Recap of the Istanbul Marathon
At least it wasn't too hot. That's what I was thinking to myself as I lined up for the 15 km run this past...
Sarah Brightman Rocks our Souls in Istanbul
I remember being 5 or 6 years old and watching in awe as a pretty-looking, round-eyed young woman came on the TV screen, captivating...
Letters from Istanbul: Yeldeğirmeni’s Quiet Renaissance
Author’s note: Last week, I wrote about the stories behind some of Istanbul’s street names, and the week before that I traced some of...
Grammy Award-winning Night in Calisia at the CRR
Just a couple of days after the Berlin Konzerthaus Chamber Orchestra, CRR was the host of a very unique evening: they brought together on...
Berlin Konzerthaus: European Delight at the CRR
The Cemal Reşit Rey Concert Hall is hosting quite a program this year, and it finished October off with impressive performances back to back. Among...
The Abstract Art of Tom Whitty
With his bearded chin and pierced left ear, Tom Whitty looks every inch the artist. He dresses casually, talks quietly and occasionally seems to...
Review: IKSV 2nd Istanbul Design Biennial
At its core, the 2nd Istanbul Design Biennial, titled The Future Is Not What It Used To Be, encourages you to think and rethink...
Confused Letters from Istanbul: Rude Sheiks and Mad Rams — A...
It is almost a cliché to say that behind every name in Istanbul there is a story; nevertheless, the saying is true.
For instance, I...
Menuhin’s Prodigious Youth Perform in the Bach Festival
If you are into classical music at all, there is no chance that you have not heard of Yehudi Menuhin. He is the single most...
Review: Chet Faker @ Volkswagen Arena
I have a theory about Chet Faker: he is not really a musician but instead a ninja in disguise. And during last Saturday's concert...
Letters from Istanbul: City of the Blind (Or, Why You Shouldn’t...
I live in Kadıköy, the “city of the blind.”
Have you heard this one?
Well, in ancient times, the first Greeks who arrived from Megara set...
Review: Konstantin Lifschitz, Effortless in Istanbul
Istanbul has been around since 660 B.C., back when it was Byzantium. Bach is more than 300 years old. Neve Shalom Synagogue is from...
Beauty and the Beast: A Fairy Tale Comes Alive
The Zorlu Center PSM kicked October off with a performance series that justly made the news, hit the papers, turned heads, and made art...
Letters from Istanbul: The Anatolian Way
As a yabancı, you probably have your own first impressions of the city.
One of my own was made while coming from Ataturk International Airport...
Backstage with the Cast and Crew of Beauty and the Beast
Not only was I able to talk to producers Dan Hinde and Seth Wenig while backstage at Beauty and the Beast, but I also caught up...
Review: Coldplace @ Bronx Pi Sahne
Let me set the scene: it's a summer night in 2000 and I'm inside my first car. I approach a traffic light while listening...
Backstage with the Producers of Beauty and the Beast
The Zorlu Center PSM has done it again. Building on last season's Cats and Notre Dame de Paris, they have kicked off the 2014-2015 season...
FotoIstanbul: Art on the Streets
Istanbul is a city brimming with creative people and galleries heralding their work, showing off its art and photography collection inside white walls.
Now, the...
Letters from Istanbul: Surrogate Lives
They were three sisters and they had all grown up together in a small town in the south of Turkey. The oldest, and the...
Letters from Istanbul: The Journey of a Tissue Pack
In the city of Istanbul many poor old women sell packets of tissue in the streets, mostly to passing motorists and the people sitting...
In Conversation with Filmmaker Serhat Karaaslan (Part 2)
Serhat Karaaslan, the filmmaker behind the short films, Bisiqlet and Musa, tells us more about his experience as a film-maker in Turkey. His most recent short...
In Conversation with Filmmaker Serhat Karaaslan (Part 1)
Sampling several pieces of work from an artist can give one insight into his or her philosophy. I’ve recently had the opportunity to perform...
Letters from Istanbul: The Sum of Our Travels
The other day I was having lunch at Café Nero with one of the new teachers.
She said she came from Austin. Since I grew...
Exploring the Princes’ Islands: The Kınalıada Mosque
The Princes' Islands (Adalar) are a chain of nine small islands in the Sea of Marmara, about 20 km east of the center of...