Istanbul 2

After the Grand Bazaar it was time to buy presents for home. I saw jam in a shop on Divan Yolu. (This avenue whose name means Road to the Imperial Council, i.e. Topkapı, starting from the Sultanahmet district and running past the Grand Bazaar, was the first part of a road to Rome, some 1600 km away.) However I wanted to see if the prices were any better at Mısır Çarşisi (Spice Bazaar) first. They weren't but I got dainty lokum (Turkish Delight) in that district, Eminönü, from one of many specialty stores. Then I went back to Divan Yolu for a couple of jars of jam. While there I took a peek at the hamam (Turkish bath) that I would visit that evening.

I took my loot back to the hostel and grabbed a bottom bunk that was available. There were a couple of new arrivals, a young Brit couple.

This is one of the more modern Istanbul street cars. They were quite advanced; residents can pay their fare with a contactless stored value token system.

After an afternoon siesta I went for a Turkish bath. I was assigned a small changing room where I could store my belongings and put on a towel. I first worked up a sweat in the warm room, then progressed to the hot room. After a splash with cold water, a masseur approached me. We haggled a bit and agreed on the price of a rub down, which was not included in the admission but paid directly to the masseur later, somewhat surreptitiously, a bakşiş. It was a somewhat passive experience for me, I just laid back on the stone and got pounded and scrubbed. I didn't believe it possible that a rub down could scrape off so much dead skin. I felt like a new man, recently moulted, upon emerging. The photo is of the "foyer" of the hamam.

After that I went for a walk in the district of Kumkapı. This traditionally housed a large number of Armenians. These days it has many good fish restaurants.

But they were obviously out of my price range. I was invisible to the spruikers and waiters; I didn't appear to be someone who would eat there.

Never mind, there were lots of good places on Divan Yolu for a late meal. A charming old waiter at the Karadeniz enticed me into trying their doner meal. It was quite good, although the baklava at the end of the meal was a bit too sweet for my taste.

When I got back to the dorm, the Brits were discreetly making out like rabbits in their corner.