Sorting out the burgundies from the ochres and the candies from caviar
No trip to Istanbul is complete without getting lost in the Spice Bazaar
A must visit place if you want to stock up on fragrant, edible souvenirs
Or just drift with the crowd and marvel about the Ottoman era engineers
L-shaped with six gates, one could trot in on a horse in its germinal days
Packed with people and their paraphernalia, pursuing, in their own ways
but that it also hailed the Silk Road caravans from east, you’ve to decrypt
Pills, powders, and potions created for homes, hammams, and harems
that scented soothed and strengthened them against everyday problems
Not just spices or silk, it’s a crossroad for exchange of news and notions
that flowed from east to west and vice versa, producing new inspirations
An aromatic assault from a million spices stagger my olfactory sensors
As I try not to get swept away with countless varieties of chili peppers
I smell and sneeze and smell again, each time, less sure of what I desire
Rice, pasta, fish, or meat, there's a masala for anything you can conspire
Spice mixes for kebabs or biryanis or the sultan spice that applies to all
Or a love tea to ignite the spark and honey to lighten your mood overall
Muddled, we asked the cheerful store owner to share his expert opinion
He began by pulling our legs as if we were long-lost friends in a reunion
Soon lemony sumac, Aleppo pepper, and other exotic mixes were packed
A Turkish pepper grinder was also wrapped to make sure nothing lacked
We stepped out bearing one of the most evocative evidence of our travel
Grateful to be a part of a gastronomic tradition in timeless Constantinople
