One of our favorite things about Moscow is the marketplace or in Russian the renok. Here you can get almost anything and practice your Russian. The prices are cheaper, the vendors are friendly and you feel like a local when you shop here. When Jess lived here four years ago there was a small food market outside of her local metro station.That has since been shut down as well as the outdoor market, which was a short bus ride from our office.The largest market in Europe, located not far from where our Russian friends Slava and Svieta live, was shut down this summer under dubious circumstances. One of our favorite things about Moscow is becoming a scarcity.

Thankfully there is still a great market 10 minutes by bus from our home. We went there the other day to get a few items for a party we were hosting. I took our camera with us to share with you the sights of a Moscow market. The first thing you need to understand is that the market is always bigger than it looks. If you’re not careful you could easily get lost among the power drills, the household appliances, potatoes, shoes and wallpaper. Second, the vendors may seem gruff on the outside but if you ask them where they are from and how they are you have suddenly become their favorite customer.

Here is a meat vendor. Jess asked the vendor which one was ham. The lady smiled and with her large meat fork pointed at twelve chunks of meat saying “This is ham, this is ham, this is ham, this also is ham, that’s chicken, this is ham…” It was a funny moment.

Not only can you buy meat here. But also all kinds of crazy hats!

This the produce market. Prices here are unbeatable. And the people are really friendly.

Murals adorn the market. This market is called the “Moskvarechi” or “Moscow River Market”.

Another mural.

Many of the vendors are from former soviet countries like Azerbaijan, Georgia and Uzbekistan. These dishes are authentic Uzbek designs. Aren’t they awesome?

Here is Jess buying some potatoes from her new best friend who upon finding out we were from America went on to tell us how much she loved Michael Jackson and cried for days when he died. She was sad to hear that we didn’t know Michael even though we lived in the same country.

The market is a great place for us to go. Not only do we get good food at a good price but we also feel like we are becoming more and more a part of the city and its people when we go. We know that we will probably never fully assimilate but that’s ok. We can still try to befriend the people we buy from and get to know the places locals go. This is our home and piece by piece, person by person we are building a foundation from which to love and be loved by the people of Moscow.