Last night Jengis introduced me to a couple that are booked on my tour, Antionette and Dee. As I arrived at my hotel from the airport I sat and had my first (and quite possibly my last) Turkish coffee while chatting with my new friends. Turkish coffee is very strong, very bitter even with a full satchet of sugar and very grainy – not an experience I found terribly pleasureable. Turkish tea however, as I found out today, is very nice; a bit sweet, but quite tasty.
I was booked in for a full day boat cruise around the Prince’s Islands in the Sea of Marmara today. I ended up cancelling last night as I found out the only day I could visit the Grand Bazaar (an Istanbul institution) was going to be today, as it isn’t open on Sundays. So today I joined my new friends and more on a visit to the Spice Bazaar, a cruise on the Bosphorous and a visit to the Grand Bazaar this arvo.
The Spice Bazaar has the most lovely aroma; many of the stalls sell all types of spices, nuts, confectionery and pastries, but it is not the cleanest environment. Donna (another new friend from Melbourne) and I found a decent place to buy tea and sat until time to rejoin the group. We then boarded a wooden boat for a cruise up the Bosphorous, which is the narrow stretch of water that separates European Istanbul and Eastern Istanbul (we are based on the Euro side). Probably the most interesting of all the sites is how the landscapes are just full of building upon building.
The Grand Bazaar is just amazing – it’s like a maze of shops and just filled with colour. A visit to this place really is an absolute must when in Istanbul. shop after shop selling pachminas, carpets, clothing, jewellery, souvenir items, and the most beautiful light and lamp shades – I would love to have bought a few, but just too fragile to be attempting to transport around. Photo’s attached don’t really do the sights and colours justice. There are so many shops all selling the same things that it gets a bit much. Plus, the men working in the shops (yes, all men, no women working at all) can be very pushy – “you come into my shop, I have something very special for you” and the like. I got my first taste at haggling prices too, and I’m sure it won’t be the last time over the next few weeks too!
Driving around Istanbul the streets are just filled with shops – I swear I think this place would be a shoppers dream! they even have shops underneath the bridge that stretches across the river and in underpasses that run underneath the road! Coming from Perth, it’s just unreal…
via Istanbul, the city for shopping – Istanbul, Turkey Travel Blog.
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