Istanbul - More treasures near the Grand Bazaar

We left the Grand Bazaar and began to make our way back to the tour group meeting spot.  The street vendors were still working it and making the air smell very good.  I think that this was the chestnut guy, so while I like the smell, I am not fond of the taste.

One of the many mosques is shown in the background of the next photo. About this time we heard the call to prayer.  The singing fills the air.  And then I couldn't help but laugh to myself.  Do you remember the story of my cousin climbing the stairs to use the announcement system?  She was using the instruments that the mosque uses to call to prayer.  Imagine their surprise when they heard "Tooooootsie.  Tooooootsie."  Hugs to the family!!  You bring me such joy!

 The street is still busy with tourists, enjoying the sunshine and the seats.

 This must be a break time before the after work crowd takes to the street.

 The color continues in the shop windows.

There is yet another whirling dervish.  The cat is cute, but I really liked the red pomegranate.  I grow these in my back yard. Well, actually the neighbor grows them and I eat what reaches over the shared fence.   Another blue whirling dervish was in the window as well as what looks like a whirling dervish outfit.

The metalwork was beautiful.

 I liked this coffee pot and the covered cups.

 I don't know what these are. Shiny.  Pretty colors.  Good for me!

 We walked to the intersection and made it a little early, well in advance of our meeting time.  I was taking general photographs of the area, and the "Coca-Cola" sign caught my eye.  Looks like my camera caught the man's eye!  I am so busted.

The intersection is pretty busy.  I don't know how the bus is going to get through this and find a place to park.

Istanbul is a very clean city.  As I've mentioned, I am not sure if it is because of the holiday or if it is because the staff is so attentive to details.  It wouldn't surprise me that it happens all the time. Everything was very clean. This can't happen in one shift!  Notice the building across the street?  Aunt E wanted to head in that direction to "meet the bus".

No, no, no!  I had the photo of our meeting spot with me.  Thank goodness!!

We walked to the meeting spot and continued to engage with the locals.

 Nice housing in the area.  But look at the streets. How is a bus going to get in here??

 There were a lot of vendors.  Very nice people, very persistent. I like these scarves, but I had already purchased my limit.

 This man continues to demonstrate his product.  Soon the bus came, and we were on our way back to the ship.

I was thrilled with the Grand Bazaar.  I would want to include the Spice Bazaar.  I can't imagine the scents and the colors. Next time!

Istanbul - Unimaginably colorful Grand Bazaar

We asked about a spice shop and one of the shop owners walked us down a street and left on another so that we could buy some spices.  Good job asking, Mom!!  (I will show you what I bought at the end of the post.) On the way back, we walked through an area with colorful plates and decorations.  There was too much to look and I couldn't pick one that I "needed" at home!  Something red will work.

Big plates, little plates, and a whirling dervish.

This is so cute. There is a blue camel and a whirling dervish.  I really like the blue camel.

Teapots, pretty bottles, bowls.

And the close up shows yet another whirling dervish.  Ohhhhh, I didn't notice the red bottle.  Had I seen it there I would have brought it home AND a green one for sis.

 Some nice large blue plates for my son.

Some really cute cats for Emma!  And yet another whirling dervish, this time dressed in blue.  Take a close look at the decoration pattern.  It reminds me of the awarding winning family Easter Egg design.  Dots and swirls!

These would look very festive outside.  My back yard would look like a new restaurant was opening in the neighborhood.

I like the red glasses and pitcher in the front. Oh, look behind.  Maybe I should bring home a hookah!  Add the red hookah to my new hanging lamps and I would truly have a festive party.

 Some local hats and some baseball caps.  Yes, they had red baseball caps but I will have to pass on that.

  A lot of choices with the locally made rug placemats, table runners, and all sizes.  Do you think that they are putting the red ones on top so that I'll buy them?

Sadly, our tour time was over and we had seen only a little of the entire bazaar.  We needed to find our way back to the bus. (Remember...THE PLAN).  This bazaar is on my list to come again. Next time, I will come prepared to buy more!

PS:
This is what I bought.  This is a selection of spices and a mill.  This will hold me off until I can get to the Spice Bazaar.

 I also bought a bag of Turkish Saffron.  Now I need to figure out what to make with it.

Istanbul - Great jewelry in the Grand Bazaar

5/19/2012 We walked through the entranceway, expecting to see the shops, but discovered that now we needed to follow a little covered walkway.  I had to wait a little longer until I got to the Grand Bazaar.

The walkway was paved with square stones.

 I can't tell if this is a makeshift cover, or protection from construction happening overhead.  Anyway, we followed the crowd.  It was during this walk that we stressed our plan.  You need to know a little background on the reason behind "The Plan".  A few years ago, my cousin, her mother, and two aunts traveled on a cruise together. They stopped in Istanbul and to make a long story short, one aunt was separated from the group inside the Grand Bazaar.  After a few terrifying minutes search, they knew that they had to return to the bus or be left behind. My cousin spoke with a shop owner, who took her up a hallway, climbed a long set of stairs, and allowed her to announce that the aunt was missing.  When she could still not be found, my cousin was put in to a cab and whisked back to the ship. Her mother was in distress and she had to put on a life jacket to walk the plank up to one of the ship openings.  The "missing aunt" was safely aboard, having taken a different bus back to the ship. (Remember this story for later.)

Because of this story, we all agreed to walk closely and not lose one another.  Deal!  "The Plan" is complete.

 THIS is the "gate" search target.  We entered through "Gate 1".

 The area outside the bazaar was also filled with shops.A little bit of everything was available.  Refrigerator magnets,

 Very colorful purses.

To give you an idea on the largeness of this Grand Bazaar, I have outline the area in yellow.

We entered and  WOW, I just don't know where to begin.

 The "streets" of the bazaar are all covered walkways. If you look at the Grand Bazaar on google maps, you can see that these walkways are all named streets.  The decorations for the holiday continue inside.

 The Grand Bazaar is organized so that there are sections. This was the jewelry section. You can go from shop to shop to decide on the absolutely perfect buy.

 I started to see the blue eye in every type of jewelry, earrings, necklaces, bracelets.  It is to ward off the evil eye.

 Keychains and more.

 Beautiful unique earrings.  So much to see.

 This was quite amazing and we had only walked a little way inside the entrance.

 These caught my eye and I "negotiated" for several pair.

 I wish that I had bargained harder and bought more. These are really pretty and light weight. I've enjoyed wearing them.  This is my big treasure!

Ohhh, there is more!!


PS: This is what I bought.

Istanbul - Walking to the Grand Bazaar

5/19/2012 The tour bus with the fancy steering wheel wound through old town to drop us off.  The guide pointed out where the pick up point would be.  We were now on our own to head to the Grand Bazaar...AND find out way back.

The first thing that I saw was a barber shop below street level.

 I looked around and noted the corners and color of the buildings. We needed to meet here at the end of our two hours (which is WHY I took a picture.)

We were specifically to meet by this building.  

 We walked towards the Grand Bazaar.  The street was wide and lined with shops and cafes.

 The windows were filled with interesting treasures.  One of our stops was to be in a rug showroom, but our little group decided that we had seen enough rug showrooms for a month.  We were heading directly to the Grand Bazaar.

 Oh good, street signs. That will make it all easier.

 Nicely done streets.  Side walk, paved street walkways, and fancy gutters.

 There it is, the local Starbucks.

 This street is entirely for pedestrians so it made wandering quite easy.

 This shop had some beautiful items.  I liked the black hand with an eye in the center of the shelf.

 Some snack wagons were out.

 Ah, there it is, the gate and entrance that we were targeting!  I am very excited to get inside.