Tribute to Ayran: An Expat Love Story
Writing about the allure of ayran has been on my agenda for over a year now. Every time an expat informs me that they...
A Guide to Traditional Turkish Herbal Remedies
Being a proud plant mother and a witch-in-training, I couldn't find a better place to live than in Istanbul. The city thrives with spice...
In Conversation with Swedish Cultural Attaché Suzi Erşahin
As a dweller of Nişantaşı, I am lucky enough to be located in one of the centers of the Istanbul arts and cultural scene....
Watch Out: The Cross in the Golden Horn
Minarets and mosque domes, side by side with skyscrapers, dominate today's Istanbul skyline. Roaming the streets of Fatih district, one quickly forgets that for many centuries...
The Restless Art of Mohammad Zaza
Mohammad Zaza is an accidental convert to the life of a travelling artist. Born in Saudi Arabia to Syrian parents, Zaza moved to Aleppo in 2005...
The Interwoven Worlds of Yaşar Kemal and Slim Memed
Before Orhan Pamuk came to prominence in the West and launched Turkey once more into the international literary scene, Yaşar Kemal was Turkey’s best-known...
A Beginner’s Guide to Turkish Hip Hop, by Ege Çubukçu
As a follow-up to our interview with rapper and all-round nice guy of Turkish hip-hop, Ege Çubukçu, we asked him to put together a playlist for those...
20 Must-See Turkish TV Series: 2000s
While it's safe to say that Turkish TV series have always been widely popular domestically, recent years have seen a dramatic increase in the...
The Woman Married to Mount Nemrut
In late 1881, the Prussian Academy of Sciences in Berlin received a strange letter from the German Consul of Izmir, mentioning some mysterious statues...
Introducing Piri: Audio Explorations of Istanbul’s Hidden Gems
Have you heard Piri before?
It is an audio walking tour app which urges explorers to discover amazing cities. With Piri, you can explore the...
Sketching Istanbul’s Hans Part 1: Büyük Valide Han
Emilie Varlet and Gabrielle Reeves began exploring Istanbul's hans in the summer of 2014, when they first started their sketching adventures in the city. They have...
Rezan Has Museum: A Gem on the Golden Horn
The Golden Horn was of great importance during the Byzantine and Ottoman Empires. This deep, natural harbor was a strategic point to defend the...
Smoke on the Water: Istanbul’s Vapurs
With its long and colourful history, its unique geographical position, its collection of characters, cultures, and creeds, Istanbul has no shortage of laudable attributes....
Resources for Learning Kurdish in Istanbul
Maybe you’re thinking of traveling to eastern Turkey. Perhaps you want to get on better terms socially with Kurdish-speaking friends. Or maybe you just...
Turkish Coffee from Beans to Telve – A Global and Local...
Like many of history’s greatest culinary discoveries, that of coffee stemmed from a noisy, restless goat and his attendant farmer’s desire for an undisturbed...
The Şakirin Mosque
There are more than 3000 active mosques in Istanbul and, in terms of architectural style, they can generally be categorized as either Byzantine (ancient...
Beers of Turkey – Then and Now
Beer, one of the oldest alcoholic beverages known to mankind, can be very nutritional when consumed in moderation, and therefore has the well-earned name...
In Conversation with Ray Cullom, Executive Director of the Zorlu Center...
For the second part of our interview, I asked Ray about his work at Zorlu Center PSM and how the project has developed over the...
Setting of Records: Istanbul’s New Mosque
Three years ago building of a new mosque began on one of the highest hills of the city, where roosters still crow and visitors...
Aziz Nesin: Author, Humorist, Activist
At a gathering of the elite doctors of the world, speaker after speaker demonstrates a miracle of medical science. An operation able to change...
Istanbul Street Names: The Stories They Tell
Having only laid claim to most of their monikers since the declaration of the Republic, Istanbul’s street names often go unnoticed (highly due to...
Book Review: Mark Wyers’ “Wicked Istanbul”
Fun Fact: There are around 60 state-run brothels in Turkey. This may be surprising given Turkey’s reputation as a conservative, rather religious country. So,...
Turkish Customs and Etiquettes: Görücü and Kız İsteme
Back in the day, mothers with unwed sons would often be on the look out for a good single girl to wed their sons...
(PAST EVENT) Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch: Café Müller @ Zorlu PSM
The 27th Istanbul Theatre Festival hosted by IKSV proudly presents one of the most anticipated events of the year: Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch's mesmerizing...