2014 Biking Turkey Daily Snippet

14 October, Istanbul
Haci Mimi Apartment 53TL

Our favourite line in the Grand Bazaar? “Can I help you to spend your money on something you don’t need?” On my parents’ last day in the city, we shopped for scarves and bookmarks and tiles and olive soap in a tin at Istanbul’s famous Grand Bazaar. One of the largest and oldest covered markets in the world, it comprises 61 covered streets and over 3,000 shops which attract between 250,000 and 400,000 visitors each day. Near the Spice Bazaar, constructed in the 1660s as part of the New Mosque complex, we met a walker from Quebec, a 68 year-old who has walked 48,000km since he retired and plans to walk twice around the globe before settling down to write a book about his adventures. We were driven to the Galata Tower by a magician who not only overcharged us by manipulating his metre, but tried to extort even more money from us by saying we had given him a 20 Turkish Lira note when in fact we had handed him a 100TL note. His sleight of hand was so quick and professional he could give up his day job! Built in 1348 by the Genoese, the beautiful Galata Tower stands 66.9m tall with an external diameter of 16.45m and walls that are 3.75m thick. Near the top is a narrow walkway that offers 360 degree views of the city. Back in Sultanahmet we watched a woman knotting a silk carpet destined to be about two square metres in size. She works 45 minutes out of every hour and it will take her 18 months to complete the carpet, a thing a beauty. We dined at the Pudding Shop (mediocre food – such a disappointment after all my good memories from 30 years ago) and then it was back to mom n dad’s hotel to await their transport to the airport.