Icons and Shipwrecks

It is no secret that geography shapes culture; that we are influenced and inspired by the places we happen to be.

Lectures such as these provide insight that puts contemporary art and design into context. If you're in Istanbul this month, consider the following opportunities to learn a little more about Turkish culture and history.

 

 

Icons and Byzantine Cultural Identity

by J. Michael Featherstone, CNRS   

April 20 @ 6:30 pm 

at the Istanbul Research Institute

 

 

 

 

The Byzantine Shipwrecks at Yenikapi

by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ufuk Kocabas, Istanbul University 

Head of Department of Conservation of Marine Archaeological Objects

April 21 @ 2:30 pm

at the Turkish Cultural Foundation Istanbul Office

 

 

 

 

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If you're coming to Istanbul, or even if you're already here, let us introduce you to the artists and designers we've been working with for over ten years on one of our customized shopping trips.

Facets of Istanbul

The neo-culture site expat+HAREM is celebrating Istanbul as a 2010 Culture Capital with a year-long blog carnival.

This month Behind the Bazaar curates the fifth issue with a collection of links that have caught our attention.

We invite you to browse through our hand-picked favorites which include a gallery of Ottoman caftans, Turkish baths favored by locals, and other facets of Istanbul in Issue #5, city+TREASURES.


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Image Credit: expat+HAREM

A Designer Shopping Event

Did you get your invitation? Ours just arrived for a shopping event showcasing four Istanbul designers: Leyla Taranto, Özlem Tuna, Örge Tulga and Dilek Aksu.

Leyla Taranto: Toz Design 

Charms by Toz Design

Özlem Tuna: Jewellery & Objects

Pomegranate Spear by Özlem Tuna

Örge Tulga: Jewellery Design

18K Gold Earrings from Örge Tulga's Dream Collection

Dilek Aksu: Bobbin Handmade Textiles

Pillows from Bobbin's Home Textile Collection

Date: December 17th - 19th
Time: 11:00 am - 7:30 pm
Location: Teşvikiye Bostan Sokak No. 13/3 :: Nişantaşı - Istanbul
Phone: +90.212.260.0682


{Photo credits belong to each designer as attributed.}

The Yilditz Palace Series

If you are in Istanbul on Tuesday, 8th December and would like to listen to a talk on Ottoman palaces, little known aspects of their history and their significance today, then don't miss the first talk of a series called 'Palaces of the Reform Era' given by Professor Ilber Ortayli. 


The series has been organized by the Yilditz Palace Foundation and hopes to shed light on the past. Given the unique structure and history of Ottoman royal dwellings, particularly during the turbulent Reform years, the series promises to be very interesting.

The Yilditz Palace 

Place: International Lounge, The Conrad Hotel, Besiktas. 

Date: Tuesday, 8th December 2009 

Fee: 70 TL

For further details, directions and making reservations call:

The Yilditz Palace Foundation on 0212 260 5603

General Secretary Banu Aydek on 0212 512 5858

Istanbul Restaurant Week

Currently underway and running until November16th, Kayra Wines is sponsoring the first ever Istanbul Restaurant Week in the Nişantaşı neighborhood. If you are a foodie, this is a good opportunity for you to sample the variety of restaurants in the area at promotional prices and menus designed especially for this event.

 

Need some help making your reservations? Try using Rezztoran.com. (P.S. They'll help you whether it's restaurant week or not.) See their announcement and read some their recommendations for this event.

We wish you Afiyet Olsun!

{All images from Kayra Restoran Haftasi}

10 Romantic Things to do in Istanbul, Part 1

1 - Emirgan Park.  Beautiful woodland which has survived from the Bosphorus' ancient era. the gardens were a gift from Sultan Murad IV to his battlefield friend Emir Gune Han, the Prince of Iran, in the 17th century. Now publicly owned, the park boasts pretty pavilions, tranquil lakes and cafes with impressive tulip fields. 

Emirgan Park

2 - Belgrade Forest. Perfect for romantic picnics and a break from the city. The forest has plenty of paths for walking and cycling in any season. enjoy the scenery around the reservoirs built during the Ottoman era to feed the city's water supply.

Belgrade Forest, Istanbul

Image:Trekearth 

3 - Camlica Hill. Situated in Uskudar on the Asian side of Istanbul, the hill is 268 metres above sea level with sweet smelling pines and magnificent views of the Bosphorus. A favourite winter spot, there are Ottoman style tea-rooms at the top where you can sit cozily and sip hot Sahlep. In the summer, you can enjoy sitting amongst the rose bushes.

Camlica Hill, Uskudar

Image: Points of Turkey

4 - Aya Nikolat, Buyukada. One of the Princess Islands, even travelling to the island itself is romantic. Reached via ferry, vehicles are banned on the island so you can only cycle, walk or use the horse-drawn carriages. The Aya Nikolat Boutique Hotel boasts the most romantic 11 rooms in all Istanbul! Yilmaz Turk Cad, No: 104, Aya Nikola Mevkii, Buyukada, Istanbul Tel: 0.216.382 41 43

Aya Nikolat Boutique Hotel

5 – Ortakoy Square. Located along the Bosphorus in the district of Besiktas, the square is symbolized by the famous Ortakoy Mosque built on the seafront. Stroll around the street craft bazaars, enjoy baked potatoes or sit on a bench and feed the pigeons.

Ortakoy, Besiktas

The Luxury of a Turkish Bath

In Irfan Orga's book Portrait of a Turkish Family* he gives a vivid account of his grandmother's excursions to the local Turkish bath. He paints a colorful picture of how she would oversee the cook's preparations, the accoutrements she would bring along, and the hushed conversations that took place within the marbled walls. It is a romantic picture of life before the war when such events had much more significance in daily life.

Light streams into a Turkish bath

Image from jefield on flickr

Today it is still possible to cross the threshold of Istanbul's oldest hammams and find yourself transported to a more indulgent time. It's where women would prepare days in advance to go gossip with their friends and where mothers would visit to find proper wives for their sons.

Çemberlitaş Hammam, Istanbul

Photograph by Giovanni Simeone/SIME-4Corners

from National Geographic

And it's where National Geographic recommends you visit at least once in this lifetime. In fact, Reuters reports that the popularity of hammams is on the rise along with the development of the spa industry and this kind of luxury tourism.

What other excuses do you need to indulge?


{*This is an affiliate link.}

A Top Shopping Destination

Well-known for its monuments and mosques, Istanbul has been growing in popularity with hardened globetrotting shoppers for several years now.

Uniquely, Istanbul has not just one famous street to shop from but several and all housing major designers, haute couture houses and the latest Turkish designers hitting the fashion scene. Probably the most well-known cosmopolitan district is Istiklal Street in historical Pera because of it's city centre location and close proximity to the hub of the Istanbul tourist attractions.

Istiklal Street, Beyoglu

For a much more upscale shopping spree to rival Paris and Vienna, go where the socialites and stars shop; Nisantasi in Tesvikiye. All labels known to mankind are located along this long, long street of shops. The New Year lights and decorations in Nisantasi are absolutely stunning and alone worth visiting for.

With several more popular shopping districts on the Asian side as well, such as Kadikoy, Istanbul is a major shopping destination. Also, you would be surprised to discover that Europe's largest and the world's sixth largest shopping mall is also in Istanbul. Cevahir Mall houses over 280 shops, some which are unique, 12 cinemas, 48 restaurants, and too much else to count. It also boasts the largest clock in the world.

Cevahir

Address: Istanbul Cevahir Shopping Center, Buyukdere Cad. No:22 Sisli / Istanbul

Tel: +90 212 368 6900 +90 212 368 6900
Fax: +90 212 380 1352

The Hidiv Pavilion - romancing the Asian side

The Hidiv Pavilion

A city of two continents, it's often difficult to pick which side - Asian or European - is nicer. Turks have their own, very deep-rooted preferences and a person who has grown up on the Asian side will rarely ever want to move their home to the European side and vice versa. It's all about nostalgia, community and roots.

Yet, as travellers to Istanbul usually focus on the major sightseeing attractions of the European side, too often the more elegantly calmer Asian side can be overlooked by visitors. Full of little palaces and pavilions built as retreats for sultans and pashas, the green, lush hills and parks are just waiting to be discovered as the other, more romantic face of Istanbul.

The Hidiv Pavilion is a large mansion nestled in lush woods on the hills overlooking the Bosphorus. It was built by the Ottoman Governor of Eygpt, Abbas Pasha. Governors appointed by the Ottoman government to Eygpt were called 'Hidiv' (Khedive) and this particular handsome and Swiss-educated young Governor contracted the Italian architects, Antonio Lasciac and Delfo Seminati, to build a minor palace in 1907. The gardens were designed by his second wife, Hungarian Countess May Torok von Szendro, who also directed the building of the pavilion. Its tower houses one of the first steam elevators to be used in Istanbul.

The Pavilion was restored to it's exact former glory in the 1980's and is now operated by the Istanbul Municipality as a hotel, restaurant and tea garden. Many childhood summer vacations included five o'clock tea and cake in the gardens of the Pavilion and, although prices are very reasonable, the quiet and regal atmosphere is such that you are transported to the heady and luxurious Ottoman days.

Perhaps due to its endearing love story, the Hidiv Pavilion is also a beautiful and romantic setting for weddings and banquets. As someone who chose to be married in an equally beautiful historical building on the Asian side just opposite The Maiden's Tower, I would say Istanbul is the location for romance!

All Hidiv Pavilion Images: Beltur A.S.

Address: Çubuklu Korusu Çubuklu Yolu No:32 Beykoz/İSTANBUL
Tel: 0216 413 92 53 - 0216 413 96 64 - 0216 425 06 03 - 0216 425 06 04
Fax: 0216 413 96 99

Istanbul - a city of four seasons

A magical white Istanbul

Istanbul is one of those rare cities which remains beautiful and has something to offer the whole year round. Despite being most popular during the summer months, when most travelers plan their holidays and usually combine a trip further down to the sun, sea and sand of the Aegean and Mediterrenean Coasts of Turkey, Istanbul loses none of its liveliness during the spring and winter months.

Our designer Istanbul excursions include visits to both little-known historical places, such as a 400 year-old medrese which is still alive with arts and crafts taught and practised within its walls all year through, as well as Turkish artists and designers. We get to see their art change and grow throughout the seasons in harmony with the colour of the trees lining the entrance to the Dolmabahce Palace.

Sometimes, to really understand and enjoy a city and a culture, it’s better to visit without the summer tourist hoardes and enjoy the museums, palaces, mosques and famous shopping districts at a more leisurely pace.

A view of the Bosphorus from Anadolu Kavagi in autumn.

In a Lifetime

 

_{Photograph by Giovanni Simeone/SIME-4Corners}

If you made a list of all the places you should visit in your lifetime, what would be on that list?

If you ask us, we would say Istanbul, but then we're biased.  So don't take our word for it.

Instead, consult National Geographic Traveler magazine which has put Istanbul on its "Places of a Lifetime" list.

To get the most out of your visit to Istanbul, they have some great recommendations for walking tours, places you must see, festivals, hotels, restaurants, and cultural performances.

And we invite you to take the opportunity to meet some of Istanbul's artists who won't be found on any of these lists. Meeting them will give you the chance to see the effect this city has on its people - how it moves and motivates them. How it intoxicates them with inspiration.

We think you'll be inspired too.

Welcome to Behind the Bazaar

Centuries-old artisan workshops

Behind the Bazaar is the enfolding of a story which takes two expat women from a providential meeting in the nostalgic quarter of Istanbul known as Beyoglu on to a journey of friendship, partnership and creative discovery. Tara is an American and came to Turkey seven years ago when she married. She is a successful entrepreneur in her own right with company Citara's and blog Turquoise Poppy. Figen is half British/half Turkish and came to Turkey 16 years ago from London, also through love and marriage. She has built a very successful online business of her own, The Knit Box and also publishes her own designs.

With many similar passions and ideas, it only seemed right for us to join forces to create Intarsia Concept, which supports artisans, small businesses and creative endeavours. Behind the Bazaar was born out of a joint passion for Turkish arts - both traditional and modern and particularly those created by women, as well as our desire to share the many secrets of Istanbul with people who will appreciate them. For Behind the Bazaar, we will always be grateful to Linda Alepin.

A modern twist on traditional art by young, women designers

So, anyone who is a traveler, a discoverer, an entrepreneur or simply a lover of arts, crafts and design; welcome again to Behind the Bazaar.