we are back from a two-week driving trip to the Dolomites. Everything has come out quite good, and I´ll write a small report for the list, but in the meantime, I´d like to point out a real gem we loved. Last Tuesday we spent the night in Padova, and on Wednesday morning we headed to visit Saint Anthony´s Basilica. On our way back to the hotel we walked accross the market at Piazza delle Erbe. It was really magnificent. All the vegetables and fruits, different kinds of tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchinis ... it made us wish to have spent a whole week there, just to be able to buy every morning the freshest fruits. We bought a basket of mini- tomatoes, and they survived the long and hot trek home, to be eaten on our last Sunday lunch in Bilbao.

Markets are a must in all our trips. They help you to understand how people live, which are their favourite foods. My mum loves to compare the prices, to find out what´s cheaper and what´s more expensive than home.

There is a nice market at my home town, Mercado de la Ribera. It is one of the biggest in Spain, and I´d recommend you to visit the fish section, in the bottom floor. http://www.norbiton.com/ukdave/bilbao/16market.htm

Another place I remember quite well is the bazaar at Jaipur. Our tour guide threw us there thinking that we were going to return immediately to the hotel, not knowing how to move around. We spent almost two hours walking around, and the cinammon and cookies and curry I brought home were among the best souvenirs.

And I shouldn´t remember places like the Naschmarkt in Vienna, the Mercat de la Boquería in Barcelona or the market in Santiago de Compostela ...

So ... which are your favourite markets? Do you like to go shopping there, and what do you like to buy?

Kind regards, Covadonga Bilbao - Spain