Although it was a Saturday, traffic was heavy and the coach had to park quite a way from our first stop, the Chorsu Market. A couple of street scenes as we walked along.
Passing a woodworking workshop, this is a lecturn for holding the Koran
And these are baby cribs which in their unfurnished state look quite cute.
But once the frilly lace gets added they look very old fashioned and remind me of either something gypsies may use or coffins!
This is the Chorsu Market, Chorsu meaning crossroads; it was built in 1980 and is a late example of Soviet Modern style.
On the ground floor inside were fruit and veg plus meat stalls. We went straight upstairs to the spice area which was a riot of colour and smells.
We didn't have time to visit the downstairs so I just took a quick snap over the balcony.
This is a traditional decorative engagement or wedding gift tray known as a Fotiha holvasi. It consists of a tiered tower featuring halva, wrapped chocolates, and decorated sweets and often includes popular brands like Alenka milk chocolate and Lindt or Ferrero Rocher. I didn’t see any prices but I bet they’re expensive.
And rather cute looking jars of honey.
We then headed around the corner to the bakery.
Where everyone was just allowed to wander around without health and safety or hygiene concerns.
The heat from the clay ovens was pretty intense.
Bread is taken very seriously in Uzbekistan and Farik bought a loaf for us all to try; it was very tasty.
I don't have a clue what were in these giant pots - but Google tells me the green pot contains Sumalak, a sweet paste made from germinated wheat traditionally prepared for Nowruz and that the large blue and white pots likely hold other traditional creamy foods or white jams (but remember Everest above)
