Monday, November 2, 2009

At the Market

I have shown you the exterior and some details of the “Mercato Centrale”, but not much of what is going on inside its halls.The first two images are taken in the main hall, the one with the iron leaves and the caryatids.The last one shows the smaller hall of the fruit and vegetables, there is another similar hall for the fish.

32 comments:

Gunn said...

I LOVE places like this in Italy (and France.) Lucky you!
(I hope you have/have had a nice time in London.)

VP said...

@ Gunn White - Since today I am back home and already chasing new views of Livorno. London was great as always and the weather incredibly good.

Unknown said...

this looks like a great place to shop! Are the prices reasonable? Is the food extra fresh? The place certainly looks clean.

Luis Gomez said...

These are just beautiful. I love this kind of markets. Glad you had a nice time in London.

James said...

I remember the outside. I'm happy to see the inside. This looks like a nice place to shop for good food. Much more interesting than a chain market.

Leif Hagen said...

Looks like THEE place to go shopping in Livorno! All I need is a big basket!

Mary Stebbins Taitt said...

WOW! It looks like a wonderful place!!!!! I'd love to see it!!!!

Thanks for sharing. :-D

Lowell said...

This place is huge! A central market for the people? I embiggened the shots and I'm amazed at all the goodies for sale.

It seemed very uncrowded, though. Is that usual? Although I suppose at certain times it is jammed with shoppers.

Thanks for a most interesting visit to this Livorno attraction!

brattcat said...

I would love to go shopping in this indoor market. Glad you had gentle weather in England. Welcome back!

Ellie said...

The building is fabulous, but I am a simple woman - I like shopping - shopping therapy :) I enlarged the photos to see what is inside those fridges. I saw lots of yummy goodies - my favorite were those giant pieces of meat that are hanging in the first one and the sunflowers on the second picture.

Hilda said...

A first-time shopper can get lost in there! Hmmm… actually, I'd be happy to get lost in there.

cieldequimper said...

Thou art making me hungry for a market. This actually resembles les halles de Versailles, though of course the buildings aren't as grand and beautiful.

joo said...

Terrific place!Looks like a perfect shopping destination. There is a central market in Wroclaw, but it's much smaller.
Nice week for you:)

Kcalpesh said...

My wife, would call it a perfect place for many visits! She'd love to shop in such places especially when there's not much of a crowd as seen in your pictures!!!! The structures look nicely built! Nice photos!

- Pixellicious Photos

Valerie said...

Hello from the UK. Pleased to meet you. I hope you don't mind if I stick around to see more of your pictures. Wherever I've been in the world I have always made a point of looking at their market halls ... so much nicer in all respects than our supermarkets.

stromsjo said...

Good point about the queuing. A charming way to shop but not very practical on an every-day basis.

Andreea said...

The slow disappearance of markets is happening in Bucharest too which is a pity because products from the supermarket just don't have the same taste. And while it's true that you have to queue for every single item, it's sometimes nice to talk to the people that sell the products. This one looks like a great place for shopping so I hope it will stay open.

Cezar and Léia said...

So nice to see the inside view, I also remember your posts about this fabulous market. Everything there looks so clean.
I would love to visit there and for sure I would take some bus! :)
Léia

Rob Siemann said...

That's one beautiful building! We are lucky enough to have the same kind of covered markets in Spain as well, and I really prefer them to any hypersupermegamarket around!

Three Rivers, Michigan said...

A lovely market and I enjoyed looking at al the food. It would be wonderful if one lived within walking distance but I can see how it would be difficult with parking and such. Markets like that here (none so grand!) strictly regulate what can be sold (no cell phones) and are only open a few days a week. I am sure there is enough interest in your market's survival, especially with municipal support.

Halcyon said...

I love open air markets. You are so lucky to have such a big one!

tapirgal said...

I like your Mercato. It's nice for you that you can walk to it! You remind me of parking problems. I'm so glad we don't have them here, alhtough we miss the amenities of a bigger city sometimes (thank god for the Internet to feel connected!). Thanks for linking to the metal leaves, because I somehow missed that post. This place is great. I wouldn't like queuing at every stall, but I guess it's the price you pay for individuals being able to do business like this. On the other hand, I think I've seen systems where you pay in one place. It's nice that they can keep the prices low. Does Livorno have good public transportation?

Unseen Rajasthan said...

Beautiful and lovely shots !! This market is beautiful !!

Unknown said...

The building looks great and I especially like the perspective on the second shot!

VP said...

I added few lines to the initial post because it was to much stuff for a comment.

VP said...

@ Valerie - I like it too, but it was devised in an era where all the city was in walking distance from the market. Now it would probably be wiser to split it in few smaller ones, in different neighborhood.
@ In Three Rivers - I do live across the street! This market is open Monday to Saturday but only in the morning.
@ tapirgal - Public transportation in Livorno is quite a mess...

stromsjo said...

So, how often do you go shopping here?

Ilse said...

This photo gives meaning to a phrase I learned many years ago when I was an American ex-pat living in Europe. "Americans live to work. Europeans work to live." This market is the embodiment of a lifestyle which understands that the meaning of life is found in the quality of the simple pleasures.

Stefan Jansson said...

I really dislike queueing, but I'd rather queue here that at a supermarket.

Wolynski said...

This looks great. Shame people prefer supermarkets, because this is way better.

VP said...

@ Per - You got me, I rarely shop here and only for affettato (cold meat).
@ Ilse - I hear often this, but the problem is: will it last? My feeling is that this Golden Age during which we were so lucky to live here, is going to end. Reality bites...

Copenhagen said...

I love these markets because they have a warmer and friendly atmosphere, compared to supermarkets. Too bad there isn't any indoor markets in Denmark...at least not what I know of.