Markets – Travels with Ali

~ To Market, To Market to buy a Fat Pig ~

Sarah from Travel with Me has challenged us this week on Monochrome Madness with the theme markets.

Markets have been around for thousands of year. Amazing when you think the concept has not changed much. People visit markets for a bargain, cheaper produce and fresh food. The oldest market still operating is The Grand Bazaar in Istanbul dating back to 1455. We have visited this market but I found it quite hot and claustrophobic.

I loved a market when I was younger and visited many London markets when I was working. Petticoat Lane, Camden Market and Roman Road to name a few. I was very much into vintage clothing back in the day and these were wonderful places to find antique items. Of course my mum was horrified when I came home with a black bin liner of old clothes.

Nowadays many of the stalls found at a lot of markets have items made overseas, as locally made goods cost so much more. Although you do come across some artisan markets but you won’t be finding a bargain there.

Girokaster, Albania – Perusing old army items
He did buy one of the white hats and wore it throughout our time in Albania.

Kruje, Albania

Sihanoukville, Cambodia – A lady sorting shellfish

Hong Kong – Dried Vegetable Stall

Hong Kong – Flower Market

Wanchai Street Market, Hong Kong

Central, Hong Kong – Looking for another hat!

Covent Garden, London

Night Market, George Town Penang, Malaysia
Anthony skipping right to the head of the queue and requesting a special order from the chef!

I realise I have the same title as Sarah, but I had already finished this post and thought it was quite original. Great minds as they say.

~ Day Tripping to Stanley, Hong Kong ~

During our recent stay in Hong Kong we paid a visit to Stanley for old time’s sake. I used to love going there on the odd occasion with friends for shopping and lunch. I can’t believe I used to drive, I was much braver in those days! Merging fearlessly onto the four lane highway and going up and over flyovers. This time we took the bus, which is also a great way to see the surrounding countryside, especially if you’re lucky enough to get front row top deck seats.

Once off the freeway the roads become very narrow and the trees and branches knock and scratch at the windows.

**Red Hill Plaza overlooking Tai Tam Beach**

Hong Kong, surprisingly for many, has some beautiful beaches. Some are only accessible by boat.

Unlucky for us the front row was
already taken

Stanley is named after Lord Stanley (subsequently Earl of Derby), British Colonial Secretary at the time of the cession of Hong Kong to the United Kingdom, and subsequently Prime Minister. Stanley Fort is situated here, the former British Army barracks, and is now occupied by the People’s Liberation Army.

It is mostly famous for the market and bars and restaurants along the promenade and is situated on the peninsula of Hong Kong Island.

The market is not the same as it was and mostly full of tourist stalls and art galleries. I remember my first visit to Stanley and was in awe of all the beautiful silk clothes for sale. I bought myself a raw silk suit and silk blouse for work. Realising too late that silk is not the ideal material to wear in 90% humidity!

Detailed paintings from a gallery in the market

A typical side alley in Stanley, also trying to work our way back to the bus stop through the labyrinth of alleys.

I enjoyed our time in Stanley, walking down memory lane, an hour or two is enough to explore and have a nice lunch. Then it was time to get back on the bus back to Central.

Market Murals and Real People

This is the second post showing murals from the town of Basildon. There is a market area with many different stalls and small cafes and dotted around are miniature murals of the various stallholders. They are very cute and I managed to get a couple of photos of the actual people.

Marta and Kay from Marta’s Chimney Cafe. Such a gorgeous little cafe where I enjoyed a delicious home made Chicken and Veg Soup. In the summer they dress up in these cute red dresses.

**A very jolly Watch Repairer – Back and Front view**

I thought these would be appropriate for the Public Art Challenge, Lens-Artist’s Double-Dipping and Thursday Doors. Hoping the pingbacks work!

My A to Z Travel Challenge : I is for India, Part 2 🇮🇳

Featuring Chowmahalla Palace and Charminar Bazaar

Chowmahalla Palace

After another gourmet breakfast at the Taj Krishna we set off with a driver and guide to the Chowmahalla Palace.
Chowmahallat means “four palaces” in Dakhini Urdu and is the palace of the former Nizams of Hyderabad. The history of this palace is fascinating, not just because of the building of the palace but the financial wrangling between the heirs that was the downfall of this palace.
At one point in the seventies there were 476 legal heirs to this Estate.
Finally in 2005 Princess Esra (the first wife of Prince Mukkaram Jah) decided to start renovations. Prince Mukkaram Jah fled to Perth in the seventies and lived on a sheep farm in the Australian Outback. He married four more times after Princess Esra. I’ve included a few links to this post as there is so much more interesting history to read.

In front of the palace
Waiting to start our tour

Top: Ladies sweeping the grass
Middle: Through one of the ornate window frames
Bottom: Ornamental pond in front of the palace

Top: Prince Mukkaram Jah with his father
Middle and Bottom: The magnificent crystal chandeliers made of Belgian glass

Top: One of the beautiful corridors inside the palace
Middle: Palace Courtyard
Bottom: The clocktower above the main gate – Khilwat Clock, which has been ticking for 251 years and is wound weekly by expert clock repairers

We practically had the whole place to ourselves and had a fantastic tour around the palace. No visit to Hyderabad would be complete without a visit here!

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Charminar Bazaar

Charminar was our next stop but not before we had some lunch. I must say I was a bit wary about what we would eat, knowing it would probably me far too hot for Maddy and me! But not to worry as our driver took us to a great little restaurant called Masqati Nizam Hotel. This was such a friendly restaurant with westerners and locals alike. We had a delicious biryani and we were both able to eat it.

This was on the wall depicting a time many decades before!

And then it was out onto the street to explore the market in all its glory! After the peace and tranquility of the Palace it was a great shock to the senses. Not for Anthony though as these are places he thrives in.
It was impossible to just stroll around as all the roads were dug up in various places for no reason I could see whatsoever. Piles and piles of rubble to stumble over or around.
Maddy and I picked up some lovely scarves, after the requisite bartering of course.

Charminar Monument built in 1591, this is also a Mosque
The monument is located in the heart of old city and it is believed that Hyderabad was measured in four directions from Charminar for administrative purposes.

Anthony in his element! Market and street scenes

So many to choose from!

Dates, pineapples and bananas

Pomegranates and grapes

A quick stop at the Nizam Palace Museum to see all the beautiful silver and artefacts and then back to the hotel for a quick freshen up before dinner.

What a very interesting day it was, more places for your itinerary for Hyderabad.

Next up Part 3

Exploring London

We always visit my native country at least once a year for around a month from Perth, WA which is now our home. I was born in London, worked in London for 16 years and lived there in my twenties for a while, however I was brought up in Essex. So Essex is not far from London around 35 minutes by train into the City, Fenchurch Street, and we always like to spend a few days there. We only go for day trips and mostly to shop and eat! We usually go to the East end of London for the markets, very rarely venturing into the West.

Although I used to know London pretty well it has now changed so much I find it hard to navigate around without using Google Maps! There are so many new buildings and streets its getting more like New York every year. I love it though that there are still the old churches and pubs dotted about in between all the new buildings. The food is not like it used to be years ago, just the basic Egg and Chip cafe or the more upmarket Steak houses. You can now eat anything at any price and it will always be great.
The photos I’ve added are from days out over the past couple of years.

Pubs and Bars

Lunch at Davy’s Bar, just outside Fenchurch Street

The Prospect of Whitby, as you can see from the sign, is said to be the oldest riverside pub in London dating back to 1520. It has been used in many tv series. All that remains of the original building is the 400 year old stone floor. I used to go here in my twenties and wanted to revisit. I was quite disappointed that it now only served the basic pub food, whereas many years ago it was a “white tablecloth and silver service” establishment. Still the views are amazing across the river.