THE centre of Durham City took on a distinctly European flavour yesterday as a four-day Continental market opened.
Stalls selling Dutch flowers, Bavarian sausages and French cheeses were set up in the city centre.
Durham Mayor Jeff Lodge welcomed 30 traders from as far away as Holland and Poland, bringing a wide range of goods and filling the streets with the sights and smells of the Continent.
It is the third time the market has been staged in Durham, and there are more stalls than ever.
The market got off to a colourful start, with Dutch flowers arranged across the bridge from the two main venues, Market Square and Millennium Place.
The event has been organised to encourage more people to visit the city centre and, hopefully, return in weeks to come.
Colin Wilkes, from Durham Markets Company, said: "Like everywhere else, the city centre suffers because of the out-of-town competition, so we need to offer the public a bit more."
The market is open from 9am to 5pm today and tomorrow, and from 10am to 4pm on Sunday.
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