The tradition of weekly markets goes back hundreds of years when peddlers and farmers brought their wares to town and people shopped en masse. Although grocery and retail stores now get most of the business, the weekly market is still well attended by locals who come out to shop and visit and tourists who like to browse. Delft's market takes place in the town square and has lots of household items as well as clothes, candy, produce, jewellery, etc. Probably the busiest vendor was the cheese man who had a wide variety of wedges and rolls of cheese. The fish stall had marinated, raw herring for sale, including raw herring and chopped onions on an open faced bun which I had no trouble passing by.
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Delft's market takes place in the town square and has lots of household items as well as clothes, candy, produce, jewellery, etc. Probably the busiest vendor was the cheese man who had a wide variety of wedges and rolls of cheese. The fish stall had marinated, raw herring for sale, including raw herring and chopped onions on an open faced bun which I had no trouble passing by. Speaking of buns, the baker had all kinds of bread, rolls and pastries on display and did a booming business.
A couple of the hawkers were real characters - singing, joking, etc. while trying to entice me to part with my money, and they were partly successful. One enterprising fellow set up a curtained off dressing room so people could try on clothes before buying. It wasn't the highest quality of merchandise but I bought a cute sundress for less than $6.00 so couldn't complain. A couple of stalls had very nicely made silver jewellery at reasonable prices (about $12. for earrings).
I'm not sure what time the Market started, but by late afternoon, vendors were packing up to head home.
Around the square were many little restaurants and small gift shops selling tourist memorabilia. In a few store front windows, artists were putting the finishing touches on their Delft creations. Prices for Delftware vary greatly, depending on whether it's original or a replica. For example, one place had an authentic Delft Christmas ornament for $24.95 while a knock off one could be had a few doors down for $4.95.
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