Floating Vegetable Garden
It the second-largest wholesale market in the world, the first being the one in Vietnam's Mekong Delta. The floating market gained international attention in 1960 when a Japanese photographer featured it in a tourist guide that was published in Japan.

The Sabji Bazaar (meaning vegetable market) is the prime fascination for tourists in the valleys of Kashmir. It is an unorganized market where individual sellers gather in the center of the lake at the break of day and wrap up just as the sunlight touches the water.

All the items sold here are produced in the floating gardens situated in the same lake. The suppliers of this market start their day at 4.00 am, heading to their floating gardens to reap their harvest. The freshly uprooted vegetables are then taken to the Sabji Bazar situated at the center of Dal Lake.

There are no permanent shops on the lake. The local traders conduct their usual business in this floating market with the help of their boats. They row through the water by sitting in the front of their canoes in a cross-legged position, protecting themselves from the outside cold using long sweaters.

This bazaar (market) is one of the few places where the barter system is still practiced in India. Partially adopting the traditional exchange system with the local traders, it also accepts the modern currency system for tourists and vendors.

This market doesn't encourage selective or partial selling of items; it focuses instead on selling wholesale. The items for sale include tomatoes, carrots, turnips, leafy vegetables, and the famous nadru (lotus roots, a delicacy in the Kashmir Valley), all sown in the rich ecosystem of this wetland. The popular Kashmir flowers are also produced and sold in this market.

There is a rush of sellers and vendors at the crack of the day, and as the clock hits seven in the morning, the crowd vanishes and the place becomes silent as if the market never existed. Any vegetables left over after the haggling and exchange process are taken to street markets.

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