Today's Picture

Istanbul Modern

Taksim

I walked to work today and took some photos near Taksim by the hotels area. They tear down the divan Hotel, We'll see what they'll do instead, probably another hotel.

Demonstration

Tonight another very small demonstration against the attack of Israel upon the Gaza Territories took place in Taksim in the Istiklal Street. They were carrying a small casket to represent the children killed during the attacks.

Snow

Today we did some street polls for a company. It snowed all day long. It was pretty hard to hold the camera still, I didn't get gloves ;)











After I left work, snow got more intense. I love snow. I wish for a snow storm in Istanbul.











Taksim Square

Protest

Qs I left work today, I noticed a big crowd in Taksim. People gathered to protest against natural gas price raises and other prices raises. In 2009, municipal elections will be held. The government created a "wonderfull" strategy, raise natural gas prices like hell. then distribute coal for free. What do people think ? Gas is expensive but look, the city helps us by giving us free coal. They love us, let's vote for them, they're so cool. Populism at its most.

Taksim First Aid

This is right behind the Taksim First Aid hospital, behind Siraserviler Street.

10.11.2008 - 9.05 a.m.

Today is the 70st anniversary of Atatürk's death. At 9.05 a.m. each year, during the minute of silence, sirens sound all over the country and people would stop. It's very interesting to witness the traffic stop and people get out of their car to stand up; people stop walking in the streets. All the flags are half mast.




















Taksim's Republican Memorial








The Founder of the Repubic and the National Fighter supporters: Atatürk in the middle Front, Ismet Pasha, Müshir Fevzi Pasha, Voroshilov, Frunze and the Turkish People.

Metro Light

This week, while going to the post office with Emre, we saw this wagon on the Taksim Square. We decided to go inside and have a look. This is apparently the new subway, what they call here "hafif metro" and translate by "light subway" that will go from Başakşehir to Bakırköy. The reason is called light is probably because it goes on the surface and not underground. But it's just another tramway (a large one). You can see that they've put the tulip emblem on the outside. They try to put the tulip as Istanbul's emblem but it's also related to the empire ottoman and the link it shares with the actual government.
For those interested, it's made by Alstom and will soon be active (by july 2009).

Dadash Ap. 21

I took this photo as I was wandering through the streets of Cihangir near Taksim. This wheelbarrow reminded me of Noah's post about the street art he witnessed in NYC.

Maksim Gazinosu

This post is actually in "response" to M. Serdar K.'s post on the Maksim Gazino. Serdar and I park our car in the same parking lot, which is in the heart of Taksim behind the Marmara hotel, in the Beyoglu district, inside the building falling apart.

This "old" building or what's left of it used to be the Maksim Gazino, the last surviving large gazino, owned by the “king of gazinos” Fahrettin Aslan. One of the trendiest place of Istanbul (if not the trendiest), the Turkish "Olympia" for the connoisseurs. All the big Turkish stars performed or/and were discovered there.
If you read/speak Turkish I would advise you to read Serdar's post to learn more about it.

Since I didn't grow up in turkey, gazino is a strange concept for me. I never really understood what it was or what it meant. I just thought it was the Turkish way to say "Casino", but it's not. It's a kind of night club/music hall.

Anyway, I'm always out taking photos and I realized (Serdar made me) that I never cared (or dared) having a look inside that "building". So I went and took a few pictures.
All the gazinos in Turkey were forbidden* a few years ago (probably because of the unauthorized gambling going on - anyone knows ?) so they all shut down and ended like this one, waiting to be turned into a hotel or a mall.

*I've just been told that they weren't forbidden but they had to close because of the lack of interests after the advent of private TV. It was reopened back in the mid 1990's with great performers like Ibrahim Tatlıses, Bülent Ersoy, Sibel Can, Emel Sayın and many more only to struggle and finally close forever.

To learn more about gazino, go here.




























The ropes holding the lusters are still there.












I even dared going inside the pitch black staircase to see what was inside. The bad smell and the dirt kept me fro, going further.




























The old fake ceiling is still in place.

Electrician

The other day with Murat we went to buy some electric cable from this electrician's shop. The place is a bit surrealist. It feels like your in Z's shop's basement...












The owner, Mr Reha is really nice though. He told me I could go in the next room if I wanted to take pictures...
















...so I did.