THURSDAY 9th JULY 2009 (ISTANBUL - GRAND BAZAAR)

THURSDAY 9th JULY 2009




Met up with our new found friend Adil and away we went in the direction of the Grand Bazaar. Left to our own devices we may never have made it the kilometer to the entrance - everything is so interesting to look at. Adil kept us on a tight rein though.






The 'GRAND BAZAAR' is the oldest roofed bazaar in the world (so we've been told) and the main corridor used to be the main road a few zillion years ago. Found a sign stating "While there were 29 hans before the restoration process, only 17 were left after the restoration". Can't help but wonder about their restoration process! 'Han' by the way means 'corridor'.



The Grand Bazaar is divided into many sections - jewellery, clothes, lamps, food, ceramics, carpets - you name it, it's there (except Dnepr parts of course!). The roof is intricately domed with cathedral-type spans and painted in a variety of colours. The roof, at times, is more interesting than the stalls. There are many entry-exit points to the Grand Bazaar making it an up-market rabbit warren.


From here Adil took us through every narrow lane-way possible (we were totally lost) until we ended up at his neighbours shop who just happened to own a bra ware-house. Funny seeing Paul sipping tea surround by 19 million bra's...!!! Think he rather enjoyed the experience.




We then smelt our way to the 'Egyptian Bazaar' and were greeted by an onslaught of spices, colours and smells. Our noses were eternally grateful. Once through the other side we found ourselves down by the river - we had no idea we'd walked so far. But it aint over yet.














On to the plant and animal section where we discovered SULUK, a leach-type creature used for treating inflammatory conditions. Of course the usual ducks, chickens, dogs, cats, birds, fish, etc were all present.

Next stop was the small motorcycle bazaar. There are many Yamaha's and Honda's about and lots of Korean road bikes. Paul had been wanting to get a security chain for the bike since the beginning and found one here. This is where we learnt that Adil was Jackie Chan's stunt double in the movie 'Golden Fist'.

After five-and-a-half hours of 'bazaaring' we bid farewell to Adil and fell asleep...!!!

We did re-surface and hit the pavement again. Near the hotel we found a TV 'something-or-other' in progress where a young lady bungy-jumped from a very tall crane using the Hagia Sofya as a backdrop. From here we just wandered soaking up the night-time atmosphere. With the magnificent mosques lit up it was equally as impressive (if not more) than during the day. Again we ended up down by the river and from a good vantage point watched the ferry's, people, city lights and the bridge (which was lit up and changed colour every few minutes). It was midnight before we hit the sack - exhausted.