GRAND BAZAAR I--FORAGING FOR FABULOUS FABRICS
So you've taken it upon yourself to shop till your last breath at what locals call the Kapalicarsi. So much to see, do, buy! And, with more than 4,000 shops, markets and cafés, how the heck are you supposed to to find what where!
First, the online reviews aren't a bad place to start. Literally by the tons, you scroll through them thinking, "I wasn't looking for an 18-carat, marquise-cut diamond ring for the low price of $5,000... or a cheap Hagia Sofya mug..." In glossies, dailies or blogs, reviews are highly subjective. And frankly what's good for the Jones' may not always be YOUR ideal.
Obviously, if the Clintons shopped there on their last trip to the city --or if Dolce & Gabbana scour their shelves for their next collection, the place may at first strike you as pricey or snooty. But, then again, not always. Often, some of these places have been around for so long, they've ingrained themselves in the fabric of the 500-year old structure. As is the case with Murat Hasha's store (Yaglikçilar Cad. 57, Grand Bazaar), where world-reknown fashion designers like Rifat Özbek, Hussein Chalayan get their fabric.
And for Hillary's favorite place? Dogan & Özgür Bilgili (Takkeciler Sok 93-95 Grand Bazaar, 0212/527-6359) offers well-tailored, fine leather jackets and fiull-length coats, starting at about 150 TL. For innovative purses, slippers and Western-style boots crafted out of kilim, from 25-250TL, Ercan May’s Ercan Hediyelik Esya (Kolancilar Sok 7, 0212/522-5361) is the place to go. For the thickest, butter-soft Turkish cotton bathrobes and towels, you can’t go wrong with Abdulla Natural Products (Halicilar Cad. 62, Grand Bazaar, 0212/527-3684). And to quench my passion for scarves, I head for Igüs Esarp (Yaglikçilar Cad. 80, 0212/512-2538) for every possible color, texture--silk, wool, and velvet to viscose; and budget--from 20 to 40 liras.
STRICTLY SPEAKING: How much? -- Ne kadar? [Neigh (think of horses) kadar]