Pazars in Turkey are not like a farmers market, there are men everywhere selling fruit, vegetables, household goods and clothes, rarely though are they from these men's farms. Everything is fresh and priced to sell. It is a place where you can see all the different types of people in Turkey, modern, conservative, old, young, rich and poor. It is a noisy, crowded event, and I love it.
In my neighbourhood, the pazar comes twice a week, Thursday and Sunday. I love the the Thursday pazar because not only has it got all your fruit and veg, but it also has lots of different clothes to sell. It is the best place to get inexpensive 'brand name' clothes for kids and wearing around the house. Unfortunately, I work on Thursdays and find it quite difficult to get down to the pazar, leaving me to go on Sunday, and not get any clothes.
Don't get me wrong the Sunday pazar is very good, there is more variety of produce, I have a cheese woman, a bread and egg guy and a nut guy. There is also a man there who I buy Alara's hair clips from too.
The great thing about going to the pazar every week is having my 'pazar guys.' I have a new fruit guy and a greens guy (thank you Julia) and a garlic guy now too. These men are more then helpful when it comes to getting the best produce at the best price.
I'm going to miss the pazar, I realize there will be markets in Belgium, but it won't be the same. I speak the language here, I can chat with not only the sellers, but the little old ladies to learn what things are and how to serve them; being foreign there won't be so strange, and maybe they won't think I'm cute; My mother in law won't be there to join me in picking out the smallest eggplants and peppers and laughing every time someone asks her how she found a foreign daughter in law. There are so many things I'm going to miss, and the pazar is just one of them.
