History and our human behaviour show that markets have long been places where many people went to obtain the products or services they needed. Merchants used to sell their goods for financial gain or to exchange products for other items, and everyone would go home happy if the deals they made were fair. At least I go home with that feeling if I know that I bought something that I needed and that I got it at a fair price.
Although the other day, when I visited this market you see in the photos, I didn't buy anything, it was a nice time spent walking among the stalls. And not just that. I had my eyes on the ceiling for most of the time and enjoyed this building, which is considered one of the most attractive places to visit in Valencia, of course, if you like indoor markets and Valencian Art Nouveau architectural style.
It is the Central Market of Valencia city, located in the city centre. The building is just around a hundred years old, made of iron, wood, glass and ceramics; however, this space that is now occupied by it has been the usual and well-known location for street markets since the city's first expansion.
I forgot to take a photo of the exterior of the building the other day when I was in Valencia, so I am bringing here an older photo that I took at the end of the last year in one of our walks, and which one you could already see in this post.
And actually, markets were not always situated in buildings. If we think better, it was normal that the venues and places chosen for markets were likely often public squares. I imagine they were also considered a social event, where you could meet people you didn't always see, exchange words, experiences, and take home information you heard from others. These events could have been very intense and busy in the past.
Like everything in our society, markets evolved over time with new discoveries, needs, habits or traditions. We got to have these pretty indoor markets in many places around the world, which also became tourist attractions apart from the place to obtain goods from the merchants.
Once, many years ago, when I went to this city with an organised group to spend the day and learn about the Valencian traditions, cuisine and architecture, we entered this building too. This time, I was here just with my family, and we passed through the market to cool down from the heat and see the offers on the stalls. However, I barely paid attention to the fruits or vegetables. My gaze went up! There, to the dome of the market!
Isn't it beautiful? 😍
In the end, I also glanced at the stands. There are more than two hundred stalls, although we only covered a small section.
The last section we passed through was the part of the fishmongers. They offered oysters and fresh fish, but since we were just wandering around and still had a long way to go in the city, we didn't get anything. It wouldn't be a good idea to carry fresh fish all over the city in the middle of this hot summer.
