Liepāja market overtaken by willow crisis: willows extinct, but prices blooming

Liepāja's spring market has revealed a shocking truth — the city has entered the willow apocalypse era. Vendors bashfully admit that willows have become rarer than visitors to Liepāja Olympic Center's pool during winter months. "Back when all the ditches were overgrown, you could find something more," complains one vendor, apparently longing for times when nature management hadn't yet reached Riga levels.

Meanwhile, willow prices have bloomed to two and a half euros per bouquet, which by Liepāja standards is almost as expensive as a ticket to a concert at "Liepājas Dzintars." A nearby flower vendor reveals that even by the seaside you're not allowed to go and pick willows — the municipality is probably afraid someone might get too carried away with nature's harmony.

But not everything is so gloomy. At the market you can buy birch sap for one euro per liter, which is as cheap as water in Riga, but considerably healthier. Vegetable grower Aivars Renčs offers several types of sauerkraut, which are as diverse as Liepāja's weather conditions.

"Young people buy more and appreciate homegrown produce," says Aivars, apparently unaware that the younger generation more often chooses home delivery over strolling through markets. But senior couple Rita and Pēteris are true market patriots: "We are market people," they proudly announce, as if it were some special lifestyle.

The main thing is that Easter tables will have self-colored eggs and greens — spring-like and healthy food that will definitely taste better than any Riga restaurant offering. And if willows cost two and a half euros, at least we know they're real, not some artificial substitutes.