Interesting little market (Spice Bazaar)

Member Name: polljax

Product:	Spice Bazaar
Date:	18/08/09 (6 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Cheap, small enough to see in a couple of hours, interesting

Disadvantages: Slight walk from other places of interest, not as much variety as Grand Bazaar

The Spice Bazaar is smaller than the Grand Bazaar and set slightly apart from the main area around Sultanahmet Square, but it's definitely worth the walk/ extra tram token.
The inside area is good for spices, fragrances, ceramics and little knick-knack type jewellery (I was travelling with a teacher who wanted to bring back little activity rewards for her pupils and got several of them here). Being much larger the Grand Bazaar has a wider range of stuff on sale e.g. if you're looking for carpets this is the place to start.
The most interesting bit of the Spice Bazaar is outside the front. There are lots of cafes for Turkish coffee and apple tea on one side and a flower market on the other selling a wide range of flower bulbs, vegetable seeds, leeches and birds. Some of these things are not practical to buy if you're flying home, but it's an interesting place for a walk.
The Spice Bazaar is also very close to the Bosphorus ferry, so after shopping you can go sit by the water's edge, or catch a boat across to the Asian side of the city.

Summary: Worth seeing