Original Watercolour 15" x 11"

Few bazaars feel both as real and surreal as the one leading downhill from the Grand Bazaar toward the Spice Bazaar in Eminönu. Commissioned in the 15th century by Grand Vizier Mahmut Paşa, this frenzied market gives a unique glimpse into the synthesis of East and West, religion and consumerism that underlies modern Turkish culture. Inside the jumbled buildings and brightly lit basements is a bustling world of bargain shopping, where stores selling circumcision costumes stand side by side with those trying to sell discount underwear and fresh roasted corn on the cob.