Bazı gazetelerin manşetlerine taşıdığı “7 Temmuz’da kaos planı” iddialarının ardından, Ergenekon’un “kaosu” 1 Mayıs’ta çıkarmaya çalıştığı iddia edildi.

1 Mayıs’ın Taksim’de yapılması için ısrarlı davranan sendikalar ve demokratik kitle örgütlerinin bu tutumuna karşılık “İstihbarat alındı, Taksim’e izin verilmeyecek’’ uyarısıyla gündeme gelen polisin söz konusu istihbaratının altında yatan gerçek ortaya çıktı. Akşam gazetesinin haberine göre Polis, örgütün bu konuda çalışmalar yaptığını ve olası 1 Mayıs’ın Taksim’de kutlanması halinde polis kıyafetleri giymiş kişilerin havaya silahla ateş açılarak, provokasyona ortam hazırlayacaklarını belirtti.

5 AYRI NOKTADAN ATEŞ

Özellikle yasadışı THKP/C örgütünün itirafçıları ve sempatizanları da bu eylemin hemen akabinde kitlenin içine dağılacak ve sloganlar atarak, polisin müdahalesini sağlamaya çalışacaktı. 5 ayrı noktadan ateş açacak olan şahısların polis ile göstericilerin birbirlerine saldırmasıyla tekrar sahneye çıkacakları ve güvenlik kuvvetlerinin silah kullanma görüntüsüyle çatışma ortamı hazırlayacakları iddia edildi. İstanbul polisi durumu İçişleri Bakanlığı’na, valilik aracılığıyla ‘’Acil’’ koduyla hemen bildirdi. “Eyleme kesinlikle izin yok” açıklamalarının altında yatan nedenin de bu istihbarat olduğu düşünülüyor.

OLAYLARDAN ÖNCE SİLAH ELE GEÇTİ

1 Mayıs tarihine sayılı saatler kalmasına rağmen bir hata yapmamak için daha önce Taksim, Beyoğlu, Tarlabaşı, Elmadağ ve Sıraselviler’de arama ve istihbarat çalışmalarında bulunan polis, bir metruk binada yaptığı aramada, 2 adet 9 milimetre çapında silah ve bu silahlara ait 40 adet mermi buldu. Polisin 1 Mayıs’ın Taksim’de kutlanmaması yönünde aldığı önlemleri gören örgüt mensupları planlarını hayata geçiremeden, belirlenen görev yerlerine gitmeden dağıldılar.

Akşam

Jag bodde på den "lyxiga" delen av staden och den rikaste delen också självklart, därav blev allting mycket dyrare än förväntat. Det kostade det dubbla i Sverige men det var dubbelt så kul. Det var dock irriterande att 14-åriga flickor sprang runt med GUCCI, LV och CHANEL påsar i stan men men har man en rik far så varför inte.

Vi shoppade i de stora shoppingcentrumen som fanns, vi badade i Svarta havet, var på Friidrottstävling (där Stefan sprang och var otroligt duktigt!) åt frukost i Bebek, fikade på Cadde och festade i Taksim. Utöver det här så kan man alltid åka till den andra sidan av stan och besöka Blå moskén som också heter Sultan Ahmet, Hagia Sofia, och många många andra platser. Det finns självklart pazarer där man kan köpa billiga kläder, läder och mycket annat. Ett tips är att man alltid kan åka till IKEA och äta köttbullar om man saknar Sverige.

Det blev inte så mycket bilder och de är inte världens bästa men här får ni lite=)

Just nu är det här allt, men jag kommer säkert skriva mer om den veckan lite senare. Nu ska jag laga mat!

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Sitede bulunan linklerin tamamı kopya olup,site ve host sahibinle ilişkili değildir. Bu dosyalar size tanıtım amaçlı sunulmaktadır ve site bünyesinde hiçbir dosya bulunmamaktadır.Dosyaları bilgisayarınızda 24 saatten fazla tutmanız T.C. yasalarına göre suç sayılır. Dosyalar tanıtım amaçlı olduğundan hak sahibi şahıs veya şirketin bize mail atması halinde,isteği üzerine tüm dosyaları kaldırılır

Όλες είναι γύρω από το ξενοδοχείο που μέναμε - όλες από την οδό Istiklal και την πλατεία Taksim στην περιοχή Πέραν που το λέγανε οι Έλληνες...
Προσέξτε πώς διατηρούν τα παλαιά σπίτια και δεν τα γκρεμίζουν για να χτίσουν αντιαισθητικά σπιρτόκουτα όπως συνήθως κάνουν στην Ελλάδα... και πάντα όταν βλέπω εγκαταλελειμμένο και περιφρονημένο παλιό αλλά όμορφο κτήριο στην Αθήνα η στην Θεσσαλονίκη πονά η καρδιά μου που δεν το μεριμνούν με αξιοπρέπεια παρά το αφήνουν να το τρώνε οι καύσωνες, τα κρύα και τα ποντίκια..... α, και οι σύριγγες των ναρκομανών που ψάχνουν εκεί για καταφύγιο!

Nothing sets the nerves atingle quite like the chance discovery of a new ethnic restaurant in Istanbul, no matter how many times you’ve been sucked in before. To sit outside a cafe soaking up the meyhane atmosphere of Asmalımescit (Asmalımescit Mahallesi Sofyalı Sokak No: 24))
but with a dish of noodles....Ah, how international. First impressions promised much; a menu where nothing was over 13ytl and 4 dishes sporting a Beware Chili label. A slight dip in confidence at the realisation that there’d be no beer to wash down the Chinesefest but we dared to order two of the fabled spicy dishes, the hot and sour soup, and the Manchurian Chicken.

The soup got off to a good start, it boded well enough to cover the yufka wrapped spring rolls’ (are paper thin spring roll wrappers really so bothersome to import?) average performance. Ginger vegetable salad with sesame seeds took up the baton and ran with it past the tasteless Chinese soy vegetable salad. But the Manchurian Chicken limped home in last place. It managed to activate not a single one of the tastes, not sweet, not sour, not salty and not spicy and the chicken was tender to the point of deep suspicion and could have been quorn or some other fungal meat substitute.

There was only one dessert option and, suckers to the last, we tried the fried icecream. İt was a hollow ball of too thick batter with a kernel of icecream remaining; there is a real art to this dessert’s cooking time that was totally missed. Served with fake tasting strawberry sauce, it coated the teeth and left an impression that lasted way longer than the meal.

The low prices come with small portions so you’d need to order a few to be full, which increases the probability of getting ones with flavor. It’s a shame the genius that inspired the restaurant’s gloriously un PC logo doesn’t extend to the food.

Open daily, no alcohol

1590’lı yıllarda Kâtip Mustafa Çelebî tarafından inşa edilen ve Beyoğlu ilçesi Kâtip Mustafa Çelebî mahallesi Çukur Çeşme sokağında bulunan ve mahalleye adını veren Kâtip Mustafa Çelebî Camii, şu anda İstiklal Meyhanesi olarak kullanılıyor. 350 yıllık caminin yerine yapılan İstiklal Meyhanesi’nde, içki içiliyor, dansöz oynatılıyor.

CAMİ BİNASI SATILMIŞ

Kâtip Mustafa Çelebî Camii'nin yapımına, Beyoğlu İstiklal Caddesi’nde bulunan Ağa Camii ile birlikte başlanmış. Ağa Camii’nin hemen çaprazında yer alan Kâtip Mustafa Çelebî Camii, kâgir duvarlı ve ahşap çatılı olarak inşa edilmiş. 350 sene namaz kılınan cami, 1930’lu yıllarda kadro harici bırakılmış, 1940’lı yıllarda cami binası arka tarafında yer alan eski dikişhâne binasının sahipleri olan Zarifî ailesine satılarak yıktırılmış, yerine üç katlı betonarme bina yapılmış. Bu üç katlı bina en son 2005 yılında İstiklâl Meyhânesi’ne dönüştürülmüş.

1907 TARİHLİ PLAN, PROJE VE KROKİLERDE CAMİ
Kâtip Mustafa Çelebî Camii, 1907 tarihli Başbakanlık Osmanlı Arşivi plan, proje ve kroki arşivlerinde ve 1927 tarihli J.J. Pervititch Sigorta haritalarında cami olarak görülüyor. Başbakanlık Osmanlı Arşivi plan proje ve krokilerinde, Kâtip Mustafa Çelebî Camii şöyle yer alıyor:

“Beyoğlu’nda Katip Mustafa Çelebi Camii Şerifi ittisalinde Madam Zarifî’nin uhdesinde olub, üzerine Dikişhane inşaa olunacak olan arsanın altıncı daire-i belediyede mevcud kadastrodan bi’l-ihrac şehremaneti celilesinin fi 19 Kanun-i Evvel Sene 1323 tarih ve 186 numaralı tezkiresine melfuf olan mezkur arsa, haritasına Daire-i Mezkure Mühendis-i Sanisi Mahmud Bey beraber olduğu halde mahallinde icra edilen muayene neticesinde Cami-i Şerife aid olan tabutluk ve minare mahalli ile Cami-i Şerif mahalli tecavüzden masun kalmak üzere kırmızı boya ile boyanmış ve bir sureti ahz olunmuştur. Fi 31 Kanun-i Evvel Sene 1323

SİGORTA HARİTALARINDA CAMİ

1927 yılında yayımlanan J.J. Pervititch Sigorta Haritası’nda, Kâtip Mustafa Çelebî Camii yer alıyor. Söz konusu haritada, caminin minaresi de görülüyor.

CAMİNİN GEÇMİŞİ

Araştırmacı-Yazar Müfid Yüksel, Katip Mustafa Çelebi Camii hakkında şunları söyledi: “Cami Beyoğlu ilçesi Kâtip Mustafa Çelebî mahallesi Çukur Çeşme sokağında bulunuyordu. Camiin bânisi Kâtip Mustafa Çelebî, sonradan Şeyhu’l-Harem olarak Medine-i Münevvere’de vefat etmiş olan Beyoğlu Ağa Camii’nin bânisi Kapı Ağası Hüseyin Ağa’nın kâtibidir. Kabri Firuz Ağa Camii karşı köşesinde yer alan mektebinin altında bulunmaktaydı. Bu mektep ve türbe bugün mevcut değildir. Bu mescitle ilgili Hadikatu’l-Cevâmi’de şu satırlar yer almaktadır:

“Yeni Mahalle Mescidi Der Kurb-ı Tophâne-i Amire

Bânisi Kâtib Mustafa Efendi’dir ki, karîbinde vâki câmiin bânisi olan Şeyhu’l-Harem Hüseyin Ağa’nın hizmet-i kitâbetinde olmuştur. Ve âğa-yı mezbur Medine-i Münevvere’de vefat etmiştir. Ve sâhib-i câmi Mustafa Efendi’nin kabri Fîrûz Ağa Camii’nin mukâbilinde köşede, kendi binâ eylediği fevkânî mektebin tahtındadır. Mahallesi vardır.

Ayvansarâyî, Hadika, 1281:2/70)
Kâgir duvarlı ve ahşap çatılı olan bu mescid 30’lu yıllarda kadro harici bırakılmış, 40’lı yıllarda Cami binası arka tarafında yer alan eski dikişhâne binasının sahipleri olan Zarifî ailesine satılarak yıktırılmış, yerine üç katlı betonarme bina yapılmıştır. Bu üç katlı bina en son 2005 yılında İstiklâl Meyhânesi’ne dönüştürülmüştür. Karşısında Cebecibaşı Abdullah Ağa Çeşmesi (Çukurçeşme) vardır.

(VAKİT)

For the 3 weeks that this new café restaurant has been open, other establishments must have been beside themselves after they nabbed the only terrace in Tünel Meydanı (İstiklal Cad. No: 261, Beyoğlu,0212 245 7025). A fairly unassuming downstairs floor leads up to a third floor terrace looking onto sunset over the golden horn without the prices that normally goes with it. It must be the only place in Istanbul with a view and an 8ytl Turkish breakfast platter.

A mainly organic menu of Turkish standards, like kebab, köfte and döner (lunchtimes only) with enough European dishes to fit its café vibe is enhanced by touches like the 12 different kinds of homemade breads, rotated daily and all freshly squeezed juices.

The minestrone soup was chunky farmhouse style, filling enough for a light lunch if accompanied by the much anticipated bread, a cake-like cheese and caramelized onion still warm from the oven. If Istanbul dwelling steak fans can actually remember the options other than well done, they’ll be gratified not only at being asked how they would like it, but also at getting what they asked for. A medium rare sirloin in peppercorn sauce and mash was a simple dish, reassuringly pink. Three cheese pasta with walnuts also pleased with its al dente texture. Rather than attempting innovation in the European sections the chef is clearly aiming for quality over flashiness.

Some hints of originality evidence themselves in the house Ayran, with mint, cucumber and basil. It was a drink that required some time to ponder before returning a positive verdict. Long enough for me to insist that surely the cucumber made it Cacık, not Ayran, and for my assertion to be politely, but equally as insistently, rebutted. I kept quiet and drank my less controversial, refreshing, homemade lemonade.

Quickly passing over the Turkish milk based desserts looking for the real stuff, we chose pear and apple crumble and a flour free, warm chocolate cake. The former had a disappointingly cardboard flavor topping. It tasted like it must be good for you and needed a lot more sugar for crunch and indulgence. Points were more than retained by the half melted, half fudgy chocolate cake that managed to be light without losing any chocolatey-ness.

No alcohol yet, they are in the process of getting the licence to allow you to linger on the terrace with a glass of wine. Open daily 8-12.

Sandwiches 3-7ytl
Mains 6.50-17ytl
Pasta 8.50-13.50ytl
Salads 4-13.50
Desserts 4.50-7ytl

Recently, I had the opportunity to visit Istanbul (The City or Constantinople for Greeks) along with some close friends of mine. I proclaimed the song from the video above to be this trip's soundtrack (loved it back then when i first heard while watching that episode of Tiny Toons). Based on my 4 day trip I give some observations in a nutshell.

• Istanbul is huuuuuuuge and beautiful (at least most of the central parts of the city I visited).
• Turkish language is required, people do not speak English. Even if you manage, avoid shopping, you'll definitely pay more than a locale.
• Do not drink tap water.
• People are friendly, however, one needs to be aware where they are going and avoid certain areas (that applies in every city in the world, but it was the first time I felt it). You may need to mind your wallet as well in most crowded places like markets, etc.
• People in the Ecumenical Orthodox Patriarchate are not familiar at all with the word politeness (and I mean the Greek people inside the Patriarchate's premises).
• The historical monuments of the city are definitely a must see (e.g. Hagia Sofia, the Sultan Ahmed or Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, the Galata Tower, etc.).
• Getting around with the public means is cheap (bargaining with the taxi drivers is a must too) and adventurous (one must literally catch the moving bus).
• Food is great (apart from the fact they miss pork, they eat a lot of lamb - and I hate lamb!), as you can't go wrong no matter what you choose to taste. I was lucky to have an amazing guide (Teşekkür ederim Arkadaş) and also try his mother's cooking (delicious!).
• Midye Dolma rocks! It's stuffed mussels with rice, herbs and spices. Once you find someone selling them (yeahp, there are people serving them in almost every corner), go for it. On my last night, and on our way home for dinner, we made a quick stop close to the bus stop and had 10 each.
• I need to comment on the Greek heritage of the city that is rather vivid everywhere.
• A walk at any point of the day on İstiklal Caddesi (in Greek: Μεγάλη Οδός του Πέραν) towards Taksim Square is also highly recommended.
• There are 4 things that no matter how much you try you can miss; Kemal's portrait, the turkish flag, mosques and horrible traffic jams.
• Greek drivers aren't the worst anymore.
• I'm still looking for those beautiful Turkish girls that some friends of mine were talking about. Big disappointment I must say :P .
• A boat tour of Bosporus is mandatory, as it gives you the chance to have a different view of the city's coasts as well as the two bridges (Once again all the flags on most of the surrounding hills serve as a constant reminder of where you are).
• Leaving aside the touristic areas, one will face either wealthy and modern parts of the city or extremely poor and dirty (e.g. Fener, the area around the Patriarchate is the most dirty and poor area I have ever visited on all my trips).

3 ***

Amongst the trendy bars, boisterous meyhanes and ‘in’ places to eat in Asmalı Mescit, Helvetia is an unassuming, almost unmarked, place that beckons you in with a warm hug rather than a ‘Daahling! Mwah, mwah’. A holidaying New York Times journalist stumbled across it, ate there everday, wrote it up on her return home, the Turkish food press then got wind of it (the New York Times rated it after all, daahling) and the word spread.

It’s easy to see how a foreign woman, dining alone, uninterested in the fusion cuisine nearby, eager to sample Real Local Food but not quite able to face a full-on meyhane every night, would feel drawn here. Conjuring up a farm house kitchen, with its red tiles, crooked wooden cabinets and brick walls, Helvetia is wholesome and cosy and welcoming.

Dishes change daily and are to be picked out, with the universal language of pointing, from under the glass counter. Mainly vegetable based, but with some köfte (7-9ytl), dishes can be taken as individual portions or as a mixed plate for about 8ytl.

A nice, light starter of smooth, creamy soup of chard with corn, was followed by standard fare zeytinyağlı (olive oil cold dish) leeks and broad beans, chard with yoghurt and a vegetable gratin that were the highlights, as long as you like bechamel, and the mucver were good although could have been crispier.

Dessert is either tiramisu or muhallebi (milk based pudding). My Turkish companion was quite happy with the latter until, in telling him how all those desserts are ectoplasm for me, I explained ectoplasm with reference to the green slime monster in Ghostbusters. If your dining partner has better table manners you will more than likely enjoy yours.

Good but not amazing, Helvetia’s Time Out Food and Drink Award for Best Ev Yemekleri perhaps owes more to its discovery than its food, but at such reasonable prices in this location, it’s worth checking out.

Found a pub. A nice one. It's got a roof terrace and each floor on the way up is populated by funky-looking Stamboulians. Imagine a bar in Barcelona.

The area called Taksim is a beauty. Windey European streets packed with bars and restaurants and fish mongers and vegetable stores and people. It would be the ideal place to live.

But I don't live there.

Maybe some of you have seen that Whit Stillman film 'The Last Days of Disco' remember how in the first flat the Chloe Sevigny character lives in, she has to go through somebody else's bedroom to get to hers? Well that would be my room in this flat.

But that's okay so far. The girl that lives in my walk-in closet (how the tables have turned, oh Destiny!) is more than sweet and thus far complementary body clocks and mutual consideration seem to be carrying us through.

V pleasant atmosphere in the flat. Bit like being at camp. I arrived, rang the bell and was greeted by the two girls and it was all very business-like, shook hands, unpacked, hung up the suit and then we sat down, had a fag, I made them laugh and it's been plane-sailing ever since.

Am simply not thinking about London, friends, etc. It feels a bit like when you're wilfully ignoring a partner. Which, I guess in a way is pretty much what phucking off to Istanbul is.

Need to go again.

M

Albüm İçeriği

1.Biçare 2.Gözüm 3.Bağlama Solo 4.Derdin Ne 5.Güle Yel Değdi 6.Klarnet solo 7.Gitti de gitti 8.Kanun solo 9.Belalım 10.Uşşak Oyun Havası 11.Muhayyer Kürdi Saz Semaisi</LI>

Artist :
Hüsnü Şenlendirici, İsmail Tunçbilek, Aytaç Doğan

Yapım Yılı :
2007

Yayımcı :
Doublemoon

Disk Tipi :
CD

Modacı, röntgenlediği ünlülerin kaldıkları adresleri ve yaşadıkları özel anları çok detaylı bir şekilde anlattı. Ancak özel hayata saygı gereği detaylı açıklamalara yer vermiyorum. İşte ünlü modacının anlattıklarından bazıları: “Sosyetik …’nin evi Maçka, Nişantaşı, Harbiye Taksim’den görünüyor. 2-3 km mesafeye kadar her şey görünüyor. Evde çıplak geziyor. Evine hiç gitmediğim halde içerideki eşyaları tüm detaylarıyla kendisine anlatınca şaşırdı. Bana ‘Senin yüzünden huzurum kaçtı artık evde çıplak gezemiyorum’ dedi.. Yatak odasının camının önüne kocaman yeşillikler koydurdu..” “Otellerde bütün olan biteni görebiliyorum. Okan Bayülgen’i Ralf Tezman’ı da gördüm. Ralf evde çırılçıplak dolaşıyordu. Okan zaten taşındı. O da evde atletle dolaşıyor. Spiker Nazlı Öztarhan’ın evi de görünüyor. Onun evine sonradan bölme yapıldı. Pınar Tezcan’ı sevgilisi Murat Öztarhan’ın odasında görüyordum. Tabi o zaman beraberlerdi. Derin Mermerci’nin evi ise 17’nci ya da 19’uncu katta mıydı tam olarak hatırlamıyorum. Komşusu olan sosyetik bayan arkadaşının evinden çıkmıyordu. O evden de taşındı zaten bunu biliyorsunuz” “Çocukluğumdan beri elimde dürbün var. Ben insanları dürbünle gözetlediğimi rahatlıkla söylüyorum ama diğer insanlar bunu söyleyemiyor. Hiç unutamadığım bir görüntü ise erkek modacı …’nin bir başkasıyla özel anlarıydı.”vatan

bakin bayan ise ne diyor:

Taksim’de yılbaşı gecesi yaşanan utanç verici taciz olayının mağdurları ilk kez konuştu. Mağdurlardan Nicholas Moore, her şeye rağmen sevmeye devam edeceği Türkiye’nin misafirperver bir kültüre sahip olduğunu belirterek, “Türkiye’ye tekrar gelmek isterim, başımıza gelen olay kesinlikle istisnaydı” dedi. Çok korktuklarını ve taciz gecesinden sonra Avustralya’ya döndüklerini ifade eden Moore yaşadıklarını anlatmakta güçlük çekti. Moore “İkisi bayan 2’si erkek 5 Avustralyalı arkadaş yeni yıl tatilini geçirmek üzere Türkiye’ye geldik. İranlı Mokhtar Arzanagh ile olaydan 20 dakika önce tanışmıştık. Beraber fotoğraf çektirdikten sonra bir anda kendimizi tacizci grubun ortasında bulduk. İçimizde en fazla tacize uğrayan Mandi Keighran oldu. Arzanagh, Mandi’yi kurtarmaya çalışırken, polis çağırmak için bağırmaya başladım” dedi.

Nicholas Moore : Çevirmen bile yoktu

Karakoldaki polislerin kendilerine karşı tutumundan şikayet eden Moore “İfade vermemiz için çevirmen bile çağırılmadı, tek dertleri İranlı arkadaşımızı suçlayacak delil ve tanık aramak oldu. Arzanagh’ın hemen nezarethaneye konularak ve günah keçisi olmasıyla tekrar şoke olduk. Diğer kız arkadaşımız da taciz edildi, biz de saldırıya uğradık ama Mandi hariç kimsenin ifadesini almadılar. Tacizin şokunda olan kız arkadaşlarımızı teselli edecek bir bayan polis bile yoktu” diye konuştu. Moore, Türkiye’de kalan İranlı Arzanagh için çok endişeli olduklarını belirterek“Daha kötü şeylerin olmamasını ona borçluyuz, lütfen onu sınırdışı etmesinler” dedi.

Ein Flug mit Hindernissen : Berlin-München-Istanbul. Eigentlich hätte ich gemütlich in München von meinem Berliner Flieger zum Anschlussvogel nach Istanbul schlendern können. Weil die liebe Lufthansa allerdings ganze 40 Minuten länger als geplant vom Gate in Berlin zum Gate in München brauchte, war mit schlendern nix. Ich joggte. Vor mir eine Flughafen-Bedienstete, die mich und andere Fluggäste freundlicherweise von der Berliner Maschine in München abgeholt hatte... 15 Minuten nach Touch-down brauste ich dann wieder zum Take-off über die Startbahn.

War ja klar, dass mein Koffer erstmal in München blieb. Das wussten die Istanbuler Lost&Found-Mitarbeiter bereits, als ich

am Förderband stand, und hatten mir bereits eine persönliche Nachricht geschrieben. Nett, gell? Nur verstanden habe ich sie nicht gleich: Da zirkelte ein grell-pinker Koffer auf dem Gepäck-Abhol-Band, als wir ankamen. So pink war das Pink, dass ich fast geblendet war - und deswegen vielleicht den Koffer nicht genauer ansah. Als mein Blick schließlich doch auf ihn fiel, sah ich ein Schild, das an seiner Oberseite angebracht war. Darauf stand: Bitte beim Lost&Found melden - Mrs. Ari..., Mr. xyz. Ich meldete, gab Informationen an und bekam meinen Koffer etwa 14 Stunden nach Ankunft ins Hotel geliefert.

Klassisches Sightseeing:

Schwer beeindruckt haben mich die Sultan-Ahment-Moschee (= Blaue Moschee / Sultanahmet Camii) und die Hagia Sophia (Ayasofya). Letzte war im 6. Jahrhundert ursprünglich als Kirche gebaut worden und ist heute ein Museum. Anfang des 17. Jahrhunderts ließ Sultan Ahmet I. die nach ihm benannte Moschee direkt gegenüber bauen. Steingewordener Wettstreit der Religionen quasi.

Blaue Moschee:

Im Inneren ist "die Blaue" mit unzähligen Kacheln geschmückt - Quizzfage: welcher Farbe wohl? Nach Schweißfüßen riecht es laut eigener Leidenserfahrung eines Freundes offenbar nur im Sommer. Im November, als ich dort war, war die Luft rein.

TIPP: Anfangs hatte ich mir ein Kopftuch übergestüplt. Das ist allerdings überflüssig. Denn wie ich jetzt weiß, tragen das nur gläubige Musliminnen (und Touristen wie ich, die's nicht besser wissen).

Hagia Sophia

Viiiiele Touristen (und das im November!!!). Aber: Auch viiiiel Platz für alle. Für mich ein unvergessliches Erlebnis: Im Eingangsbereich der Hagia Sophia zwischen den Fragmenten des Vorgängerbaus zu stehen und den Muezzinen zu lauschen. Ein herrliches Kurzkonzert, schön und ergreifend.

Bosporus:

Eine Schifffahrt, die ist lustig... und unvergesslich. Auch mit hunderten anderer Touristen an Bord. Vom Goldenen Horn aus sind wir Richtung Schwarzes Meer gefahren. An Bord: Ein Wirrwar aus Sprachen. Türkisch, Englisch, Spanisch, Italienisch, Japanisch, Deutsch, Französisch. Und wehe, auf einer Seite kommt eine besondere Sehenswürdigkeit ins Blickfeld... Ich betrete Schiffe ja ohnehin nur höchst widerwillig... und wenn sie sich dann auch noch sichtbar zur Seite neigen, weil fast alle Touristen mit ihren Kameras auf eine Seite stürzen... - während ich mich auf der anderen an das Geländer klammere und der festen Überzeugung bin, dass mein Gewicht das Boot vorm Kentern rettet...

Zweieinhalb Stunden tuckerten wir dahin, und noch immer türmten sich auf der europäischen Seite die Häuser Normalsterblicher - während auf der asiatischen die Villen der Superreichen interessante Einblicke gewährten.

Taksim-Platz...

...Der größte Platz in Istanbul, am Ende der laaaaangen Fußgängerpassage mit hunderten von Geschäften. Menschen, Autos, Hupen, Busse, Straßenbahnen, Hochhäuser - Metropole pur.

Der Große Bazaar

...also eigentlich tausende kleine Geschäftchen mit teurem Schmuck, Leder, Kleidung usw.

Istanbul bei Nacht

Unter der Galatabrücke reihen sich auf der einen Seite Bars und Kneipen aneinander, aus denen türkische Live-Musik schallt. Auf der anderen buhlen Kellner in allen möglichen Sprachen um die hungrigen Mägen. Auch um unsere Mägen haben sie gebuhlt. Fisch gab's, lecker, aber zum happigen Preis. Aber der Blick auf die angeleuchteten Stadtteile beiderseits des Goldenen Horns und die asiatische Seite ist unvergesslich.

Süleymaniye-Moschee

Für mich die schönste der großen Moscheen. Die Süleymaniye liegt inmitten eines Wohn-, Industrie- und Handelsviertels. Mehrere Eingänge führen in den umgebenden Park - wir haben den gefunden, der an Dixiklos vorbei und über eine schlammige Wiese führt...

Topkapi-Palast

Palast? Irrgarten! Fünf Höfe mit Gebäuden, die jeweils eigene Höfe haben... Über Jahrhunderte hatten Sultane hier ihren Sitz, haben regiert, Recht gesprochen, gegessen, und mit vielen Frauen geschlafen. Eindrucksvolles Zeugnis: Der Harem. Viele Zimmer, noch mehr Fluchten, königliche Pracht.

Yerebatan Sarnici...

...ist eine Zisterne aus dem 6. Jahrhundert. Insgesamt 336 jeweils acht Meter hohe Säulen tragen das Gewölbe. Im Vergleich zu den anderen Sehenswürdigkeiten kommen relativ wenige Touristen in die Unterwelt - ätsch, mehr Platz für uns :-) Zur Attraktion in der Attraktion zählen zwei antike Medusenköpfe, die auf den Kopf gestellt als Basen für zwei der Säulen dienen.

Changa (Siraselviler 87/1) is one of the restaurants you hear about when you first arrive in expat Istanbul, assume is open only toVIPs and the very rich and resolve to go when that next paycheck comes in or someone in Istanbul's elite has chosen you from the plebs and invites you to dinner.  Pass it on the street, easily missing it even when looking for it, Changa continues the feel of being in on an insider's secret with it's minimalist white decor, and bar fronted dining area with a screen silently showing old French TV comedies.   Pretentious, moi? The interior designer's masterstroke is a glass covered hole in the restaurant floor looking down onto the kitchen but even that is not screamingly obvious or gimmicky.  As soon as I stepped inside, I felt I had been transported to Any Cosmopolitan City.  We were not in Kansas anymore.

 Having already checked out the menu online, I had seen that it was rather heavy on beef and lamb options which narrowed the menu for me.  Of the remaining mains (30-50ytl) Thai green chicken curry I can cook myself, I was choosing between pasta and fish.

The starters showed more variety.  Duck spring rolls with spicy raisin and plum dip were bigger than this type of restaurant generally rations out and were perfectly crisp and beautifully accompanied by the chutney style dip.  The pumkin and prawn fritter wasn't quite as successful only because it didn't come with anything similar.  In fact, they should serve everything on the menu with that dip.   The main weakness of the beginning of the meal was the bread, one tiny cold slice of pide and the ubiquitous rock hard butter rather than the basket of crusty seed and herb country bread I was expecting. 

Intrigued by the sound of my main, salmon and wasabi tortellini with porcini in a creamy lemongrass  sauce,  and encouraged by the excellence of the spring rolls, I was sure the kitchen possessed the cheffing wizardry necessary to combine these flavours.  I was only half right.  The tortellini were presented Turkish manti style, where a spoonful or two drizzled over the top would have been far more appropriate.  The porcini were almost completely lost in it and the salmon filling could have been anything but, once again, the accompaniment was inspired.  The dish gained everything with the thumbnail of wasabi on the side and, despite the balance of everything else being completely wrong I really enjoyed it. 

The lamb chops with bulghur were as well cooked as anyone who has spent time in Turkey has learnt to expect, meat may not leave the kitchen until all pink has been thoroughly eradicated.

Based on the rest of the meal it seemed that matching ingredients was the chef's strong point rather than the execution of the dish as a whole, so, for dessert (15-20 ytl) we trusted the combinations of lime with the dark chocolate brownie and grapefruit compote with the white chocolate mousse.  The former was less of a risk and was a shareable sized portion of rich, gooey chocolateyness with little crunchy explosions hidden inside.  The lime was subtle and could have been stronger but was a nice alternative to the orange that normally partners dark chocolate.

I was more sceptical about grapefruit as a dessert and I was proved horribly right.  It was an abomination.  The delicate, silky textured mousse was completely overpowered by the unsweetened fruit.  Even after moving it away from the flesh of the grapefruit, it was polluted just by touching the juices that were leaking out.  Something like mandarin would have been much more suited.

A kind of lollipop jelly sweet, made from cherries, came as a digestif and was a lot more successful.  All in all, not being a great carnivore, the mains wouldn't draw me back as, strangely, the menu doesn't change much seasonally, and likewise with the desserts, I have tried the 2 things that appealed to me.  Good, but I certainly wouldn't put it in the World's Top 50 restaurants as they claim.  However, I might be back for late night cocktails if someone is treating me.

www.changa-istanbul.com

Imagine your living room but packed with people clapping along to folk music, tray after tray of food being brought to your table and an endless supply of raki.  The essence of a good meyhane is making the diner feel totally at home but with the atmosphere cranked up to full power.

Of the three main meyhane districts, Nevizade, Asmali Mescit and Cicek Pasaji, the latter is the most elegant, housed under a glass ceilinged passage with restaurants leading off the cobbled street.  Mahzen (Cicek Pasaji, 4/6) has a cellar feel, with tables hidden around in nooks and crannies under the brick arches and what may well be the contents of someone's basement hanging on the walls.

We chose a cosy alcove in front of a graffitied guitar and next to a stuffed stag's head, far enough away from the fasil band to be able to appreciate the music.  This is key in a meyhane - some of the really small places that seem cute and authentic when you are seated, soon have you wolfing down your mezes in an effort to escape to a place where you can eat in peace.  Not so the locals though, who seem to lap it up, swaying mesmerised by their requested tune being blasted into their ears from 10 cm away.  Personally, I'm tipping them so the musicians leave my table but maybe, maybe, maybe, if they were playing Clementine or Oh Susannah, I'd be less of a killjoy.

A pictorial menu advertised a variety of fish dishes and the mezes were brought round on a tray - a kind of live menu where you pick as many as you want.  Which is usually about twice as many as you can comfortably eat.  We had haydari (yoghurt, dill and garlic), fava (broad bean puree) white cheese and zeytinyagli yaprak sarma (stuffed vine leaves).  A meze sized dish of butter on ice, that I mistook for yellow cheese, also came.  Why anyone would want their butter rock hard and unspreadable is beyond me, but I can only put it down to the fact that butter with bread is not that common in restaurants here and they just haven't quite got the knack of it yet.  Huge points for the bread which was lightly toasted, meaning that I ate far more than I should have considering I had also ordered a fish main.

Hamsi tava (fried anchovies) was not on the menu but was ordered without a problem and was hot and fresh.  Just like the half naked bellydancer that appeared somewhere around this time. Another mystery to me is how accepted this is within the confines of dining whereas, even at the beach, my boyfriend thinks my bikini is too small and you rarely see a flash of cleavage in the street.  Yet here, wives laugh along as the bellydancer accepts tips via her bra.

We had a half bottle of white wine, opting for the "wine" as opposed to the slightly more expensive "quality wine" also offered.  Service was attentive and the two of us ate for a total of under 50 ytl.

Since I started talking to Turkish people about my various disappointments with some Turkish desserts, every single one of them has said I have to go to historical Inci (Istiklal 124/2) and try the profiteroles for which they are famous.  Some even claim Inci were the original profiterole makers, which may be true at least within Turkey, but I have a feeling the French might have something to say about a more ambitious interpretation of  "the first". 

Or perhaps  they are right and the Turks did invent this particular brand of profiterole as, although to the untrained eye it bears a strong likeness to the classic dessert as I know it, the similarity ends at the first mouthful. The chocolate sauce is plentiful and glossy but is like chocolate with all the enjoyable elements removed, as if it had been made from synthetic chocolate developed for astronaut survival packs, which it can't be as Inci also sells a range of chocolates, along with some pastries and biscuits. The soggy choux pastry encases confectioner's custard rather than cream and just adds to the sensation that your tastebuds are trying to work through cotton wool.  If I hadn't been so hungry, I wouldn't have finished it and my friend didn't manage to.

Service was canteen like and the desserts were just sitting on the counter to be taken self-service whereas other things were under the counter.  Bizarrely tea or coffee was not available.  1o ytl for 2 people. 

If you have never eaten real profiteroles, French style, before then it's possible you could like Inci.  It's been around a long time and locals swear by it but, on both counts, I'm baffled as to why.

If you are meeting friends in Taksim, the chances are fairly high that you'll be waiting, along with everyone else, outside Burger King.  And it's also likely that you're hungry and feeling tempted by the smell of doner kebab wafting out from the row of bufes nearby.  If you can make it just a few doors further down on Istiklal (no. 13 ) you'll find every kind of kebab you could ever dream up.

Kebab Dunyasi is another place I've visited many times and always take visitors.  3 floors host a mix of Turkish and foreign diners and seem to be busy at most times of the day.  A picture menu helps make sense of the bewildering array of kebabs but before you get to that part there is lentil soup that comes with fresh pita, or a range of mezes or their fantastic cig kofte (raw meatballs).  If you're not as hungry as you thought you'd be after all that, you could forgo the kebab for your next visit (because you'll definitely be back) and go for lahmacun (thin, crispy, Turkish pizza with minced meat and spices).  It's a bit bigger than can be found elsewhere and the best place I know to get it.

However, if you're in it to the finish line, you have some tough decisions to make.  A favourite of mine is the Beyti kebab, which comes cut up, wrapped in tortilla and served with yoghurt in a shareable sized portion.  There is a special Beyti kebab that adds pistachio to the mix, is covered with cheese and baked in the oven, possibly overkill but good if you're not planning to eat again that week. 

I have to admit to never having made it to dessert here, but the usual range is on offer.  Prices are standard.

For some reason I've managed never to notice Otantik, despite it's prominent Istiklal position (no. 170) and unsubtle decor.  Water features and faux foliage abound but although I am sure a more ambience discerning customer would find it tacky, I thought it was charming.  Even the woman sitting fully costumed by her gozleme (Turkish pancake) stone was fine by me - it means hot, fresh gozleme whatever cool points it loses.  But, I have been away for a few weeks so maybe my Istanbul snobbery guage needs resetting.

Otantik might be aimed at tourists, the menu is available in English and Turkish and some of the staff speak English, but I think the pictures on the menu would be just as useful to locals as foreigners as there were several dishes I have never heard of before.  On my visit it was certainly full of Turkish people breaking their Ramazan fast.

There is food at the counter that you can choose from, relatively standard dishes like lahana sarma (stuffed cabbage leaves) and various stews that all looked tempting enough, but the real stand out feature comes from looking at the Anatolian influenced menu.  Leaving aside the kebabs and other familiar things, I was still presented with a choice of about 1o things I had no idea what they were beyond the basic description given.

 I opted for Hingal, described as potato dumplings.  They turned out to be like manti (Turkish ravioli) but stuffed with potato and served with yoghurt sauce.  Actually, I preferred them to manti, which always feel like a poor man's tortellini to me.  I didn't taste my friend's unappetizing looking rice and meat combination but she finished it and seemed happy so I assume it tasted better than appearances suggested.  She polished off a Turkish dessert popular at Ramazan, gullac - another of the milk based anaemic looking creations, flavoured with rose water and pomegranate - and I worked my way through the fig dessert (incir tatlisi).  It was incredibly sweet and didn't really need the serving of Turkish chewing gum icecream it came with.  Good, but not a patch on Kanaat's.

 Prices were reasonable, a bit above a standard kebab house but the food definitely warranted that.  Service was really good, a manager even came over to apologise at the end of our meal for making us sit with others which we hadn't minded anyway.

www.otantikay.com

This is not so much a review as a public service announcement.  I'm not even going to give you the address, as if you don't know you can't try and find it.  I'll say it's in Cihangir just to help you identify it, should you wander across it.  And if you already know it, surely you're not thinking of going back? 

Having said that, the only 3 other people I know that have eaten there don't seem to be as offended by it as I was.  I put this down to their nationalities.  A Frenchman who recommended it and an American and a Turk who thought it wasn't that bad.  But I'm English and I'd like to know what they know about what constitutes a good curry?  We have got it too good in this respect in the UK and as such, when I have the urge for an Indian, the curry has to be as good as it is there to satisfy it.  I know I sound pompous but it's not like I'm trying to say I am a Master Curry Chef myself, just that I've eaten a lot. 

At university in Manchester there was a road called The Curry Mile. OK, maybe not on official maps but everyone knew where you meant even though it was probably only about half a mile long.  Of the 40 or so restaurants we must have worked our way through half of them by the end of our degrees.  I remember more about the curry houses than I do about the Philosophy I was supposedly studying.

So, when I was having the curry DTs and was taken to the Taj Mahal, I had some level of anticipation.  I knew I was in trouble when they didn't have poppadoms. WHAT KIND OF INDIAN CAN NOT HAVE POPPADOMS?????  What are people supposed to do when they're looking at the menu if they can't eat so many poppadoms with mango chutney that they're already feeling full when the food comes?

Anyway, I managed not to stomp out in a huff and we ordered 3 dishes, rice and naan.  Standard stuff and I can't remember what the dishes were  called but as it turned out their names would be irrelevant as they all tasted exactly the same.  And the main flavour was salt.  I don't need a curry to be really hot, but I do have as a basic requirement that it tastes of curry.  And how much salt? I was still draining pints of water hours later as my body desperately tried to halt its own mummification.  And is it picky to point out that pide is not naan?

I'm not a vegetarian but I do often act like one so I am almost as appreciative of a vegetarian restaurant as a real meat avoider.  I very rarely cook meat at home and go for weeks without really noticing I haven't had any.  Despite Turkish food being a very meat orientated cuisine, I don't think vegetarians get as rough a deal here as they like to make out.  Mezes are mostly meat free and they're the best part of the meal anyway. 

So, perhaps for that reason as well as most Turkish people treating vegetarians with the suspicion we might reserve for people carrying backpacks on the London Underground, there are only one or two specifically veggie restaurants in Istanbul.  Zencefil is the least incense burning and goes for a more rustic country kitchen whilst, at the same time, airily modern feel.  Painted, wooden chairs and woodwork with a tiled floor and high ceilings in relaxing shades of green and turquoise somehow blend with what could be nauseating lime green walls.  Green without being too politically green.

The specials menu on the blackboard is seasonal which meant there was fennel, a major find in Istanbul for some unfathomable reason.  I wonder where they find it as I have yet to see it on a market.  I opted for Aegean stew- a bean, fennel, artichoke and onion dish and we tried the aubergine borek.  Salads were more a side dish than a main course, which to me is a surprising missed opportunity for a vegetarian place but seems relatively common in Turkish restaurants.  But the mixed salad was more interesting than expected and had yoghurt dressed carrots and some kind of mustardy sauce with the courgettes.

I want to be excited about Zencefil but something is missing for me.  This was actually my second visit and I'm really struggling to remember what I had last time as it left very little impression.  Our meal was nice, and there were some nice touches like homemade cornbread and herb butter (butter with bread -  a rare treat) but I've used the word "nice" twice in one sentence and that's the essence of the problem.  It is possible that I am just horribly biased as there is a vegetarian restaurant in York, England that for me is what all vegetarian places should aspire to be (www.vanillablack.co.uk).

The peach dessert was nice with its creamy vanilla and maybe nutmeg sauce.  Prices were in the 8-11 ytl range for mains.  Wine drinkers may fare well here as there was a good range including 3 kinds of fruit wines, although at a not so nice 30 ytl a bottle. Service was a tad on the begrudging side.

**Oct 7**

A recent visit showed up Zencefil's vegetarian weaknesses more clearly.  A vegetable lasagne that would have had any Italian running crying to his mother.  There was no real cheese, no real tomatoey sauce just a veganly anaemic white sauce and chopped tomato effort.  There's no need to make lasagne this boring and tasteless just because meat is missing.  The lemon meringue pie returned to  true Zencefil form - it was nice but not special.

I have had a longer relationship with Saray than any other restaurant in Istanbul so far.  Its Istiklal branch in Taksim has a huge window crammed full of sticky looking sweet things that had a Little Match Girl effect on me when I first arrived and would stand, nose pressed to the window, wondering what it all tasted like.  This seemed to be the place to learn about Turkish desserts and I signed up to my self tutored course straight away.

Of course there was Baklava at the beginning, the pistachio or walnut kinds.  Impossibly sweet and even better with icecream, I eventually went off it after one that was just too syrupy soggy.  Once I started experimenting, I found Kazandibi, the ectoplasm roll with a brown outer layer,  better than anticipated but my expectations had been low.  It had a slightly savoury taste that made me wonder if I had inadvertantly tried the infamous chicken one (Tavuk Gogsu) but luckily I am still innocent of that dessert blasphemy.

Then came Asure, the one with all the colourful fruits and nuts on top.  It was the one I'd been most intrigued by and apparently there are 40 different ingredients in it.  It's also called Noah's pudding as the story goes that Noah, in a Ready, Steady, Cook type challenge had to come up with something when they were marooned on the top of Mount Ararat (Did you know that was in Turkey?  I didn't.  You'll soon find EVERYTHING was here first - first man to fly, first form of Viagra, all the things you thought were in Greece like Mount Olympos and Troy, first country to give women the vote- according to Turks anyway.)  So, instead of making lots of different dishes like they do on the TV programme, Noah decided to shove everything in together.  Including rice and chickpeas.  In a dessert.  This makes a sort of cinammon  and orange flavoured goo which had a taste faintly like I imagine a Victorian Christmas (Little Match Girl again) and, again, was not that sweet.  I was told pregnant women eat it as, with all the different ingredients, it's bound to satisfy one of their cravings.  Frankly I am about as likely to have it again as I am to eat coal or icecream on avocado, so that makes some sense.

Ekmek Kadayif, the one that looks like golden syrup soaked sponge with cream cheese filling, was not as disappointing as I was now coming to expect.  The "cream cheese" part turned out to be Kaymak (clotted cream) and was almost worth the whole dessert which is bread, not cake, and has a monotonous taste and texture which I couldn't be bothered to finish.  The Turks are really missing out on bread and butter pudding if you ask me.

Turkish profiteroles.  Truly awful and a blight on the beautiful French dessert.  Fake confectioner's custard filling, soggy pastry and chocolate sauce that tastes like the stuff they put on McDonalds icecream sundaes.

However, one I wasn't expecting to like was Ayva Tatlisi (Quince Dessert).  Quinces are so bland in their natural form that they soak up sugar and become crackling gorgeousness, especially with an extra bonus of Kaymak.  All the more surprising that the pumpkin version (Kabak Tatlisi) is so dull.  But perhaps Americans would like that as they are used to pumpkin as a dessert whereas I see it as a soup base.

There are still plenty to try at Saray but I think we are coming to the point in our relationship where our differences are too great to overcome.  I want butter, sugar and cream in my desserts; for them to be rich instead of just sweet, but Saray can only offer sugar and milk.  But, if you are going to give Turkish desserts a try, this is probably the best place. Branches also in Eminonu and Kanyon shopping mall.

www.saraymuhallebicisi.com