Ottoman women and daily life For the harems women, whose daily
recreational pursuits were largely confined to conversation,
embroidery, drinking coffee and smoking pipes, receiving guests
and holding musical gatherings were occasions that added colour
to their lives. In the palace harem there were orchestras and
groups of dancers consisting of female slaves, and the female
musicians were taught by the most eminent teachers of the time.
Singing and playing music was one of the most popular pursuits
of women at the palace and the upper echelons of society.
Ottoman women had limited opportunities for activities outside
the home. The upper-class women rarely went shopping, most of
their needs being met by servants or peddler women. Wedding
celebrations and feasts, visits to holy tombs and sufi lodges,
and friends and relatives, social gatherings known as 'helva
nights', Mevlit ceremonies, weekly visits to the public baths,
and above all picnics and country excursions in spring and
summer were events that took wom