Hi guys!
So my friend wanted me to help her buy something at the Grand Bazaar, and I decided to take the opportunity to show you guys what the famous and historical market is like.
There are several entrances to the Grand Bazaar, which is located in the Fatih district of Istanbul. I got in through the entrance at Beyazit as I used the Tram.
The Grand Bazaar is one of the oldest and largest covered markets in the world. History says that its first constructions started in the 15th Century, and by the 17th Century it was considered the hub of the Mediterranean trade. The Grand Bazaar has about 61 covered streets - some of which are wide enough for two cars to be parked side by side, and over 4,000 shops. It is truly the home of commerce in Istanbul.
Exploring the entirety of the Grand Bazaar would take a whole day for even the most energetic of tourists. There’s just so much to see and take in. While there are several different items you can find at the Grand Bazaar, I mostly saw Gold/Jewelry shops, fabric shops, Decor shops, Antique shops and Spice shops.
I’ve found that in Turkish culture, the businesses are family owned and usually have been in the family for generations. So for example if you walk into a fish shop, or a fabric shop or in this case a jewelry shop, you’ll find an entire family handling things and tending the shop. The father who owns the shop is present - the daughters and wives when seen are usually found bringing trays of tea, snacks or food, the sons who are learning the ropes from the father are usually seen attending to customers, and they refer to the father for difficult or more important purchases - and grandchildren if any are seen running errands and helping out wherever necessary.
I know I keep going on about how lovely Turkish people are, but I wanted to photograph this man and his sons, and decided against sneaking around to do so. I asked for a photo, and not only did they oblige - they offered me a seat at their table to drink tea and eat with them. A total stranger who obviously wasn’t a customer, but that’s Turkish people for you. They’re willing to welcome you any day, any time into their homes and abodes.
I also met Mahmut while trying to find the item I came to buy, and he appointed himself my guide, and took me to his friends shop at the spice market as well as showed me around Eminönü. It was very kind of him.
As we walked deeper and farther into the market, I started to stumble into makeshift street-side stalls of traders selling their goods like this Antique lights stand below.
Also further into the market, I found the Antique section which occupied an entire street, and even though I couldn’t explore the entire street as I was on my way to the Spice market, there were some shops just outside that I managed to get pictures of.
I found the Architecture of the Bazaar very interesting especially the ceilings. I was amazed and wondered what it took to painstakingly get those designs into the ceilings. I wondered if the POP designs we have today take the same effort and if hundreds of years down the line they too will be gazed upon with fascination by a new generation.
As I walked on, I came across more interesting shops, and i found it interesting how each shop was mostly dedicated to one thing entirely, no matter how bizarre. If a trader was selling soap, his entire shop was devoted to soaps of every kind, if he was selling scarves, his entire shop was dedicated to scarves of every color, fabric and size.
I also came across this quaint little cafe with the cutest little place cards on their tables, and very interesting chair covers.
Leaving the Grand Bazaar my guide Mahmut and I walked on to the Spice market which is also called the Egyptian Market. It was a fairly long walk by my standards, (I don’t like walks) weaving through open air streets until we got to the entrance where a security guard armed with a temperature gun checked our body temperature as we went in.
The spice market looked much newer as though it was built more recently, although the ceiling art was similar to the ceiling art at the Grand Bazaar.
The shops at the spice market had business names etched at the top of the shops, and were filled with spices, Turkish sweets including many varieties of the famous Turkish Delight - although there were a few jewelry shops scattered around.
Coming out of the spice market at the Eminönü exit, you’re immediately welcomed by the pigeons flocked around the wide square. A man seated just by the corner sells seeds you can feed the birds in little plastic cups and containers for ₺1.50.
After I fed the pigeons, a quick walk through the underground market took me across the road to the Pier where there were loads of food and drink carts, waterfront restaurants as well as ferries. I particularly found the restaurants fascinating as they had these beautiful antique boats docked in the water for kitchens.
I tried out one of the food carts selling simit a kind of Turkish bread that looks like a huge donut, and another selling Turşu Suyu (pickle juice). I didn’t particularly like the simit. It’s sort of tough and crunchy on the outside not chewy and sweet like I like my bread. Normal Turkish bread is tough on the outside and strechy/chewy on the inside, so I don’t mind it much, but simit isn’t. Pickle juice tastes exactly like you would expect it to taste. That is to say I didn’t enjoy it at all. 😫 It had huge chunks of pickles and it tasted very acidic and somewhat salty. It’s definitely not something I’ll be trying again.
The pier is gorgeous and is a great place for photos with a gorgeous backdrop on both sides - the waterside and the road.
There are ferries that according to Mahmut give you a tour of the water for ₺25. I’ll definitely try that on my next visit.
All in all I enjoyed my visit to both markets, and the pier. It was a beautiful and fascinating experience. If you’re interested in history, tea, spices, fabric, gold/jewelry and shopping, you’ll definitely enjoy the Grand Bazaar and Egyptian/Spice Market. If you enjoy fish/seafood you should definitely try out the restaurants at the pier. I have a review of one of them coming up in my next post. Lastly if you just want gorgeous pictures, then you’ll definitely get some at the pier.
Hope you had fun coming with me. See you on my next adventure.
Love, Yoma.
Comments