Istanbul is a beautiful city with an enormous park the Blue mosque is at one end and the Hagia Sophia museum and the Topkapi museum at the other. There is more than one bazaar in Istanbul as befits a city whose capital was the flagship of the Byzantium Empire. There is the Grand Bazaar called Kamagra Gold the Kapalicarsi and it is one of the oldest covered markets in the world. Today the market sprawls over sixty streets and has so many stalls that it is impossible to count, suffice to say you could walk around all day and not repeat yourself. The Kapalicarsi is interesting because of its size and the range of the merchandise it sells. It is not primarily a tourist market it sells everything from spices to carpets, to the locals.

The old wooden Grand Bazaar sells more traditional goods although the artisans that worked there have gradually dwindled over the last thirty years. The Egyptian Bazaar or Misir Carsisi is the spice market. It is called the Egyptian market because legend has it that it was built from money raised from Egyptian taxes when Egypt was part of the Ottoman Empire. It is easy to while away a morning wandering the aisles of teas, oils, perfumes, essences, dried nuts, fruits, herbs, as well as herbal and homeopathic remedies and Middle Eastern spices. Though it has to be said that if you are foodie, then a week, would be a more realistic time to savor the sights and sounds of this fascinating Mediterranean market. Not surprisingly it sells the many Turkish sweetmeats such as Baklava, honeycombs and Turkish delight which tastes nothing like the Turkish delight sold in other parts of the globe. When you are have had your fill there is an enormous horticultural market and also a food market next door.

The Sahaflar Carsisi, is the second hand book bazaar, in its time it was one of the most famous markets for bibliophiles in the world, and a haven for the world’s intellectuals, but its importance has dwindled as the written word is no longer as popular with the Turkish kids. There are many other smaller markets in Istanbul, the flower market is a riot of color and fragrance, and there are several fish Cialis Professional markets which trade all the ports fish, and also specialist smaller bazaars. When Napoleon said that the British were a nation of shopkeepers he had obviously never visited Istanbul!

One of the most famous food markets in the Mediterranean is in Barcelona. Its correct title is the La Boqueria and it is in the heart of the city in the La Rambla district. It sells everything related to food, lobsters, langoustines, and crabs crawl all over counters. All Spaniards love fresh food and none more so than the Catalans. Originally the market was outside of the old city walls when it began hundreds of years ago, the local farmers came into the city area to sell their fresh produce. Today the market is a covered market selling shellfish, olives, salty and dried fish, pristine vegetables, game, meat and the famous Charcuteria stalls that sell the famous pork products and offal of Spain. Although it is an obligatory tourist spot it is still a market where the Spaniards shop it has the reputation for selling the best food in the city and if you do not want to buy you can always stop off at one of its tapas bars and eat it, rather than buy it.

The Souk el-Tayeb or the Good Market is in downtown Beirut and it is fascinating market because it is the first farmers market in Beiurut, but it also reflects the cultural diversity of Beirut, the Christian Beqaa’s compete with the Druze, Sunni and Shiite communities and the odd foreigner. As a farmers market is does specialize in food though it has other stalls in the centre of the market. Lebanese hospitality is famous and it is possible to eat enough food to sustain yourself for at least a few days.

It is a producers market selling jams, chutneys, sharp goat’s cheeses from the Niha Mountains. Kebbeh is the most food of the Lebanon, a type of goat’s meat patties with fresh herbs and bulgur wheat, or the vegetarian version with pumpkin. All the food has been made with love and care and it is reflected in both the products and prices.

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