Turkish Delight

[shinnosuke]

I would be very interested and much appreciative if you could get the different denominations of the circulating coins from Turkey (or any country) from the years 2003 and 2005, for my daughters' worldwide birth year sets. I would gladly pay you face value, plus postage, plus a premium for your time... in PayPal or FRNs or maybe some 90% silver?

Mr. uthminsta, I'd be glad to look for some coins for you. Mrs. shinnosuke and I just arrived in Istanbul this evening. Yesterday Ramadan (they call it Ramazan in Turkish) started in the Moslem world. It was fascinating to see hundreds of people of people on picnic tarps or in outdoor restaurants with food and drink in front of them, but nobody eating until 8:30 when the sun set. Then they all dug in with gusto. We are in the Blue House Hotel and we look out our windows on the Blue Mosque. Hagia Sophia is just around the corner. Fascinating place, Istanbul -- at least what we've seen so far. There is still a festival going on outside. Music loudly blaring, dervishes whirling, people strolling and chatting. No alcohol in sight and everybody well-behaved. Lots of other tourists here, but we feel completely safe. People approach and engage. Very open city.

This puppy is jet-lagged and hoping the music goes silent soon. Need...sleep...can't...hold...on...much...longer.

[neilgin1]

God speed John Glenn....enjoy kiddo, enjoy.

[shinnosuke]

God speed John Glenn....enjoy kiddo, enjoy.

Thanks Neil. We plan to have a big time. In my mind it's the last big hurrah, a trip I owed my wife. Now I will focus even more intensely on setting aside the preps.

[uthminsta]

Yesterday Ramadan (they call it Ramazan in Turkish) started in the Moslem world. It was fascinating...

Did you plan your trip around Ramadan?

[uthminsta]

Oops, I feel rather foolish. I just noticed I have all the 2005 Turkish coins except for 5 kurus... Here's a link to the 2005 five kurus pic/info: http://en.numista.com/catalogue/pieces3041.html

And the 2003 coins would be demonetized, but if they are available, I don't have any of those at all.

Sorry to have sent you on a wild goose chase.

[shinnosuke]

Yesterday Ramadan (they call it Ramazan in Turkish) started in the Moslem world. It was fascinating...

Did you plan your trip around Ramadan?

No, we just sort of randomly chose August 1st as our departure date when we made reservations last year in October. I am glad we did though. Even though the chanting over the loudspeakers began at 4:10 this morning, everywhere we look is something new and unusual. Great to be here.

[shinnosuke]

Oops, I feel rather foolish. I just noticed I have all the 2005 Turkish coins except for 5 kurus... Here's a link to the 2005 five kurus pic/info: http://en.numista.com/catalogue/pieces3041.html

And the 2003 coins would be demonetized, but if they are available, I don't have any of those at all.

Sorry to have sent you on a wild goose chase.

No problem; just getting going this morning so the chase had not even begun. I will see what I can find.

[shinnosuke]

I tried a few times to get a tour of the Istanbul Altin Au/Ag refinery, but no deal. They just wanted me to look at their product being sold at the Grand Bazaar. So Mrs. shinnosuke and I went there today after a boat ride on the Bosphorus Strait to the Black Sea and back. Miles and miles of multi-million dollar mansions line the shores on both the European and Asian sides. The place is impressive.

The Mrs. was totally into haggling over prices of silver jewelry she liked at the bazaar. I was proud. She would get the shop owner to agree to a price 30% lower than what he originally asked and then as soon as he held out his hand for the cash she picked out something else she wanted all at the same price. She closed on that deal, too. (We also looked at scarves. One she liked started at 225 Turkish Lira. When she said no, it suddenly dropped to 150...no...100...no...ok, for you my friend, 50...no...25...no...15...no. That the shop owner started so high for something that would eventually be offered at 15 TL made the Mrs. mad and we left.)

I bought two grams of gold in the form of a thin wafers that are each lodged within a plastic rectangle the size of a credit card. Over here, gold bars are being sold as "emergency money" for carrying in any country. The sales pitch is: "You can just sell your gold and not have to worry about coming up with cash in an emergency." Pretty good idea because when the power is out the ATMs don't work...and that's the least of any kind of emergncy you might run into in this part fo the world. And if there is a currency crisis on either side of a transaction, gold is golden. So to facilitate easy portage while traveling, they put various size bars, up to 1 toz, inside the cards that fit just right in the slots in your wallet.

The first gram I bought for 95 Turkish Liras. In USD they wanted $55. Good deal? If anybody wants me to get something for them, send me a PM.

At the 2nd shop, they wanted 94 TL for the same 1 gram. I offered to pay in Euros and they asked for 38. I paid 40 Euro and got back 5.5 TL in change.

The Grand Bazaar has dozens of shops filled with gold and silver, mostly jewelry. I saw a several gold coins with Ataturk's image on the face. No AGEs, or Maples, or Krugs, or Pandas.

This was the kind of shopping I could enjoy.

[tn-dave]

The first gram I bought for 95 Turkish Liras. In USD they wanted $55. Good deal?

The best price I could find on the bay for a buyitnow on a 1 gram bar was $68 so you got a good deal I think.

Sounds like the trip of a lifetime - Keep us updated

[68Camaro]

Yep - $55/gram is a great deal, that's near melt, and for small pieces that's a great price. Feel free to bring back all you can afford of those - they will sell if you don't want them yourself.

[Verbane]

Glad to hear you're having a good time. As Rich stated, anything you bring back is sure to sell here. Credit card size 1 gram "bars" sound interesting

[shinnosuke]

Glad to hear you're having a good time. As Rich stated, anything you bring back is sure to sell here. Credit card size 1 gram "bars" sound interesting

I have to add a picture later. Just woke up and was reading the news about S&P's lowering of the US credit rating (and then immediately to Realcent for everyone's comment on that). Now going to breakfast. Then we're off to dip our toes in the Black Sea.

The gram bar is not the size of a credit card. It fits in a niche in the credit card and is about 1 cm by 2 cm in size. The depth of the niche is therefore less than the thickness of a credit card because the bar only shows on one side.

[68Camaro]

Glad to hear you're having a good time. As Rich stated, anything you bring back is sure to sell here. Credit card size 1 gram "bars" sound interesting

I have to add a picture later. Just woke up and was reading the news about S&P's lowering of the US credit rating (and then immediately to Realcent for everyone's comment on that). Now going to breakfast. Then we're off to dip our toes in the Black Sea.

The gram bar is not the size of a credit card. It fits in a niche in the credit card and is about 1 cm by 2 cm in size. The depth of the niche is therefore less than the thickness of a credit card because the bar only shows on one side.

I've seen pictures of them somewhere. Maybe it was a coinflation linked article? But, I'd buy a number of them personally, and I'm sure they would go fast here, so I think it would be impossible for you to bring back too many of them. You'll be cash limited before that happens. Anyway, if you can bring back any, that would be cool. If not and regardless, enjoy your trip while you can; your timing was perfect. It may not be easy to do that trip in the near future.

[shinnosuke]

Glad to hear you're having a good time. As Rich stated, anything you bring back is sure to sell here. Credit card size 1 gram "bars" sound interesting

I have to add a picture later. Just woke up and was reading the news about S&P's lowering of the US credit rating (and then immediately to Realcent for everyone's comment on that). Now going to breakfast. Then we're off to dip our toes in the Black Sea.

The gram bar is not the size of a credit card. It fits in a niche in the credit card and is about 1 cm by 2 cm in size. The depth of the niche is therefore less than the thickness of a credit card because the bar only shows on one side.

I've seen pictures of them somewhere. Maybe it was a coinflation linked article? But, I'd buy a number of them personally, and I'm sure they would go fast here, so I think it would be impossible for you to bring back too many of them. You'll be cash limited before that happens. Anyway, if you can bring back any, that would be cool. If not and regardless, enjoy your trip while you can; your timing was perfect. It may not be easy to do that trip in the near future.

Thanks for your input, 68. Just back from the Black Sea. I waded in it only up to mid-calf because it was so cold. It was not the kind of water into which one would want the family PMs to be dunked.

With all the news about US credit rating dip and now Germany's comments about Italy...I think I need to use this time during the weekend to buy before gold rises. Really appreciate your advice.

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/it-just-went-bad-far-far-worse-germany-says-italy-too-big-efsf-save-refuses-carry-euro-bailout-

[neilgin1]

oh no. i just read the German refusal article. oh shite. We are in big trouble now. Monday is going to be hell. i'm not even going to turn on the computer monday, just going to head down to the CU and get out folding money, head into the woods, knock down some sticks, skid and split 'em...turn on the computer after 8 pm on Monday and hope i'm surprised. this feels like the world is ending.

remember that i said before?, "the world wont end, it'll just FEEL like that"...sure does.

[shinnosuke]

1:30am in Turkey now and I'm watching Kitco. My plans to buy cheap(er) bullion over here are getting messed up. What a time to be out of the country.

[68Camaro]

1:30am in Turkey now and I'm watching Kitco. My plans to buy cheap(er) bullion over here are getting messed up. What a time to be out of the country.

Well, it's only up 1% so far, not a biggie. People get excited over deltas, but its the percentage that matters, and 1% isn't very exciting (yet). Makes your $55 grams $55.50, unless people are getting greedy over there.

[shinnosuke]

Yeah, you're right. Just spacing out as I thought about how high it might be when I wake up. G'nite all.

[natsb88]

I'd be in for a few of the gram bars too

[uthminsta]

I would like one, if you can afford it that many...

[shinnosuke]

I'm in Bucharest, Romania, now. I got a few extra 1 gram bars attached to the plastic cards, but I noticed that the ones I have been buying are actually .995 fine. The gold price was up from last Friday, but just a buck or so.

uthminsta, sorry but I never came across the regular Turkish coin you were looking for. Do you need anything from Romania? I am glad to keep looking for you.

I think I want to wait to see what happens to the price of gold before I sell any of these Turkish bars. Need some stability....yeah, right. Like that's gonna happen.

[uthminsta]

I'm in Bucharest, Romania...
uthminsta, sorry but I never came across the regular Turkish coin you were looking for. Do you need anything from Romania? I am glad to keep looking for you.

Thanks! Romania... let's see... I have the 2005 coins of the 10 and 50 bani denominations. I don't have any 2003. And thanks again!

[uthminsta]

There are certainly a lot of countries within a few hours of you... and I don't mean to cause any extra work for you, but this list is up to date, if you care to look it over before you go down the road into another country!!!
viewtopic.php?f=30&t=7416
I hope you are having a wonderful time.

[shinnosuke]

I'm in Bucharest, Romania...
uthminsta, sorry but I never came across the regular Turkish coin you were looking for. Do you need anything from Romania? I am glad to keep looking for you.

Thanks! Romania... let's see... I have the 2005 coins of the 10 and 50 bani denominations. I don't have any 2003. And thanks again!

Checked with the hotel and a bank. There are no 2003 coins left in circulation. They made new coins starting in mid-2005. Since the Romanian Lei is worth about US $0.33, a lot of places don't even bother with the bani coins. It's a massive round up here. The hotel has no coins and neither did the bank in the lobby! The grocery store we tried had only newer coins. Sorry about that. I feel bad for not finding anything for you here or in Turkey.

[neilgin1]

Dont feel bad, just get back home safe and sound...by the by, you back yet? i KNOW that once you touch down on AMERICAN soil, a renewed appreciation of our beautiful home will flood your heart and soul.