Visiting Vancouver’s Punjabi Market is a sensory experience, from the sights and smells to the unique flavours and vivid colours. Stroll along the streets of this Indo-Canadian enclave, where you’ll find quaint gift shops, unique fabric stores and street carts displaying glittering bangles, bold pashminas and silky saris.
©Shehani/2011
Not a market at all, but rather a neighbourhood that occupies six blocks on Main Street, starting at about East 49th Avenue, this Little India is marked by shops touting bright swathes of silk, intricate gold bangles and some of the best (and most affordable) curries outside of Punjab.
The Punjabi Market is the perfect place to shop for fabric, Indian fashion and jewelry, gifts, religious murti, and Indian cooking utensils and ingredients.
Further southeast from Little India is the Sikh Temple which is worth a visit if you’re in the area. This Temple was designed by local architect Arthur Erickson, and its award winning design encompasses traditional Indian architecture with a modern slant.
