East Market, Milan

East Market takes place in the northeast part of the city and it's a lot of fun. I've been a couple times now -- the photos below are from my second visit, when I went with Carrie, a friend from school.

The market takes place in two different buildings - both large warehouses. There are new things from many local designers, used/vintage things, an entire record section, and food trucks!

Mmmmmm cannoli food truck!

And we took a super cute tram back home... I love the one-car trams with wooden benches.

as seen around Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Some of the big apartment buildings throughout Tashkent had cool designs all over the outside:

Mirobod Bazaar:

Heading into the market:

The Mirabod Bazaar is a big market that sits under an octagon-shaped roof. At sunset (when we visited), the birds sitting in the rafters of the roof are REALLY LOUD! Very cool experience. They sell mostly fresh produce at this bazaar.

Jaime and I went to another bazaar the next morning - Askiya. This one sold more household goods than fresh food:

This building was one that stood out in the city - it is a museum... or art gallery...

(Donna was not impressed with whatever is inside)   : P

San Benedetto del Tronto - mercatino!

Returning to Gina's house after a morning at the beach with Elisa and lunch at Maria's house... Angela, Gina, and I walked over to the pizzeria. I pretty much love that we can walk a few blocks and be at the family pizzeria. Truly. This could be a television series... I love it. The parents - Silvana and Vincenzo - are there helping... and the two sons - Christopher and Denis - run the place. We went each afternoon to just sit and hang out... spend some family time together... perrrfect.

While there our third day in town, Christopher invited Angela and I out with him that night to San Benedetto del Tronto - a nearby town... on the beach, bigger than Alba Adriatica. I was pretty tired from the night before in Teramo and an early morning at the beach... but Christopher said that we could go to a mercatino (flea market) and get gelato... OK! Both of those things sound right up my alley.   : )

Angela and I met Christopher back at the pizzeria around 10:30pm, when they closed, and went out from there. San Benedetto is really cute. Many people were vacationing there and out for the evening. We walked through the town, then through the mercatino, and THEN went to the oldest gelateria in the town... yes, please!

The gelateria was packed with people. Christopher asked for a table for 3 people... and the guy said something about facciamo - meaning, we make. I laughed and said to Christopher that it would be awesome if they really made us a table... I'm picturing a hammer and nails! Funny enough... the guy comes walking over, carrying a table and three folding chairs. Hilarious. Even without a hammer and nails involved, he did make us a table... and set it in an open spot. Ready to go! I loved it.

On a walk through San Benedetto with Christopher:

A favorite photo/moment of mine... which one is not like the others??...

Angela ordered a coffee instead of gelatoooooo! (And ours were fancy, giant gelatos at that!) 

Angela and I left by train the next day - early evening. Vincenzo, Silvana, and Gina drove us to the train station in San Benedetto - and stopped by the pier on the way to the station since we hadn't been able to see it when it was dark while we were there with Christopher the night before. It was a really pretty spot:

Gina, me, Angela, Silvana:

Il Mercato Centrale - Florence

Kat wanted a leather bag from the market... so we headed to Il Mercato Centrale last Saturday afternoon. I love walking through a market! - even though it basically becomes the same goods over and over.

Kat had heard that the upstairs of the indoor portion of the (original) market had been redone with cafes and restaurants. Sounded nice... so went to check it out.

Um. Awesome!

I see what they were going for... and, I think, mission accomplished!

The upstairs of Il Mercato Centrale is gorgeous. The original structure of the market building is still there... with beautiful windows and high ceiling... and now there are really nice cafes, restaurants, a few shops, etc. upstairs.

We bought gelatos and enjoyed a chat at a table for a bit.

(PS - a friend of mine from school in Milan has mentioned a few times that he gets ricotta flavored gelato. I haven't been sold on this idea... but tried a same of ricotta and peach at this gelateria with Kat... and yes! I am not a believer. The ricotta is smooth, creamy, and delicious. ...not cheesey like I feared.)

...And a couple bonus photos from the day:

Asan Tole - Kathmandu

Asan Tole is a market in Kathmandu (near Thamel - the backpacker area), which is along a street and sells clothing, shoes, spices, teas, etc.

I enjoyed walking through the market in the morning. From Asan Tole, I made my way into Thamel... but Asan Tole was great because it was not nearly as touristy... but is, instead, where many locals buy goods.

...Those wires!!

A small stupa:

Spices galore!

market takeaways

I've made a small weekly tradition for myself, in which I find quiet happiness... I walk to the park with the free water and then stop by the Saturday market on the way back to my apartment.

Yesterday I picked up a couple bananas, strawberries, raspberries (which I didn't see but the lady talked me into and I'm so glad she did show them to me because they are delicious!)... and some asparagus. The lady was asking me what I'm going to make with the asparagus... put it with eggs? ...in a salad? ...with cheese? I was stumped on my words at the time... I wanted to tell her that I plan to bake them in the oven with some oil and garlic salt. That should have been pretty simple  : P

For lunch - I made a box of Kraft Macaroni and Cheese... which, yes, I brought with me from the States! It's worth it. Once in a while it's so nice to have this... a childhood favorite of mine (and, well... probably still a favorite of mine!).

My favorites? -- Velveeta shells... or Kraft's fun shapes... the one yesterday was Spongebob Squarepants! Mmmhmmm!

Saturday Market takeaways

Yesterday morning at the market was another success!

I picked up some gorgonzola con la goccia to bring to a friend's for dinner last night... and it was delicious with the homemade bread they had!

I also picked up the following deliciousness...

Saturday morning market, Opera

I went to Opera's market Saturday morning.

And I LOVE it!

The market is a pretty good size for a small town... selling clothes and random things... and lots of fruits, vegetables, cheeses, meats, etc.

I stocked up on cheese... getting two huge hunks of asiago and provolone. First walking into the market, I ran into the elementary school principal and his family and he recommended one of the cheese guys and the asiago. ...Good choice!

Then I was also able to get blueberries, local tomatoes, and some basil. (Next up? - fresh mozzarella from the dairy vending machine in town!)

The basil was 1.50 euro for two bushels... I asked for one bushel and it was 1.00 euro... hmmmm... lesson learned. (It was about 0.35 for the same amount at the grocery store when I bought it there.)

I also bumped into two teachers from school, Katie and Angela (--Angela, my travel buddy from the night before!). We decided to meet up at a cafe down the street in a bit for a coffee and chat. That was really nice; I enjoyed it.   : )

While I was waiting to get the basil, a guy popped in front of me and enthusiastically waved and said hello. ...My new friend, Paolo the Taxi Man!! Haha. I love it. Angela said that he also recognized her and said hello. I think being friends with the taxi man will be awesome.

As I was leaving the market, my eye caught CANNOLIS. I back-tracked... asked for uno cannoli and now truly had a bag full of treats to take home. Perrrrfect.

Note: the cannoli was amazing.

I will definitely be making regular trips to the Saturday market! I surely hope it's open year-round.

My belly is mostly full of delicious cheeses right now.

...And after our cafe date -- Angela, Katie, and I walked through Opera a bit. Angela showed us where the guy's shop is for wine and olive oil. Basically, you bring bottles (or he has some)... and he'll fill it with wine for 2 euros. He also has a great selection of olive oils. Ooooookay! I'm loving the sound of this. ...And getting great ideas of what I can do with my parents and brother, Sean, when they come for the winter holidays. (Stoked!!)


Learnings from my first trip to the market:

• asiago cheese costs about 3 times that of provolone... but it's worth it
• basil is expensive... I need to learn to grow my own
• a cannoli is 2.50 euros... and also totally worth it
• next trip? --> find the Chicken Man everyone has been raving about

Opera's Saturday Market

There is a local market every Saturday morning in Opera. I love it. There's a ton of fresh produce, as well as meats, cheeses, ...and random clothing.

I rode my bicycle through the market this past weekend as I was on my way to the park for water... I don't need many groceries right now since I'm leaving for the States in a few days - but it was great to ride through the market and see what there is... for next time!