Istanbul - Turkey with Your Family: From Bustling Bazaars to Historic Sites - page 75

in cabinets behind glass to protect
them, but boys and girls can
touch some of the other items on
display, including some dolls and
little cars. There is also an area
where they can paint and draw,
and pre-school or very young
school age children are likely to
enjoy this particularly. Visitors
tour the house, moving from
room to room. Each room is
designed to complement its
exhibits. For example, the collec-
tion of miniature trains is dis-
played in a room that looks
uncannily like a Pullman train
compartment, while weird and
wonderful spaceships have a dark
backdrop with shining stars over-
head. A collection of dolls is, sim-
ilarly, displayed in a pretty
chocolate box cottage-style bed-
room. The four-storey museum,
which has plenty of seating areas
and a little cafe, stands in the gar-
den of the Sultan Eyup Mosque.
The public toilets are clean and
spacious, and ideal should you
need to change a baby or refresh a
toddler. In fact, they really ought
to be visited irrespective of
whether your children need to use
them - you have to pass through
a submarine to get to them,
which is huge fun.
Open 9.30am-6pm Tues-Sun.
Admission 6 YTL adults, children
free. Amenities cafe.

the Istanbul Crafts Centre gives
visitors the opportunity to see
local artisans at work on tradi-
tional crafts of the region. You
can see woodturners, book-
binders, weavers, painters creat-
ing colourful scenes on pieces of
ceramics, jewellery makers and
designers. There's also a display
of porcelain dolls and toys. While
the artisans tend to prefer
demonstrating their skills them-
selves rather than encouraging
visitors to have a go, you will find
that most will let your child try
his or her hand at something. All
the pieces on display at the crafts
centre are available to purchase,
and any one would make a most
unusual souvenir to take home.
Open 9am-5pm daily. Admission
free.

★★
Imrahor Avenue, Sutluce, Istanbul.
b [phone], www.
miniaturk.com.tr . Located at the
Miniaturk complex (see p. 68)

Istanbul Crystals

FIND

See the Blue Mosque, the Aya
Sofya and the Topkapi Palace,
among others, although this
time in miniature and made of
crystal. This amazing museum is
eerily lit, making it atmospheric
and allowing the light to fall on
the pieces of crystal. All the city's
main buildings have been care-
fully created in crystal using laser
technology. It really is something
quite different and should appeal
to your youngsters whatever
their age. They will be amazed at
the size of the pieces.
Open 9am-7pm daily. Admission 5
YTL adults, children under 6 free.

Arts & Crafts
Istanbul Crafts Centre

★

Kabasakal Caddesi No5,
Sultanahmet, b [phone].
Tucked inside an historic former
educational complex of buildings,

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