Today was such a great day! Even though it was raining and cold -- We went to the bazaar and found beads! Near the spice bazaar are streets lined with buildings called "Hans". They are merchants that carry similar products grouped together doing and selling what they do -- For example there is an electronics han that sells nothing but cell phones and accessories, another just yarns and others that sell beads. Really just about anything you could name can be found in this area.
Today, we were 6. We walked around following our leader, Sharon. Sharon is an American who has been living in Istanbul for more than 18 years. She loves teaching us about the city and showing us the most fantastic places. Today was delightful.
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| Our friend! She shares everything with us and she makes everything so interesting! Thank you Sharon from the bottom of our hearts! In the background is the "Yeni Camii" ("The New Mosque" that was built several hundred years ago!) |
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| Sharon looking at the necklaces that Brenda found - 10 for 10 TL -- Great buy! |
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| The "Bead Tree" - most of these beads are the "Evil Eye" design. Very popular here in Turkey! |
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| Close to everything you see in this picture are seed beads and Swarovski Crystal beads. Charlotte is always ready to "go" -- love that about her! |
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| Brenda picking out her necklaces! She has so much fun with jewelry! Sandy was helping her -- to make sure she didn't buy two of the same! Such fun they are! |
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| This guy is sorting beads. You could hear them fall into the tubs surrounding him. |
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This is only part of a wall of WOODEN BEADS! I don't know why but I just love wooden beads! Every color and size you could imagine. I am not kidding!
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One interesting thing I saw today was in the first han we went into. It was a five story building with three of them underground. Upon entering, you could hear birds singing. Actucally it sounded like one of those fake birds. To my amazement, they were real. Cages were attached to the walls, up high so they were hard to notice. I counted 8 birds in 7 cages. It was really neat. I asked about the birds and why they had them and the guy said "We like them." I did too!
Even in the rain -- it was a wonderful day! Thanks for stopping by -- Sheryl
WOW!!!! That is a lot of beads. I love the colors!
ReplyDeleteVery cool, looks like fun!
ReplyDeleteLooks like we were out in the rain on the same day. I love the beads! Where exactly are these shops and the ones with the birds? My sister is visiting and this sounds like a fun outing for a rainy day - which we have been having quite a few of!
ReplyDeleteSorry I missed out! Can't wait to return to fun activities next month! But enjoy your traveling too and see you when you return as well! Cheers!
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun shopping trip! I recognized the New Mosque right away... and I think I actually stumbled into that bead store while looking for something else. Which as you know is so easy to do there in Istanbul.
ReplyDeletejoy & blessings,
Alida