Turkey Holidays

Istanbul’s Bizarre Big Bazaar

The Grand Bazaar Kapali Carsi is older - and grander - than 1001 nights Istanbul is a strange mix of the old and the new, the poor and the rich, culture and kitsch, east and west. Modern, filthy-rich villa districts neighbor slum areas packed with multitudes of struggling, Anatolian migrants. This cultural melting pot on the Bosporus, quite literally a bridge between Asia and Europe, has always been seen as a place where worlds collide and the masses meet. This modern metropolis of 15 million people has served as a center of world trade since the Byzantine era, when its countless luxury goods were in demand everywhere. And today? What results when these cultural collisions between east and west take place? Trade, as usual.



And where does one trade? There where the Turks enjoy trading the best; in the old city of Istanbul, of course. The Grand Bazaar, or the Covered Bazaar as it is also called, is a 550 year old shopping center with a more exotic variety of goods than any of its modern counterparts could ever hope to offer. It is still the commercial center of old Istanbul.

The Kapali Carsi is a giant labyrinth of narrow walkways, 64 streets, 22 entrance gates and over 4000 shops. Parts of the bazaar are covered by beautifully painted cupolas which were constructed by the conqueror of Constantinople, Sultan Mehmet II, long ago in 1461. It’s noisy here, of course. Boys rush back and forth selling black tea and sweet mocha, the shopkeepers advertise their wares with their overworked, hoarse voices and wheelbarrows stacked high with Turkish and Persian carpets negotiate their way through the endless crowds. One quickly gets the impression of having landed in a 1940s Hollywood film, but take a careful look around you and be assured. No, this is the real thing. You’re not at Universal Studios, you are in Old Bedesten.

Many of these shopkeeper families have been bargaining here for over five generations and many of their shops have become institutions in and of themselves. The traders here traditionally congregate in a particular area of the bazaar, depending upon the type of goods they sell. Woolen goods, for example - like the bath towels used for the Hamam, the traditional Turkish bath - are found at one end of the Bazaar. Then one moves on to the clothing area. All types of clothing is available, everything from leather and suede jackets to designer shoe ware. From here you can continue on to the spices. Enjoy the aromas of cinnamon, saffron, mint or thyme. From here you might move on to smaller items like soaps and candles, hand-painted ceramics, Paschmina scarves, porcelain, cutlery, lamps, tiles, antiques and water pipes. And it goes on and on and on.

The most popular items by far, however, are the gold and silver jewelry shops found in the Kalpakcilar and Terzi Basi Streets. But be warned: You might need to bring a pair of sunglasses when you come to browse here – the shopkeepers do their best to blind you with their dazzling offerings. These shops are just as popular with the Turks as they are with the foreign visitors and it is not uncommon to witness entire busloads of visitors being hurried along to bargain from one jewelry shop to the next by experienced insiders.

The Grand Bazaar has more to offer than non-stop shopping, too. Supply and demand have also found expression in the huge selection of restaurants that are available here. Cafes, tea shops, currency exchange booths, post offices, police stations and even a number of banks are always somewhere near around the next corner. And speaking of police stations, security has become a big concern here in recent years, of course. Security personnel are ever-present, as are the surveillance cameras.

You will eventually have to leave the labyrinth, two or three hours here are enough to exhaust anyone. But you will live happy, despite your exhaustion, and a souvenir or two richer for your troubles. The Bazaar Kapali Carsi, like Istanbul itself, honors and preserves the legacy of its great past while continuing down the path of its modern future.

It’s a magnificent city and the Grand Bazaar is a magnificent marketplace.

News

Turkey predicts 40% rise in golf tourism

Turkey has predicted a 40 per cent increase in its share of golfing tourism in 2007 as the country becomes more established as a destination for fans of the sport.

Visitors on a Turkey holiday played around 46,600 rounds of golf during March at courses in Belek - considered the centre of golf tourism in the country - up from 32,800 played during the same month in 2006, the Turkish Daily News reports.

Meanwhile, the total number of games played in the first three months of the year increased by 30 percent to 85,732 compared with the year before.

Turkish Golf Federation president Ahmet Agaoglu told news agency Anatolia that the country would have 21 golf courses as of 2008 and that it would continue to establish its reputation as a golfing destination.

As the number of golf courses in the region increases, the country's share of golf tourism is expected to rise "significantly", he explained.

He stated: "We, meaning Turkey, were late to start taking part in the world of golf-related tourism, but we are progressing very fast."

Nearly 1.8 million British visitors headed off on a holiday to Turkey in 2005, according to figures from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Eastern European cities 'rank high for property investment'

Slovakia's capital city grabbed the top spot in a survey of property market attractiveness, it has emerged.

Bratislava was ranked number one in recent research by the Global Property Guide, the Sofia Echo reports.

The guide looked at 12 European capitals in order to determine its rankings.

Criteria for the list included factors such as prices per square metre, annual rental income, taxes, transaction costs, gross domestic product and legislation in the country.

Slovakia was revealed to have a gross domestic product growth of 8.7 per cent in 2006, as well as low transaction costs and high rental income.

The Turkish city of Istanbul nabbed the second position in the rankings, while Sofia, Bulgaria came in third.

Average annual gross rental income in Sofia is 10.6 per cent, while average residential prices amount to €1,042 (£708) per square metre and taxes on rental income is reasonable, according to the publication.

However, the study also stated that transaction costs are high in Bulgaria, which may make it less attractive to landlords.

Meanwhile, Turkey gained in the rankings because of legislation changes which facilitated that purchase of real estate in the country.

In related news, propertyshowrooms.com reported figures from the Bulgarian National Bank stating that the country has received hundreds of millions of euros worth of investment in the first three months of 2007.

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