The "Storytellers' Bazaar" at the heart of old Peshawar was, for centuries, the point where caravans from Central Asia halted, offloaded their goods, and sat around fires trading tales of the road. Merchants from Bukhara, Kabul, and Kashgar met merchants from Lahore and Delhi here. The storytelling tradition gave the bazaar its name, and the trading tradition is still alive: stalls sell dried mulberries and apricots from the Khyber, walnuts in sacks, brass teapots, Balochi embroidery, and carpets worn thin by years of use.
Go on foot, early in the morning before the heat builds. The famous chapli kebabs — flat patties of minced beef with pomegranate seeds — are grilled on charcoal at stalls around the bazaar perimeter. At the far end of the bazaar, turn left into the coppersmiths' lane where craftsmen beat bowls and trays by hand.