Turkiye is famous for its cotton towels. Some places sell these for 30 or more dollars or British pounds. Some are small and made for wrapping around the waist. Others are for using as blankets, beach towels, tablecloths, etc. I found a place where the small ones cost 100 Turkish Lira ($2.39) and the large ones cost 300 TL ($7.17). Should I have bargained?
The owners name is Serkan (There was someone else who worked there too but he seemed a bit giggly at the notion of a foreigner in the shop). Serkan spoke no English but was friendly and helpful. The store is located in old Adana city. It is not on Google maps. It is across the street from a shop called, “Demir organizasyon adana” which sells wedding stuff.
I inadvertently bought quite a few things. I do not know if they take credit cards. I paid cash.
The Straw Market in downtown Nassau, The Bahamas, is famous. I found it to be too mass produced. If you want to support some of the independent artists and shop owners, then you will have to get in a car and go slightly (ten minutes) away from the main street. The reason for the spread out shops is that, apparently, the rent on the main strip is quite high. The list of independent shops is super short:
Farmers Market, on the porch of the building in the same complex as the Kim Smith gallery. Basically, it’s two vendors. One who sells some vegetables, a baked good, and lobster tail tacos. The other person makes the tacos.
Bahama Art and Handicraft, East Shirley Street: Two sisters have this shop with lots of nick knacks. They don’t allow you to take photos of the things inside but you can find them on their Facebook page if you want to see what they have.
