How bazaar, how bazaar

Day two with the family in Istanbul was a day of shopping. Well, window shopping at least. Stop 1 was the your-reputation-precedes-you Grand Bazaar. An enormous and gigantic blob, it spreads out along a number of streets all crammed together, and has been covered to keep the shopping going regardless the weather. It turned out to be much more mall-like than I expected. The hallways were wide. The shopkeepers talked to me but never got pushy. And there was so much for sale.

Too bad I'm not in the market for stuff right now, as they had a lot on offer. The lights, in particular, were really cool.

It was also neat to see the architectural relics from Ottoman times, including elaborate ceilings and marble wash basins.

From grand to ground, and we were off to the Spice Bazaar, or Misir Carsisi.

A much simpler affair than the Grand Bazaar, this market had two main lanes at a cross to one another. And there were so many spices and sweets for the taking.

I normally had always heard of Turkish delight in the singular, but it turns out that there are untold variations in the sweet dessert.

Along with spices, other food-related items were available as well. There were a ton of olive and cheese shops, and this shop which had dried produce of every kind.

Proving that we are indeed in the 21st century was this selection of board games, including Taboo in Turkish. Though outnumbered by the backgammon boards (the official board game of Turkey), these party games had a prominent place in their shopkeeper's display.

We indulged a little bit, getting some excellent fistik doner. I am not sure if that is the real name, but it was a huge roll of pistachios, held together by a gummy-like substance, on a big vertical doner bar. The cashier sliced some off with a knife and gave it to us. Delicious!