Cappadocia & Central Anatolia - Discover Turkey: Experience the Best of Turkey - page 476

Need to Know
TOP TIP Safrantat is a good shop to try Safranbolu's beloved candy. BUS
TICKETS The tourist office can help book them. For further coverage, Click
here
Safranbolu Don't Miss List
BY İBRAHIM CANBULAT, ARCHITECT AND OWNER OF GÜLEVI
SAFRANBOLU
1 CITADEL
From here one can see all the geography of the settlement in and on the canyons. Also
visit the Kent Tarıhı Müzesi here - it gives a good introduction to local life - and look
out for the clock tower (1797). Built by grand vizier (prime minister) İzzet Mehmet
Paşa, it is the oldest clock tower in Turkey.
2 ÇARŞI
This is the old Ottoman town, with an organic street pattern and public buildings such
as mosques and hamams right on the creeks, deep in the valley, and houses on the
slopes. Each street is named after the local artisans' specialities and their functions: Se-
merciler (saddle makers), Yemeniciler (shoe makers), Demirciler (ironsmiths), Arasta
(row of shops beside a mosque), Çarşısı (market) and so on. The small cafes were offi-
cial meeting places for the artisans' guild. Climb onto the roof of the Cinci Hanı, Sa-
franbolu's famous 17th-century caravanserai, for views across Çarşı's red-tiled roofs.
3 OTTOMAN MANSIONS
Some of Çarşı's finest mansions have been opened as museum houses ( Click here ) ,
such as Kaymakamlar Müze Evi, which was owned by a lieutenant colonel and has
typical Ottoman features including wooden ceiling decorations and cupboard bath-
rooms; Kileciler Evi (1884), its 99 cupboards symbolising the 99 names of God; and
Hakki Asmaz Evi (Beybağı Sokak) with its pool.