The hans and markets of old Bursa

 Well known for its textile and automobile industries, it's not a place that has had to rely on the vagaries of the tourism business to enrich it and that shows in the relatively low profile kept by its monuments. A scarily busy one-way system roars through the historic center so that it's easy to whiz through town and barely realize what a lot it has to offer. Of course, that would be a mistake because the suburbs that spin out from the center are chock full of wonderful mosques, madrasahs and hamams dating back to the glory days of the early Ottoman Empire.

The mosques come in for a fair bit of publicity, particularly the lovely Yeşil Cami (Green Mosque) beside which Sultan Mehmed I is entombed. But for many people one of the great unsung pleasures of a visit to Bursa will be to discover the complex network of hans and covered alleyways that make up the city's own Kapalı Çarşı (Covered Market), an altogether calmer and more authentic place to shop than its much more feted İstanbul counterpart. Recently the local authorities have been renovating the various structures that make up the market, partly to refurbish the historic fabric and partly to turn some of the open-air sections into all-weather shopping areas, a very wise idea given that the huge glass pyramid of the undercover Zafer Plaza Shopping Center is only a stone's throw away down the hill.

Like İstanbul's Kapalı Çarşı, Bursa's is not particularly conspicuous from the main road being tucked away behind the magnificent Ulu Cami (Great Mosque), a multi-domed extravaganza dating back to the last years of the 14th century. It's from the north side of this mosque that you plunge into the lively market, coming almost at once to the Emir Han, a pretty two-storied structure that dates back to 1336. Hans were the urban equivalents of the great caravanserais that punctuated the trade routes across the country. Merchants would arrive at them with their animals and merchandise in tow and would be able to stable the animals, store the merchandise and find a bed for the night all in the one handy location. The rooms of the hans usually opened off a central courtyard with the animals sleeping downstairs and their owners upstairs. The largest came with their own mescids (chapels), which usually formed the centerpiece of the courtyard. The Emir Han lacks a place of worship, which means more space for the tea gardens that make perfect places to rest when the shopping bags get too heavy.

Beyond the Emir Han lies the Kapalı Çarşı proper with, tucked inside it just as in İstanbul, the 15th-century bedesten (market hall) with its huge metal doors. Here jewelers still congregate to tout their wares, much of it the gold that locals love to give as gifts at wedding and circumcision parties. Badly damaged by fire in 1958, the bedesten was largely rebuilt in 1960. As for the Kapalı Çarşı itself, this is a great place to shop for reasonably priced clothes, shoes and household goods. Most of what's on sale is primarily of interest to locals, but you might want to look for the Aynalı Çarşısı (Mirrored Market), a corner of the bazaar housed inside what was once an old hamam that contains several lovely antique shops. It's a great place to scout out original and replica Karagöz shadow puppets since Bursa has had a long association with the art (and indeed has a museum devoted to puppetry in the Çekirge suburb).

The streets surrounding the Kapalı Çarşı are also worth exploring especially if you're in need of new towels or the sort of thick bathrobes (bornoz) for which Bursa is famous. Otherwise you might want to head west in search of the Eski İpek Hanı (Old Silk Han), a building dating back to the 15th century where silk merchants used to congregate, which has somehow managed to mislay the 12-sided mescid that used to adorn its courtyard. Beyond it lies the enormous Pirinç Han (Brass Han) dating back to 1508, which is filled with fast-food restaurants -- Bursa's han network is so extensive, basically, that it's able to provide something for just about everyone.

Heading east from the Kapalı Çarşı you'll come to the newly restored 15th-century Geyve Han and then to the Yorgancılar Çarşısı, which, as its names suggests, was once used for the sale of thick local quilts although nowadays its awash with all sorts of furniture as well. Even further east you'll see the imposing stone gateway that leads through to the best known of the hans, the Koza Han (Cocoon Han), which is where the majority of the silk merchants used to gather every summer to argue over their wares. Today the courtyard around the central mescid is filled with places to sip a tea in the shadow of ancient and legally protected plane trees. Upstairs, the rooms where the merchants would once have slept are now devoted to the sale of silk scarves in every color and pattern imaginable.

The Koza Han may be pretty familiar, mainly because it has a southern entrance that opens onto Atatürk Caddesi, the main drag. The 15th-century Fidan Han (Plant Han), on the other hand, is only accessible from within the market itself, which means that even though it's just as lovely (and has a gem of an elderly tea-house) it receives considerably fewer foreign visitors.

That's as far as most outsiders ever get, but if you continue walking eastwards you will come to the area of the Tuz Pazarı (Salt Market), much of which has now been roofed over to protect its many small clothes shops. If you duck down the side streets here towards the Tuz Pazarı Cami (mosque) you'll find some wonderful grocery stalls, piled high with the freshest of fruits and vegetables and the chestnuts that are a local delicacy. Here, too, you will be able to inspect the Tuz Han (Salt Han, 1454) which was given a new lease of life in 2007; pictures by the entrance record the transformation.

The Tuz Pazarı segues neatly into the newly renovated Okçular Çarşısı (Archers' Market) and yet more clothes and shoe stalls. Here something like the original Beyoğlu Beautification Project has been attempted, with all the shops required to adopt the same color fascias. It remains to be seen how long that will last given that the signboards of İstiklal Caddesi are now just as chaotically individual as they were before the effort to haul them into conformity.

Work on renovating the hans continues apace and is scheduled to cross over İnönü Caddesi and head into the Demirciler Çarşısı (Ironmongers Market) where the Eskişehir Han (Old City Han) is next in line for a makeover. Nor need you stop your explorations there. Behind the glitzy Zafer Plaza stands the 18th-century Apolyont Han where visitors are invited to view one of the carriages that shoppers would once have used to reach it. And across Atatürk Caddesi, tumbling down from the remains of the castle, the ruins of the Balıkçı (Fisherman) and Balibey Hans have been rebuilt to provide a series of tea gardens.

WHERE TO STAY

Hotel Çesmeli

Tel: 0224-224 1511

Efehan Hotel

Tel: 0224-225 2260

Safran Hotel

Tel: 0224-224 7216 

HOW TO GET THERE

İDO fast ferries sail from Yenikapı and Kabataş to Güzelyalı. There you take a bus to Bursa Metro's Organize Sanayı station. The Metro brings you to Şehreküstü, within walking distance of the bazaar. 

Koza Han

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Yorgancılar Çarşısı

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Uzun Çarşı

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                                      Emir Han

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 Eski İpek Han