A thread for those of who can't stand even the word "mall";)

What are some of the nicest, traditional indoor & outdoor markets in your EE city or country?

Minsk Market

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v94/CrazySerb/minsk1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v94/CrazySerb/minsk2.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v94/CrazySerb/minsk3.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v94/CrazySerb/minsk4.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v94/CrazySerb/minsk5.jpg

Signs of market economy is Belarus. Isn't this exciting?

Maybe Dr.Mesofius should move there

wow I've never seen a super market with so many employees. Here in Greece they are much more self-service structured, in fact I don't think we have something similar here, our markets look totally different. This one looks nice and customer friendly.

Government markets...brings shivers to my skin. The only great thing about these is a cheaper price for products though.

so what's that?it's not a super market right?.I think Athens has something similar-ish,it's only for meat,fish and veggie though,i think,Varvakeios:

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/73/195376838_01ee0ab8bf.jpg?v=0

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/218/458188365_8614db4123.jpg?v=0

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1379/786982386_c7dc29da02.jpg?v=0

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/26/55189595_d0330e7841.jpg?v=0

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1261/1317804630_9b126790cf.jpg?v=0

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1308/1316944599_d935138bb1.jpg?v=0

Looks nice. I hated markets when I was a kid, because my mother would drag me to those, of course she lured me by saying that she'll buy a new lego toy for me on the way home (which she did, I was crazy about legos), but now reminiscing about them is very nostalgic.

Anyway, the most famous market in Ukraine is the Bessarabian Market or Besarabka as we call it. It's housed in a 100 year old market building, right on Hreshatyk avenue in the centre of Kyiv.

100 years ago it looked like this
http://content.answers.com/main/content/wp/en/b/b4/Oldkiev47.jpeg

And now
http://energy4action.com/images/Kiev/images/Besarabka%20Square.jpg

An underground mall is right in front of it
http://www.nostalgia2.kiev.ua/img/all-kiev/ex_061.jpg

Size of it on the left
http://www.nostalgia2.kiev.ua/img/all-kiev/ex_062.jpg

This is it from above. You can see that a lot of different epochs are imprinted architecturally here. When Kyiv was a town 1500 years ago, this actually was a river that crossed the city, hence the name Hrest(cross)shatyk - Hreshchatyk.
http://archunion.com.ua/img/foto_003/all_kiev_351.jpg

Interior
http://www.worlds.ru/photo/ukraine_091120051508_10398.jpg

Beneath it is a more modern trading space
http://life.screenshots.ru/wp-content/uploads/2007/04/mandarin_plaza.jpg

^^Wow!!:eek:

Why is the name Bessarabia?

Named after that region between Moldova and southern-western Odesa region of Ukraine.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/bg/c/c6/Bugeac-etnic.png

^^ Is this the map of Bessarabia ? Many bulgarians migrated there after the wars from 1806-1812 and 1828-1829. More about them. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bessarabian_Bulgarians)

They were one of the best farmers in Europe in the beggining of 20th century. There are still some large communities of descendents of immigrant bulgarian farmers in Czech rep., Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia etc.... Through that same line i have now some distant czech relatives in Ostrava :)

I guess the best agriculture products in Kiev were coming from Bessarabia those days probably. Unfortunately the bolsheviks, the KOLHOZ and the razkolachvane process fucked up everything :(

^^ That's why I asked. They have a similar market in Budapest that used to have Bulgarian names above every store. It used to be known as the Bulgarian market at one point. The place was totally renovated 15 years ago and now all traces are gone.

^^ NB check this out :) Bugari u Hrvatskoj (http://bugari-u-hrvatskoj.com/hrvatski/second3_hr.htm)

"Po završetku Prvoga svjetskog rada, u Zagreb dolaze i bugarski vrtlari kao jedna veća skupina koja aktivno sudjeluje u životu Zagreba, a i šire. S njihovim je dolaskom i ponuda povrća na zagrebačkoj tržnici postala raznovrsnija i bogatija, jer su bugarski vrtlari sa sobom donijeli i ovdje počeli uzgajati pojedine vrsta povrća koje prije nisu poznavali ovdašnji ljudi. Njihov marljiv i samozatajan rad, njihovo poštenje ostavljaju duboki trag u svijesti Zagrepčana, pa se dugo vremena za svakog tko se bavio vrtlarstvom reklo da je “bugar”, bez obzira što on s Bugarima nije imao nikakvih veza."

^^ That's why I asked. They have a similar market in Budapest that used to have Bulgarian names above every store. It used to be known as the Bulgarian market at one point. The place was totally renovated 15 years ago and now all traces are gone.

Yes, there were many Bulgarian farmers here. There is even a street (Bolgárkertész utca - Bulgarian Gardener street) named after them, where some of them used to have their gardens (now a commieblock-area...).
Here are some market halls from Budapest:

The Number 1. Market Hall at Fővám square:
http://www.ferencvaros.hu/fiabci/m-csarnok/foto/kepek/foto-01.jpg
http://www.ferencvaros.hu/fiabci/m-csarnok/foto/kepek/foto-04.jpg
http://www.ferencvaros.hu/fiabci/m-csarnok/foto/kepek/foto-08.jpg
http://www.ferencvaros.hu/fiabci/m-csarnok/foto/kepek/foto-21.jpg
http://www.ferencvaros.hu/fiabci/m-csarnok/foto/kepek/foto-23.jpg
http://www.ferencvaros.hu/fiabci/m-csarnok/foto/kepek/foto-26.jpg

Batthyány square market hall:
http://www.starfleur.hu/images/uploaded_images/gallery/1362.jpg

Fehérvári road market hall (it was half-open air commie style, but it was renoveted and covered with a new hall):
http://epiteszforum.hu/files/imagelist/800_php9jlEGb_1.jpg
http://epiteszforum.hu/files/imagelist/800_phpWczVOS_3.jpg
http://epiteszforum.hu/files/imagelist/800_phpbqfwkI_5.jpg
http://epiteszforum.hu/files/imagelist/800_phpuHhGcb_12.jpg
http://epiteszforum.hu/files/imagelist/800_phpkjVtAk_13.jpg

And now the strangest one, the Lehel-hall:
http://www.budapest-photo.hu/Budapest%20kepek/Lehel_csarnok_43_kicsi600.jpg
http://www.budapest-photo.hu/Budapest%20kepek/Lehel_csarnok_42_kicsi600.jpg
http://www.budapest-photo.hu/Budapest%20kepek/Lehel_csarnok_44_kicsi600.jpg

^^ NB check this out :) Bugari u Hrvatskoj (http://bugari-u-hrvatskoj.com/hrvatski/second3_hr.htm)

"Po završetku Prvoga svjetskog rada, u Zagreb dolaze i bugarski vrtlari kao jedna veća skupina koja aktivno sudjeluje u životu Zagreba, a i šire. S njihovim je dolaskom i ponuda povrća na zagrebačkoj tržnici postala raznovrsnija i bogatija, jer su bugarski vrtlari sa sobom donijeli i ovdje počeli uzgajati pojedine vrsta povrća koje prije nisu poznavali ovdašnji ljudi. Njihov marljiv i samozatajan rad, njihovo poštenje ostavljaju duboki trag u svijesti Zagrepčana, pa se dugo vremena za svakog tko se bavio vrtlarstvom reklo da je “bugar”, bez obzira što on s Bugarima nije imao nikakvih veza."

It's true Bulgarians were famous as gardeners .

That may be, I don't really know why they named it after Bessarabia. We have a huge Bulgarian community in Ukraine, though politically speaking they are quite backwards, I wish they didn't vote :)

That may be, I don't really know why they named it after Bessarabia. We have a huge Bulgarian community in Ukraine, though politically speaking they are quite backwards, I wish they didn't vote :)

How so? Expand please.

I think the Bessarabia name might have something to do with traders long ago that traded in Kyiv:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dd/Varangian_routes.png/800px-Varangian_routes.png

Although I am not sure.

How so? Expand please.

The last I heard was that some regional Bulgarian-Ukrainian leaders were politically inclined eastward instead of NATO and EU integration. I know one Bulgarian-Ukrainian from Odesa, good guy. They got some sort of organizations for Bulgarians in Ukraine, I once found their website, even some local politicians.

Central Sofia Market Hall aka Halite

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c4/Hali-facade-gruev.JPG

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0d/Hali-interior-gruev.JPG

Bosnia and Herzegovina,City Brckohttp://www.skyscrapercity.com/customavatars/avatar142277_9.gif

Biggest on the Balkans ARIZONA MARKET
http://www.italproject.ba/Arizona/images/premises3big.jpg

Wow, it's huge.

Thats probably the only thing Serbia/BosniaHerzegovina/Croatia have in common these days....the Arizona market on the border of all three:D

Potential market: 20 million people ;)

Thats probably the only thing Serbia/BosniaHerzegovina/Croatia have in common these days....the Arizona market on the border of all three:D

Potential market: 20 million people ;)

The market is not on the Border with Serbia but with BiH and CRO.

http://www.italproject.ba/Arizona/main_srp.html

it is close to brcko, so not far away from croatia, but still too far from serbia for daily shoppers.

it is close to brcko, so not far away from croatia, but still too far from serbia for daily shoppers.

Peopel from Slovenia are coming to Brcko fore the Arizona market:)

Nakupovalni izlet v Arizono
http://www.zniders.com/?stran=PP_ARIZONA

I think the Bessarabia name might have something to do with traders long ago that traded in Kyiv:

Although I am not sure.

Wiki:

The name Bessarabia (Basarabia in Romanian) derives from the Wallachian family of Basarab, who once ruled over the southern part of the area. The name originally applied only to the southern part of the territory, which corresponds in size to the modern day Budjak. The Turks were the first to call it "Besarabya", which they began doing when they gained control of the area in 1484.

From the 15th to the 20th centuries, the region passed in part or whole under the control of: Moldavia, the Ottoman Empire (only the Budjak region), Russia, Romania, the Soviet Union, Ukraine and Moldova.