The central market of Colombia, also known as the "marketplace", is not only a market where fruits and vegetables are sold, but much more. Visiting a market is taking a journey through Colombian flavors and culture. An unmissable experience!

They are one of the favorite places for Colombians to buy what they need for their pantry, from fruits and vegetables to meat and fish, from dairy products to household products and aromatic, healing and superstitious herbs.

Each city or town has a market place and in large cities like Bogotá and Medellín there is more than one market, usually one for each district. Just think that there are 19 market places in Bogotá!

The market in Colombia is the perfect place to learn a little more about Colombian culture and its people. The smells, colors, flavors and their rarities make anyone feel in a tropical paradise that offers an almost infinite amount of fruits and vegetables of all kinds.

It is important that you learn some vocabulary in the market, such as:

Napa or bandage or on top: it's like a "gift" from the seller who, after buying, offers you a little more than what you bought or free aromatic herbs, an advanced marketing technique to keep you coming back soon! Each ñapa is always accompanied by a smile and a “come back ready!”.

Pucho or bundle: it is a small portion of something, ideal when you want to try a bit of something like fruit or herbs.

Packages: it's usually a package of something like just tomatoes or just onions. It is a way to save money compared to buying things individually. When you approach a counter, always ask what packages they have available for.

Ask for a discount! That is, ask for the discount, always! The market is the perfect place to practice your trading techniques!

Then there are some products that you should definitely know about, such as the three main different potatoes found in Colombia: the pastusa potato, ideal for preparing soups; the papa sabanera, ideal for cooking and eating with ají (hot sauce or guacamole (avocado-based); and the papa criolla, only found in this part of the world, is a small yellow-flavored potato on its own!

But not only that, in every Colombian market you will find a food court or small restaurants where you can stop and eat a typical dish like tamales at much lower prices than in a restaurant, prepared with the freshest ingredients.

Finally, we advise you to bring cash because no one accepts cards as a form of payment, and it is better if you bring change such as 1000, 2000, 5000 and 10000 bills.

Don't forget to bring your camera too to capture all the gorgeous colors on the market!

This article was originally written in Italian