Melbourne tops liveable city list, İstanbul 109th

Hotel prices: The rising cost of a night in Istanbul | The Economist

Best of Dutch design to dazzle İstanbul

Multi-author book on Istanbul explores city

from Hurriyet Dailynews by ANKARA – Anatolia News Agency
A new book titled ?Istanbul in World Literature,? once again reveals how Istanbul has attracted thousands of world-renowned writers through the years.

Istanbul?s new contemporary art platform: ?Art Beat Istanbul?

by Acturca
Hürriyet Daily News (Turkey)
Monday, August 15, 2011, Istanbul
Art Beat, debuting as a new contemporary art platform in Istanbul, will be organized for the first time in September. The art fair, which will bring together both Turkish and international galleries under the same roof, also coincides with the 12th Istanbul Biennial.

Mahya: illuminating centuries of İstanbul’s Ramadan nights
Today’s Zaman
Mahya, messages written out with lights and strung between minarets, have illuminated the streets of İstanbul and other cities during the holy month of Ramadan for hundreds of years and continue to fascinate residents as well as tourists.

Luxury Istanbul homes attract Mideast buyers
Hurriyet Daily News
Rich Arab buyers are getting more interested in the waterside mansions and expensive houses by Istanbul’s Boshporus, according to the head of Sotheby’s Turkey. The recent political unrest in the Middle East and North Africa is also playing a role in

Istanbul, Turkey: Old city, new spirit
Telegraph.co.uk
With its Byzantine churches and Ottoman palaces, Istanbul can seem like a timewarp ? but a new energy is running through it. Lisa Grainger finds 21st-century monuments rising among the minarets, from boutique hotels, rooftop bars and gourme

İstanbul’s historical peninsula to launch Smart Bike Project
Today’s Zaman
Locals and tourists alike will soon be able to explore the area of İstanbul known as the historical peninsula with a new form of public transportation — bicycle. With Fatih Municipality’s Smart Bike Project cyclists will be able to safely pedal

Istanbul’s al fresco diners lose their chairs
The Guardian
Photograph: www.radikal.com It is the tourism heart of Istanbul, a cosmopolitan district packed with bars, clubs, cafes and restaurants which has always been a magnet for the al fresco diner. But outdoor tables are becoming harder to find in Beyoğlu

Istanbul’s al fresco diners lose their chairs

from World news: Turkey | guardian.co.uk
Outdoor tables and chairs go from many cafes in Beyoğlu tourist area after official crackdown
It is the tourism heart of Istanbul, a cosmopolitan district packed with bars, clubs, cafes and restaurants which has always been a magnet for the al fresco diner. But outdoor tables are becoming harder to find in Beyoğlu, since the authorities inexplicably ordered many of them to be removed.

An exclusive interview with the creators of Let’stanbul Art Festival!

Turkey: Betting on Bicycles to Break Istanbul?s Gridlock | EurasiaNet.org

Istanbul taxi license plate prices surge
Hurriyet Daily News
The price of taxi license plates in Istanbul has increased 29 percent since the beginning of the year, with a taxi plate now costing 785000 Turkish Liras, compared to 610000 liras in January. The increase in plate prices is not surprising, according to