The largest and most chaotic market in Bucharest, a sprawling open-air complex on the eastern edge of the centre that has been operating in some form since the Middle Ages. Anything you might conceivably need can be bought here — fresh fruit and vegetables from Romanian smallholders, live carp from tanks, pyramids of unfamiliar cheeses, sacks of paprika, salted lard, Roma cassette tapes, second-hand power tools, and the famous Obor mici (grilled minced-meat rolls), which queues form for at lunchtime.
It is loud, dirty, and entirely authentic — the antidote to the polished Old Centre. Go in the morning when the produce is best, eat a few mici at one of the open-air grills, and watch the working life of the city happen around you. The metro stop Obor lands you at the gate.