Flower sellers perpetuate centuries-old tradition

One of them is Gülümser Çapat, 50, who has been selling flowers since she was 8 years old. She said flower selling is a family business for them that has survived for generations. She learned the trade from her mother, and her mother from hers.

"I've never tired of my work because I love it. It is a delicate business, and that's why mostly women do it," she said, speaking to Today's Zaman beside her flowers at the Üsküdar docks. She added that her mother sold flowers until she died. Çapat plans to work for a few more years to support her son, who was successful on the national university entrance examinations.

She begins her day in İstanbul's Akatlar district, selecting the best blossoms. Then she takes her regular spot at Üsküdar with about 15 to 20 varieties of flowers. Their prices range from YTL 5 to YTL 25.

When asked who usually buys her flowers, she says it varies -- sometimes couples who are in love, sometimes couples who have had a fight. There are also those on their way to visit sick friends or relatives.

"I sometimes sell flowers without making any profit to lovely couples," she said.

Are there any difficulties in her job? She says weather conditions are the most trying, especially in the winter.

"We need to wear layers of clothing to be sufficiently protected against the cold. It becomes hard even to distinguish us from one another because we look so different all bundled up," she said.

She has other business worries, among them a fear that some traditions with roots in the Ottoman era are dying out, like tulip cultivation. She refers to the period in Ottoman history called the Tulip Era (1718-1730), under the reign of Sultan Ahmed III. The Tulip Era takes its name from the enthusiasm of palace residents and prosperous families to grow tulips.