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Bazaars of Uzbekistan
Tashkent Bazaars
The oriental bazaar is a colorful and noisy show - a place where counters are bursting with the abundance of various goods, cheerful and invocatory exclamations of sellers will not allow you to pass by. The markets of Uzbekistan are exactly the same traditional oriental bazaar with its unique and unforgettable color. In Persian, the word "bazaar" means a market, a place with a lot of prices. Permanent active and fenced place, a place for sale or exchange of goods. Visiting bazaars is one of the ways, and perhaps the most reliable, to learn the culture and way of life of the peoples of Central Asia. The oriental bazaars are attractive for their unusual atmosphere, the smells of all sorts of spices and various ruddy cakes, the delicious flavors of local fruits, the noise from heated disputes between buyers and sellers - because bargaining is always appropriate in the markets. It is an entertaining bargaining process that also attracts many visitors to the eastern bazaars. Huge disintegration of melons and watermelons, fresh meat and fresh fish; garnets, persimmon and figs; amber dried fruits, various varieties of nuts and pistachios, as well as many other products that you had no idea about.
All major and large bazaars of Tashkent have large covered pavilions, but in the spontaneous markets people still trade in the open air or on improvised covered shelves. The market, as in former times, continues to play an important role in the economy of the country's cities, one of the main tasks of the bazaars is to provide residents with food, raw materials and work.
In Tashkent, there are about 20 markets, but the most colorful of them is the "Chorsu" bazaar (which in Tajik means four rivers / waters). The modern shopping center "Chorsu" is located in the heart of the old city on the "EskiZhuva" square, it was this bazaar that preserved the unique atmosphere of a real oriental bazaar. The huge domes of sky-blue dominate the main pavilion of the bazaar, there are numerous counters with a huge amount of spices and aromatic spices, dried fruits and oriental sweets that you will not find in any other country in the world.
"Chorsu" is not only the largest but also the oldest bazaar in Tashkent. Once, at the dawn of the city, more than two thousand years ago, there was a suburb - Rab Chad. On this border territory, which divided sedentary inhabitants and nomadic tribes, from time immemorial there was a peculiar market, where local farmers and free nomadic steppe-dwellers exchanged goods. Already in the Middle Ages, the bazaar was inside the old city, at the junction of the city citadel - shahristane and the handicraft suburbs - rabad, which allowed it to become, in fact, the center of urban life.
All the roads that started from the city gate (Darvoz), and there were 12 of them, led to the Chorsu. The bazaar has become not only a trading platform, but also a meeting place for various cultures. The market was also an area where you could learn the city news and the khan's decrees shouted by the heralds, look at the performances of the masked men and virtuosos of rope walkers, listen to the bikes of visiting merchants from all corners of the Great Silk Road and treat yourself to aromatic tea or appetizing plov in a nearby teahouse.
The modern "Chorsu" is the direct heir of that distant era. Under the huge turquoise domes of new trading pavilions, and today a huge human anthill of universal bargaining rumbles. Many indigenous residents know that it is here that you can buy the freshest fruits and vegetables, fresh meat, live fish, hot cakes, dried fruits, fragrant spices and sweets - the sweetest and most oriental. It is here that whole families come to eat their favorite national dishes, the blessing, this whole celebration of life, for an impromptu teahouse, was given to the whole inner street of the bazaar.
As well as many centuries ago, and nowadays foreign tourists, just as surprised by the huge disintegration of melons and watermelons, admire the craftsmanship of handicraft people, are touched by the naivety of the theatrical performance in the square, laughed heartily at the "subtleties" of the eastern bargaining. And when they leave, they press to their chest a painted clay toy, skillfully created by the hands of a potter, who will lift the mood after many years of memories of unforgettable moments at the Tashkent bazaar "Chorsu".
Uzbekistan is historically located at the intersection of the caravan routes of the ancient Great Silk Road - the culture and traditions of the peoples living in this country, formed from the customs and life of more than 90 tribes and nationalities inhabiting Sogdiana, Maverannahr and Mesopotamia in the past centuries.