along Garapan Street). The building in the background is Hafa Adai Beach Hotel, just one of the many hotels on island. [A little trivia: "Hafa Adai" means "Hello" in Chammoro. It's used the same way as "Aloha" in the Hawaiian Islands.]


Across Hafa Adai Hotel is Hard Rock cafe (as you can see in the next photo), a restaurant where the walls are covered with rock 'n' roll ephemera. The building it is housed in is actually DFS (Duty Free Shopping) Galleria. It is the biggest shopping mall in Saipan.




Here's a photo of the entrance at DFS, along Beach Road. My cousin Aiza kindly posed for me... for I fear that you dear reader will start to think that there are no people here in Saipan. :D


Walking further, you'll see this bus parked on the sidewalk. Anyone interested in sky diving can come here and sign up. I think it's a great marketing strategy. Four TV screens ("windows") can be seen from the outside showing the video they took on the numerous sky dives they had.

So far, you've seen the malls section/area of Garapan. Walking farther, you'll reach the area where there are lots of restaurants. One example is this building. I guess the photo says it all about the restaurants, but I will reserve details on the food/dining for future Blog entry.


Anyways, a few more minutes I reach...

Paseo de Marianas
Originally, this is the place where the weekly Street Market was held. In an effort by MVA (Marianas Visitors Authority) to beautify this section of Garapan, this particular street was renovated in 2004 and was named "Paseo de Marianas" (loosely translated to mean "Strolling the Marianas"). The street was made into a park (the original retail shops and restaurants remained intact) where anyone can take a walk or stroll.

The other end of Paseo de Marianas leads you to Fiesta Resort & Spa, another hotel which you can see a part of it's building in this photo of Paseo. I've also included a photo of Furusato: one of my favorite Japanese restaurants located right along Paseo.












Street Market
Once you've reached the other end of Paseo de Marianas, just crossing a street leads you right at the entrance of Fiesta Resort hotel. It's in this same street where Street Market is now located. Here are some photos I took:

Like what I have mentioned earlier, Street Market is a weekly event here in Saipan. Canopies are set up for shops and restaurants to sell their product(s). Ofcourse, the main reason people come here is for the food. This is the one place where most of the restaurants in Saipan come and offer their food at lower (than their regular) prices.

My aunt owns a small restaurant called K's Wow Pao. Included in their menu are: Dimsums, Noodle Soups (they have their own noodle maker), and a number of Filipino favorites like: Kare-kare, Caldereta (Beef Stew), Crispy Pata, etc. I guess the photo I've included here speaks for the food they have. :D In the photo you will see my (other) Aunt Susie (no, she's not the owner of the restaurant) and her daughter Aiza, together with Ruel (cook, specializing in Filipino food) and Ludem (in white, noodle-maker) to help around. I come here to help too, but I just deal with the money. ;)

Here is another favorite eating place of mine (along Street Market this time): Coconut Tei. I really like their lunch bento (set meal) of breaded pork/chicken. It comes complete with vegetables, fruits, rice, misu soup, and iced tea.



Finally, Street Market is over and we head back to my aunt's restaurant (which is actually just behind DFS). Here's a photo of me in the restaurant, looking at the photos I just took (which you have viewed by now).