TO MARKET , TO MARKET!

One of the first things I do in any European city is head to their local market which is usually an atmospheric melee of people, flavours and smells.

One of the markets that I really enjoyed seeing is Budapest’s majestic Central Market Hall.

Built in 1897 using bricks, cast iron and glass and completely renovated in 1999, the covered Central Market hall is today a great hunting ground for souvenirs. They say that when it just opened ships sailed right into the building using special docks!

Beautiful Zsolnay tiles cover the enormous roof structure, that makes it look spectacular from outside.

 The Stalls on the first floor overflow with Hungarian lace and embroidery, white peasant shirts, traditional embroidered waistcoats, hand crafted Porcelain, painted wooden toys and enameled jewellery.

The ground floor is a cacophonous melee of stalls lined with garlands of paprika (the Hungarians use a lot of spices), salami, sausages and liver, dessert wine and long necked bottles of the golden Tokaji.

I loved these hot dogs in the colours of the Hungarian flag!

 I saw a lot of  pickles- homemade pickled cucumbers, sauerkraut, pickled stuffed peppers.

The market is closed on Sundays but other days it opens early -sometimes as early as 6:00 am, and closes fairly early as well. Even if you are not a shopper, you must visit it to experience the unique architecture and atmosphere