Istanbul, Day Two

We got up early and made our way over to the Grand Bazaar before the crowds.  It was definitely the call.  We were there just as the place started to wake-up.  The store owners were kibbitzing with each other, having their morning coffee and just beginning their day.

We essentially roamed the halls freely with very little crowds.

The Bazaar has over 4000 stores inside and out.  It is an incredible place filled with thousands of entrepreneurs.  Lanterns,

Ceramics

Water outlets.

Towels. Fabrics and jewelry, leather goods, souvenirs and plenty of other items.

It reminds me of NYC areas.  There is the lighting district, the trim district, etc.

After leaving the Grand Bazaar we walked over to the Spice Market.  A small bazaar filled with some of the same stores but mostly spice shops.  The building was built in 1664.

Lots of different types of dates.

Spices.

Some of the better food stalls are outside the spice market.  Feta and cheese stands.

Olives

Butcher

Coffee beans

Dried fruit.

Each place has a vacuum sealer so you can easily take your wares home.

For lunch we stopped at Hamdi.  The owner of this restaurant started with a small grill making the best kebabs around.  Soon the lines began and he expanded into a small shop.  Then he had made enough to buy a three story building.  That is where we ate.  The story is so great.  These are the views from our table.

We had a salad to start.  Eggplant kebab to split.

Lamb kebab to split too.

After lunch we took the tram across the water to the Istanbul Modern.  They have a wonderful collection.  The building is two open floors.  Worthwhile stop.  This piece is part of their permanent collection, Tomas Saraceno.

Downstairs was the installations.  This ceiling is near the cinema and library.  Super cool with books hanging from the ceiling.

One of the exhibits was a retrospective of Mehmet Guleryuz.  Broad range of work.  This was my favorite, the Tutu.

The other exhibit was fantastic.  Magnum Contact Sheets.  Photographers who had captured images that have become iconic.  Their stories and the contact sheets which are the original unedited photos before they chose which one was the one to print.  This one is of Dali.  Really enjoyed this installation.

We were starting to get a little burnt out from the day so we made our way back to the hotel for a little nap before our next event.

We had dinner that evening at Mikla.  The night before was at Bebek Balikci.  Nothing so amazing that I felt the need to give either of them a separate post.  One thing is that at the top of the Pera Hotel is Mikla.

The roof of that hotel has a bar that as a 360 degree view of the city.  It is pretty spectacular.  I highly recommend going for a drink and watching the sunset.  We did before we had dinner.