A visit to the market is often the best way to experience the local way of life. Vrijdagmarkt is where the auction of secondhand goods has been taking place every Friday for over four centuries. Go for the local flavour rather than expecting to finding treasure among furniture and bicycles, although you’ll never know what you may come across. It’s on every Friday, from 9am to 1pm. Markt van Morgen (www. marktvanmorgen.be) on Kloosterstraat is where
up-and-coming designers hawk their wares – from clothes to graphics – along the street lined with shops selling brocante and bric-a-brac. This happens every second Sunday of the month, from noon to 6pm. Although named Vogelmarkt (Bird Market), this is really a foodie’s paradise of Turkish breads, Moroccan nuts, Greek olives, Dutch cheeses, Italian hams, fresh pasta, fresh fruit and so much more. Different sorts of fowl and rabbits are sold on Sunday mornings. This is open Saturdays and Sundays,
from 8am to 4pm, in the area surrounding Theaterplein and Oudevaarplaats. The antique market on St Jansvliet Square is ever crowded with browsers looking to pick up something unusual. It’s on every Sunday, from Easter till October.
HAUTE CHOCOLATE Antwerp is inarguably the chocolate lover’s heaven. There is a chocolate shop on almost every street – from giants like Godiva or Neuhaus to indie local shops like Burie (Korte Gasthuisstraat 3. Tel: 32-3/232-3688), which
is widely regarded as the best local chocolatier. Burie’s shop window is worth a look for its lavish display of edible sculptures that can take the form of complete underwater scenes. The best dark chocolates come from Pierre Marcolini (Kelderstraat 3. Tel: 32-3/2265001; www.marcolini.be), which originated in Brussels, but no one is bothered that it is not strictly from Antwerp when they produce champagne truffles that taste out of this world. Leave room in its chic black paper bags for desserts like crème brulee. The Chocolate Line (Meir 50. Tel: 32-3/206-2030; www. thechocolateline.be), originally from Bruges, is known for its unusual praline flavours like wasabi, curry or chilli, occupies the ostentatiously decorated drawing room and bedroom of the Royal Palace which once belonged to Napoleon.
CLOCKWISE FROM FAR LEFT: Cheese stall in Vogelmarkt; the opulent Chocolate Line chocolate boutique
CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT: The entrance of Guan Di Temple; Pray for guidance at Guan Di Temple; The exterior of the Mahamariaman Temple; KL’s oldest mosque – Masjid Jamek
images TG YEO (CHEESE), THE CHOCOLATE LINE
LOCAL MARKETS
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