Hi,
I'm working on a story where a brief part is set in Algiers and parts of the Mediterranean from the mid-15th to mid-16th centuries. I've found a fair amount of resources online (and a couple of books) on the history, expansion, and military figures from the era.
What I'm lacking is more details of daily life – dining customs, intermixes of language (especially in Algiers), trade relations, feelings towards other races/relgions, sexual relations, etc.
I've tried to find a book that might go into some of this a bit more, but so far have come up short. I feel like at some point someone must have written some things that overlap this area (at least academically), and I'm hoping someone here can point me in the right direction.
As a side-note – I know the Ottoman's didn't expand to the New World, but I'm wondering if merchants within the Empire accompanied any mainstream expeditions, or if the Empire utilized third party mercenaries at all to explore their interests overseas.
Thanks so much!