If he wasn’t selling ice creams, this Turkish stall holder might well give David Blaine a run for his money.
The jesting vendor takes great pride in bamboozling customers with his sleight of hand as he serves up his wares on the streets of Istanbul.
Video of his antics is fast becoming an internet hit after being viewed more than 230,000 times on YouTube since it was uploaded on Christmas Eve.
Scroll down for video
N-ice gig if you can get it: A Turkish vendor teases a customer with a series of tricks as he waits to be served
In the blink of an eye: After a few twirls of the pole, he slips a cone into the customer’s pocket
Using a metal bar, he starts by scooping out a dollop of ice cream onto which he sticks a cone. After a few twizzles, he slips it into the customer’s pocket, cleverly leaving the cone behind. Then, having added another scoop of ice cream to the end of the pole, he uses that to fish the cone back out of the man’s pocket. During a few more spins, he slyly removes the cone before offering it to the customer who grabs at thin air not realising it has disappeared. More high jinx ensue until the client finally gets his treat – but not before a quick kiss and a splodge of ice cream on his cheek, much to everyone’s amusement. The secret of his success lies in large part thanks to mastic gum, an ingredient widely used in Turkish desserts that gives the ice cream its elasticity and prevents it from falling apart. The vendor is believed to have a stall opposite the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul’s Old City.
More ice cream parlors from Turkey:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ROnz9PFHxKg