The Travelin' Redhead

The polite haggler “How much for this?” Kirk asked. “55 Lira,” the shopkeeper at the Grand Bazaar told him. “You can’t do 30 Lira?” Kirk asked politely. That question was met with an explanation of the Turkish lamp’s superior craftsmanship, its authenticity, etc., from the good-humored shopkeeper. “OK, I sell to you for 45 Lira,” he said. But Kirk wasn’t done haggling. “You really can’t do 40 Lira?” Kirk asked again ever-so-nicely. “Don’t push me,” said the shopkeeper laughing, telling us that he can’t sell it for less than the wholesale cost. “So, you can’t sell it to us for 40 Lira?” Kirk questioned again innocently. “OK 40,” the shopkeeper quickly replied with a laugh. And the haggling was done. The polite haggler himself: One shopkeeper told Kirk he looked like a "Buddhist Master." The master haggled away. The Grand Bazaar was not nearly as intimidating as it looks. Sure, it’s crowded and huge, but the shopkeepers aren’t aggressively stalking you or twis...

The Süleymaniye Mosque is the largest mosque in Istanbul. The monkey was wearing a diaper. Its diapered bottom was sitting on the shoulder of a man wearing traditional Turkish clothing. Together they were strolling down Divan Yolu, one of the busiest streets in old town Istanbul. I was so shocked I didn’t even have time to get my camera before the walking stereotype disappeared into the street crowd. But believe me, Kirk can attest to the truth of the diapered monkey. Who can make that stuff up? The world's best sales pitches We went to the Grand Bazaar today, but weren’t quite feeling up to the challenge of facing the hordes of people and the shopkeepers pressuring you to buy. Instead, we took a couple of side trips down the quieter, outer side alleys of the Grand Bazaar. And though it was quiet, the sales pitches were rollin’ in. Here are the top five sales pitches we have heard so far in Istanbul: From the corn-on-the-cob street vendor: “Zero-calorie f...

Ten pieces of Turkish Delight down and counting ... This is how we're ending each day in Turkey. Lucky for me, there's two strategically located Turkish Delight shops on the way back to the hotel. So far, we've tried ginger, rose water, orange, lime, special pomegranate (with nuts) as well as baklava and a pistachio treat similar to baklava. The ginger ones are my favorite, while Kirk prefers the pomegranate ones. The Turkish Delights were just the snack we needed after a day of touring the massive and beautiful Topkapi Palace. Once inside the layers of courtyards, we entered into the secret world of the Ottoman Sultans who roamed these magnificently tiled halls. We even got a glimpse into the life of their many concubines who lived there. Tile me pretty! You could spend an entire day in Topkapi palace, especially during the off-season. We arrived at the palace by 11 a.m. and stayed until about 3:30 p.m., plenty of time for touring the entire...