Markets to visit Uzbekistan

Chorsu, which means the «four roads», is the biggest bazaar in the centre of Tashkent. The large hall, built after the earthquake of 1966, welcomes products from all over the country: dry fruit on the floor, spices and condiments on the ground floor. In recent years, Chorsu has undergone some changes. The open-air meat market, where one trébuchait on the heads of freshly shaved sheep, and where even the night was a smell of blood and fat, was moved to a new closed and glass building. The previously reserved space is now host all year round and seed sellers, except during the melon season, where the production of cucurbits from all over the country occurs.

At the foot of the grand hall are still clowns, wrestlers and acrobats of all kinds, attracting a dense and enthusiastic crowd. On the other side of the grand hall, the clothing shops have also been renovated and rebuilt in a hard way. The large bus station has been reorganized, and the nearby intersection, from where to reach the old town of Chorsu, has been completely redone. You will find a model supermarket as well as an amazing building with a children's crib and at the top of which you can climb through a spiral staircase to admire the view over the bazaar or the mountains.

The-door covered market, the typical architecture of the shops located at the intersection of the shopping routes, was closed to the public at the time of our passage. It is expected to reopen its doors in the near future and host national souvenirs and crafts stands. In contrast, the new bazaar is cruelly lacking in charm. Again, it was not opened at the time of our passage but the locations for some fruit and vegetable stands were already marked. It is lined with empty shops that should surely host souvenirs and craft shops.

Before it was a caravanserai, the building housed a madrasa. In recent years, it hosted a carpet and clothing market where many backgammon players met all day. At the time of our visit, the caravanserai was being completely renovated. It has reopened and now hosts a restaurant (not the best in the country) and some traditional music concerts. Nothing exceptional.

The bazaar of Ferghana is worth a detour: it is the largest and busiest bazaar in the Ferghana valley, at least in the Uzbek part of the valley. The atmosphere is at its most intense on Sundays and the din is most deafening under the covered area. Like many bazaars in Uzbekistan, products such as meat and fish are concentrated under a single glass hall, and clothing and textile vendors each have their own small shop. Around it, the atmosphere remains more authentic. Bread, fruit, vegetables, always skillfully arranged..

Andijan's bazaar is reputed to be one of the largest and busiest in the region, especially on Sundays. It is only during the cotton harvest that its alleys remain deserted. The best thing to do is to come by late morning. You will then have plenty of time to get lost in the miles of stands. You will find absolutely everything you can imagine but it is especially the fabrics section that is worth the detour for those of you who wish to bring back adras and atlases at a good price. Here, as elsewhere, we negotiate dry.

To the east of the park, around the Mullah Kirghiz Madrasa, this bazaar is held every day, in a very oriental atmosphere. Sunday is the most vibrant market day, especially in the morning. There are no particular specialties in Namangan, but the bazaar is still a good place to find knives from the neighboring village of Chust, whose steel is very famous, as well as the know-how of the craftsmen. For the rest, one will find as everywhere else the stalls gathered by brotherhoods: bread, vegetables, meats, tools..