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Buvljak expirience
It was Saturday, high
noon. I was determined to make it through the afternoon
without being pick-pocketed or ripped off. Armed with a
large duffel bag and a mental shopping list, we made our
way to Buvljak, Belgrade's largest outdoor market. The
sounds of hawking grew loud and the smell of grilled meat
filled the air as we approached closer to the market.
Offers to buy unusual items such as shovel heads and
leather laces were shouted from the sidewalk.
"C'mon
Citizens," yelled one man. "You
haven't bought it yet."
I clutching onto my
shopping bag tightly and tried not to loose my
companions.
"Why would anybody
buy this stuff?" commented Sasa upon seeing an
assortment of odds and ends that appeared to have come
out of somebody's attic.
"Once people start selling their own
shoes, you know this country has hit rock
bottom."Finally, the crowd broke and we entered
through the gates to the asphalt market grounds where
hundreds of stalls selling everything from brooms to Fila
tennis shoes awaited my inspection. According to Buvljak
regulars, there's not more than a 20% price savings
between the market and your average downtown boutique. At
the end of the day, four of us got away with spending an
average of 175 dinars each. (DM 40 or USD 30) on
necessities such as household products, cosmetics,
appliances, ceramic ware and telephone cords. Buvjlak is
no shoppers paradise, nor is it the Balkan equivalent of
Wall Mart. There's no air conditioning, no place to try
on clothes and of course, no money-back guarantees.
Buvljak is a place where a keen memory and a strong
bargaining voice are required to avoid the pitfalls:
finding a product identical to what you just bought 20
dinars cheaper at another booth or purchasing something
that breaks after a few uses . After a tour around the
market grounds, you get the strangest feeling you're
going in circles. You're not. Everybody's buying Nike
sports suits and chintzy neon t-shirts from the very same
supplier. How he gets his stuff and from where you
probably don't want to know but trust me, money flows
through Buvljak. Ever wonder how in a city where the
average salary is 200 DM, people still manage to look
cool? The answer is cigarettes. Gold nicotine. One
Buvljak regular claims that more than 60% of the
purchases made in Belgrade go through the market untaxed
while as a private businessman, he pays overhead and over
20% in income tax to the government. This means that
those making the best money in the country are those on
"extended sick leaves" or "temporary
layoffs" from dead factories.
Why go on strike when you can get 300 dinar
in social security a month (well, sometimes).and manage
to earn 1,000 DM a month at the market selling boxes of
Camels? But like Belgrade itself, the underlying problem
is growing poverty. Right outside the market grounds the
less privileged spread out their goods on the ground,
hardly hidden from sight against the concrete block
skyline of New Belgrade. Most of them are locals and most
likely, my neighbors from Dorcol but from a distance,
they appeared as refugees, economic refugees. The new
amusement park behind the market appears absurd, as if
somebody is trying to convince you that all this is all
as it should be -that kids should accompany their parents
to the outdoor market on Saturdays to ride
rollercoasters. But others remember a different time and
a different Belgrade when people had money and nice
places to spend it. Gaga, upon rejecting a dull carrot
peeler, recalled that she bought one once that was sharp
and good quality. "we used to shop at Ikea,"
she said wistfully.
by Jennifer C. Brown
To click here... Talk back index...
Your previous talk back on the subject above:
Jenny baby U know what Penis looks like, DO YOU? - GONZO kaza
article--- - northern star
Locating a family to share Christmas - Earl Schipper
How nice your stories are :) - Mladen Sudarevic
buvljak i piaz(?) - Hans Braak
lost friends - Glen rewston
kako ste i sta ima novo - zoran todorovic
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of readers' TalkBack to Jennifer's articles.
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Buvljak
experience
