Grand Bazaar

The Grand Bazaar is a popular attraction for many visitors touring Istanbul as it is both a historical center and a place to go shopping. The massive covered market is the world's first shopping mall, taking up an entire city quarter. It is surrounded by thick walls between the Nure Osmaniye Mosque and Beyazit Mosque. The Beyazit Mosque itself lies beside the ancient ruins of the Forum of Theodosius and has a design inspired by the Hagia Sophia.

Today, the Grand Bazaar is the largest covered market in the world, with more than 1200 shops spread out over 58 streets. It has an astounding foofall of 250,000 per day, which can go up to 400,00 on public holidays or special occasions. With such a vast array of shops, there is nothing you won't find here, but the Grand Bazaar is most famous for jewelry, pottery, spice, and carpet shops.

The entrance to the bazaar is through one of 11 gates. Here, a maze of vaulted-ceiling laneways, lined by shops and stalls selling every Turkish souvenir and handicraft you could imagine, cover the area. These are still generally demarcated into specific areas determined by trade, which makes finding anything you want to buy less challenging. Close to the bazaar's Divanyolu Caddesi entrance is the Burned Column. This stump, which is still 40 meters high, is made of a porphyry segment set up by Constantine the Great to mark the dedication of his new capital Constantinople. Until 1105, it even bore a bronze statue of Constantine.