Travel

Once upon a time I used to travel quite a lot to Turkey, and especially than to Istanbul. I have not been there for many years now, so I am not sure if it is as fascinating as it used to be. At the time you could really feel and see how east meet west at the Bosphorus strait.

I am very much interested in history, buy I am not really a museum guy. IMHO most museums make history quite boring. Of course there are very good exceptions around the world but generally speaking I stick to my opinion. In Istanbul though there are many exceptions from this general rule. Topkapi with the harem and the treasury chamber is one of the most fascinating places I have seen and so is Agia Sophia, the Blue Mosque and the subterranean water reservoir.

Although the coved bazar, close to Topkapi and Agia Sophia, is not a museum I have to say it's like being moved back in history when entering this maze of shops inside a building that was erected sometime during the 15th century. If you want to buy gold, rugs or antiques from the orient this is THE place to go.

And it was here, in a gold shop, I met the best sales man in the world, maybe of all times.

My wife was about to have an even birthday and I thought I should have a look at and maybe buy her some jewelry when in Istanbul. So I went to the covered bazar and entered in to a shop that had pictures of Bjorn Borg and some Swedish politicians on the wall showing how they, with a big smile, bought jewelry in this particular shop. Quite trust worthy indeed.

Got contact with one of the sales guys and told him I was interested in buying a ring - tiffany style. No problem at all. He draw a picture based upon my description and since the design looked really good I approved it. Three days later I could pick up the ring and it looked just as nice as on the picture. The ring made quite a success at my wife's birthday, so you could say I was quite a happy customer.

Four years later we had our first child and a couple of weeks after the birth of my daughter I found myself in Istanbul once again. I had some spare time so I thought I would go to the covered bazar and see if I could find a birth gift (don't know if you say like that in English but I guess you get the meaning) to my wife. Thought it would be a good idea to buy a pair of earrings in the same style as the ring I had bought four years earlier.

Of course I went to the same shop - nice service and good craftsmanship is always a good basis for recurring business. When arriving to the shop it was full of American tourists busy checking in the merchandise and discussing with the sales persons behind the counters.

At the back of the shop I spotted the same guy I bought the ring from four years earlier. He was quite busy servicing an American lady, but since he did such a good job with the ring I decided to wait till he had finished the business with the American lady. So I kept a low profile at the entrance of the the shop, waiting for my turn.

After abut five minutes my guy suddenly looked up and in to the shop, scanned the customers waiting and then his eyes stopped on me and ....

"Mr. Hakan! You are back!" he shouted out in the shop. I was looking around to see if there were anyone else he could have addressed, but it was quite obvious he meant me.

"It's impossible", I said.

"You can not remember me! It's four years since I was here".

"Of course I remember you Mr. Hakan. One month after you were hear I had my first child, a son, and I baptized him to Hakan. Of course I remember you!"

"Wow, that was very nice of you, but still ....".

"Baptizing his son after me", well, that sounded a bit to much of a sales trick to me.

"Wait, wait", he said, "I make a drawing of all the items we produce and sell. I'll show you."

He ran off to one of the counters and picked up a little black book and then came back to me.

"Look, look" he said. And there it was, a sketch of the ring I bought four years ago and along side the sketch a neat little note that said "Sold to a Swedish gentleman named Hakan".

Did I buy a pair of earrings to my wife from this sales man? Of course I did! Did I pay to much? Of course I did not! I paid exactly what I thought it to be worth, no more or no less. And to me it was worth quite a lot to be recognized as Mr. Hakan in this gold shop in the covered bazar in Istanbul!