Istanbul Eats on Araf, and more news about Istanbul

Istanbul Eats blog stopped by Erkan’s all time favorite bar in Istanbul, Taksim.

Istanbul Eats Drinks: Araf Cafe Bar

from Istanbul Eats

araf
(Editor?s Note: Since we realize that those who love to eat usually also like to drink, we are introducing a new feature, ?Istanbul Eats Drinks,? an occasional look at some of the city?s more appealing bars and lounges, places that still have that authentic Istanbul vibe.)

Istanbul: capitol of contradictions. East or West? Muslim or secular? Neither, or both? Pull up a stool, Turkey pundits, and feast your eyes on the latest Turkish identity riddle: it looks like Freddy Mercury, sings like an Levantine Sid Vicious and plays like saz-master Orhan Gencebay. Give up? That?s Cumbus Cemaat on stage on a Thursday night at Café Araf, a rough and tumble saloon perched on top of a non-descript building in the back streets of the Beyoglu fish market. But it?s not just the architecture that makes this place appear to have fallen from the sky; Araf is the one cool bar in these streets of no-go discos, chichi lounges and tourist traps.

Ciğerimin Köşesi: New (Kebab) Kid on the Block

from Istanbul Eats

The liver master -- photo by Yigal Schleifer
We?ve long been big fans of Canim Ciğerim, a wonderful kebab joint in Beyoglu?s Asmalimescit area that serves up thin, long skewers studded with tiny and very tender morsels of either beef or liver.

Istanbul Eats Drinks: Otantik Turku Bar

from Istanbul Eats
Authentic at Otantik -- photo by Ansel Mullins
One night in Otantik, a Turku (Turkish folk music) bar in Beyoglu, delivers all the emotional peaks and valleys of life itself. As the saz strumming bard on stage moans out the first few bars of a familiar song of lost love, even the table of stony-faced, raki-drenched fellows in leather jackets melt with a sigh.

Undisclosed plans for Haydarpaşa ‘killing Istanbul softly’
Hurriyet Daily News
Although Istanbul authorities have accepted a plan to rezone the area, the details of the plan are still unknown to the public. Architects, NGOs and urban

Gallery: Christmas around the world
Huntington Herald Dispatch
right, kisses the Holy Book as he conducts the Christmas Mass in the Patriarchate’s St. George (Aya Yorgi) Church in Istanbul, Turkey, Friday, Dec


Contemporary art makes four-day İstanbul appearance
Today’s Zaman
Contemporary İstanbul, a well-established modern and contemporary art exhibition and fair, took place for the fourth time on Dec.

A Culinary Revival in Istanbul
Wall Street Journal
In Beyoglu, Istanbul’s nightlife hub, tables are cluttered with tavern food in tapas-like portions. It’s all delicious, of course?and a little familiar.

Bavouzet brings Debussy’s subtle and passionate world to İstanbul
Today’s Zaman
Praised for his charismatic, poetic and dynamic performances, Bavouzet will perform for Turkish music lovers for a second time in İstanbul tonight as part


Moody’s Issues Annual Report on Metropolitan Municipality of Istanbul
istockAnalyst.com (press release)
(Source: Info-Prod Research (Middle East))In its annual report on the MetropolitanMunicipality of Istanbul (“IMM”), Moody’s Investors Service says that

Istanbul and exotic mystery
Mcalester News Capital
By Joy Crutchfield When I stepped off of the ship in Istanbul I felt like I was in one of those ?On the Road? movies starring Bob Hope and Bing Crosby.
French photographer wins İstanbul Photo Contest 2009
Today’s Zaman
The second edition of the İstanbul Photo Contest, titled ?Yabancı Seyyahlar Gözüyle İstanbul? (İstanbul in the Eyes of Foreigners),


Property News | Istanbul: the culture capital 2010

Top 20 sporting moments of the decade: Liverpool’s ‘Miracle of Istanbul
Telegraph.co.uk
?Remember Istanbul.” Ancelotti’s side were leading 3-0 at half-time and it could have been more. Kaka, Hernan Crespo and Andrei Shevchenko were untouchable

Istanbul Builds Reputation As Art Capital – webcastr.com
Istanbul has cut a place for itself on the contemporary art scene. Each years it hosts an annual fair that draws tens of thousands of visitors and this year’s event, which wrapped up at the weekend, is a warm-up for 2010, when the city

Istanbul: the culture capital 2010
The Move Channel
The much-awaited Museum of Innocence museum, inspired by the novel of the same name by Nobel Prize-winning Turkish writer Orhan Pamuk, will offer a poetic

52000 visit fourth Contemporary İstanbul
Today’s Zaman
Some 52000 art lovers visited this year’s Contemporary İstanbul international art fair, which wrapped up its fourth edition on Sunday,

Can Carpooling Ease the Istanbul Commute? A Bus Rider’s Pessimistic View
Treehugger
by Jennifer Hattam, Istanbul, Turkey on 12.12.09 With the onset of the winter rains, Istanbul’s already congested roadways became a sea of stationary lights

2010 looks to be a great year for readıng about istanbul
Sunday’s Zaman
Ataol Behramoğlu, Adalar; Ayşe Sarısayın, Beşiktaş; Beşir Ayvazoğlu, Beyazıt; Celal Özcan, Göztepe; Cüneyt Altunç, Suadiye; and Haydar Egülen, Cihangir.

8th Ecocity World Summit Opens in Istanbul
Treehugger
Several of the Turkish speakers noted the enormous challenges facing Istanbul, including internal migration trends that add some half a million new

Al-Quds Day in Turkey’s Istanbul
www.worldbulletin.net
Baveria State of Germany is getting ready to open an agency in İstanbul to promote relations. Baveria State of Germany is getting ready to open an agency in

Orhan Pamuk’s Nisantasi
By P. Ling
Say you’re a well-botoxed shopaholic type stuck in Istanbul, Turkey and feeling downright homesick. Where would you go? Head straight for Nisantasi – a snooty


Istanbul Capital of Culture 2010: A Guide to the Highlights of
Istanbul is gearing up for a year-long programme of events in order to live up to its title of European Capital of Culture in 2010.

Istanbul street named after French friend of Turks
Hurriyet Daily News
Claude Farrere is no more than a street’s name in Istanbul’s Sultanahmet district for many residents. Although contemporary Sarkozy-led France follows

Istanbul Airport Guide (IST)
Istanbul Airport Money and communications: There are banks, ATMs and bureaux de change. Post offices are located in both the International a.

İstanbul Modern: a dream of many years coming true
Sunday’s Zaman
Thousands of years of history lie in İstanbul’s museums, but the city also has a modern art scene that offers a unique opportunity to taste a hint of the
Istanbul Modern. Nafas Art Magazine
Photos and informationen: The museum in Istanbul and works of the collection in an exhibition in Berlin, Germany.

Istanbul to showcase its charms as European capital of culture : Culture General

Istanbul: There are two sides to this city’s story
Independent
Istanbul will ring in the New Year as a European City of Culture. It’s a well-deserved honour, says Adrian Mourby, for they’re still digging up objects that


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