Shopping at the Grand Bazaar was like no other shopping experience we had thus far. The venders are extremely aggressive and are not shy about displaying their malcontent when you say that you are not interested in purchasing their goods. The friendly, warm “Hello, where you from? Please come in to see only”, can turn hostile when you do not buy their over priced merchandise. For instance, a traditional set of 6 tea cups that normally cost about 10 Turkish lira was jacked up to 45 lira, when asked. One vender told us that a set cost 45 lira and was extremely upset when we offered him 13 lira. At one point he even told us to f-off. Another was so insistent that he followed us half way around the bazaar dodging behind corners to see if we were shopping around at other stalls for the same set of tea cups. And then there are the perfume salesmen, walking around with nothing more than a plastic bag with a few bottles of “designer perfumes” who would follow you around for about 5 minutes as you move up and down the stalls. It did not take long before all of the money had disappeared so we left the bazaar with a couple of T-shirts and a set of tea cups to find a hamam (traditional Turkish bath) that would accommodate the two of us.We managed to find a bath house that could accommodate both males and females. When we entered into the bath, we saw two towels and two pillows adjacent to one another on top of a marble table that was about 8’ by 8’. The ceiling of the bathhouse was dome shaped with circular openings that allowed natural light to penetrate the thick mason roof and enter into the space below. The room was much like that of a sauna, and the heat that emanated from the marble table made the 10 minute steam bath quite enjoyable, as we laid there with not much other than a loin cloth. The sounds of running water from the adjacent room filled the volume of the space, replacing the absent sounds of the local chatter and gossip that would normally stem form the locals who would frequent this place. As a condition to our bath, the owners of the bath assured us that no other men would be in the bath while it was occupied by us. A condition that was made special for us as men and women usually bathe separately.
The tranquilness of the room was quickly broken when the door of the bathhouse opened and a man came in with a bucket full of bubbles. Dressed in the same garment as us, he proceeded to poor hot soap suds over me and began to scrub me. I had not been scrubbed that hard since the days when my own mother use to bathe me. It was a combination of scrubbing and massaging full of soap suds on top of a warm and hard marble table. The best was the head and feet massages. As he scrubbed and scrubbed, I could see my tan disappearing as layers and layers of dead skin was stripped away. After the scrubbing came the rinsing, where we went into a separate room and there basins of warm water awaited our arrival. He sat us down next to the basins and began to poor this water over our heads repeatedly. It was quite the experience and we left the bath house feeling squeaky clean. It was a great way to cleanse ourselves after a couple of weeks traveling through Turkey.
We had a wonderful three weeks here in Turkey, discovering for ourselves the magnificent and diverse landscapes of Cappidocia, Antalya, Olympus and Pammukale, the beautiful clear blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea, the quaint towns of Kas and Selcuk, and the historical presence of Fethiye and Ephesus, and of course the breathtaking city of Istanbul through the dominance of the picturesque mosques. We were impressed from our travels through Turkey with the diversity that each region had to offer and even got a glimpse into the 4 thousand years of history that exists here. It was wonderful to see that the people of Turkey past and present are in tune with their natural surroundings and have incorporated these elements into their daily lives. From the early caves of Cappidocia to the ancient ruins of Fethiye and Ephesus and to the mosques of Istanbul, there exists a strong relationship between its people and their beliefs and this manifested itself into some of the most unique architecture we have seen.
Despite the geographical and historical diversity of each region, one thing that remained constant throughout all of Turkey was THE ALL INCLUDED HOTEL BREAKFAST. 21 days straight of one boiled egg, 4 slices of tomatoes and cucumbers, 4 black olives, one serving of butter and jam, a slice of cheese, a cup of Cay (Turkish tea) and all the bread you can imagine. Local dinners also seemed to be the same with not much variety. Perhaps it could have been that we were on a budget and did not frequent the more expensive restaurants, but donairs and kebabs lined most streets and a sour yogurt and milk combination (Ayran) seems to be the drink of choice for locals. Our palette is in dire need of fresh taste and we are drooling at the thought of all you can eat sushi and/or a big bowl of pho. If by chance any of you in Vancouver are reading this please do us a favour, and have some sushi or pho tonight.
2 comments:
Rav and Chris,
I feel you pain on eating a turkish breakfast 21 days. Of course me and Jody only had to suffer for 10 days in Egypt eating the same thing morning after morning. The eggs seems to get bigger everyday and are hard to swallow. Yes right now I have a big bowl of Pho and some spring rolls. I will think of you two while eating ;-) and Rav tomorrow I might have some butter chicken for lunch.
Loc
i thought you said no more shopping once you get to europe?
is that a picture of Chris in a towel or is that a thai boy for sale?
speaking of pho, i just had some the other day... mmm
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