By Chris Evans
We’re entering the months of stiflingly hot daylight hours where doing anything other than sitting somewhere cool is out of the question. Our lives turn towards the cooler nighttime.
I’d love to say I’m used to it after living in so many hot countries, but the change from winter to summer still catches me out. The Middle East was great, as I could spend the day shopping in huge air-conditioned malls.
As a bibliophile, sitting in bookshops with the air conditioning on high while outside temperatures hit levels, even mad dogs and Englishmen had second thoughts about braving, was paradise.
The cooler evenings always led to a treat. I love my open-air markets. The gold suq in Saudi Arabia is something to behold, Muscat’s centuries-old market a step back in time, and Izmir’s bazaar is a wonder of architecture and maze building.
Didim has its very own night market, which has an atmosphere all of its own. Mavişehir night market is always worth a visit.
It’s nothing to do with products on sale. It’s the buzz as people walk around in the cooler hours. The chatter of stallholders, the flashing lights trying to capture customers’ attention, and the different languages you hear if you stop and listen for a moment, create an atmosphere only a night market can give.
The best place to start a tour of Mavişehir night market is in what would be called the main square. It has a few places for food and drinks. It allows you to watch the world go by as you take in the natural buzz of the market.
The market has 454 different shops, attracts great attention with its greengrocer, delicatessen, souvenir, toy, furniture, and clothing sections.
When you’re ready, there are plenty of stalls to visit, ranging from a bookshop, to the fruit and vegetable area, to the obligatory t-shirts for sale. There’s a lot to discover if you take your time and relax into the natural pace of the market.
It’s not about the range of products on sale, though. It’s about the characters on show. Every stallholder is an entertainer who comes to life as the temperatures drop and the sleep is swept from their eyes.
I’ve had many times sat in fits of laughter, drinking apple tea with a stallholder. Most times, I didn’t even buy anything. Then again, I’ve been here long enough. They know I will another time.
It’s the very nature of Mavişehir night market. Of course, the stallholders need to make a living, but those harassing potential customers get taken to one side by the older hands and shown the error of their ways. It is a market about people.
There’s a special vibe to Mavişehir night market. It buzzes. There’s laughter, and there’s life. A place that wakes up as the sun goes down.
Transport to the night market is simple as several dolmus can take you from Didim to Mavişehir. Every taxi driver also knows the route and there’s a taxi rank to take you home when you are ready.