Advanced Night Photography Workshop, Istanbul

The night-lights in Istiklal

The hanging shopping bags are advertising Istanbul's annual Shopping Festival

Following our night photography shoot with Cenk of Fototrek (see my blog about it here), he ran an advanced night photography class for our photography club. Whereas before we had used tripods, this class we handheld our cameras - much more demanding. Following an introductory class where Cenk talked about camera settings, and gave us a list of shots we should try, we spent an evening shooting in Taksim Square, and down Istiklal, one of the most famous avenues in Istanbul.

A Kebab chef, preparing a chicken kebab

Istiklal is such a fun street, full of shops, food vendors, street musicians, restaurants, cafes, bars, nightclubs, in fact everything you need for a night on the town! So there was plenty for us to photograph.

The beautiful, red vintage tram which runs along Istiklal

A woman admires the flowers, and flower headdresses, for sale in Taksim Square

My night-shot of Taksim Square

A roast-chestnut seller in Istiklal

A chef, in a restaurant window, with his reflection

Delightful desserts in a restaurant window

This guy was selling mussels, and gave one to this girl to try

Sandwiches, waiting for the hungry passers-by in Istiklal

A famous chocolate shop in Istiklal.

(This man looks as if he is deep in contemplation, but he is actually watching TV, 

while he waits for the next customer)

Lottery ticket salesman

We ended in the "Cicek Pasaji" or "Flower passage" a rococo style building, dating from 1876, 

famous for its restaurants, fish market and small shops.

Thanks once again, Cenk, for a great workshop!

Elizabeth Coughlan

Thousands March in Istanbul

David and Becca on the start of our day out

Sunday was a glorious day, so we decided to take Rebecca to Istiklal, the famous street for promenaders, that runs between Tünel and Taksim Square. On reaching Istiklal, we were surprised to see riot police standing by, next to a huge water canon. We thought at first it might be to do with the football match later that day, we soon found out, however, that a huge demonstration was planned for that day.

Thousands of people filled the streets. The slogan on their caps read, 

“Have your say against the Armenian lie”, and they were waving both the Turkish and Azerbaijani flags 

As we walked along the three kilometers of this long street, we were joined by thousands of people commemorating the 20th anniversary of the Khojaly Massacre, in which hundreds of ethnic Azerbaijani civilians were killed by the Armenian army. Aparently, people even travelled all the way from Azerbaijan just to take part in the march.

Although there were riot police armed and ready along the route, the march passed off peacefully and we never once felt threatened.

The Azerbaijanis waved their countries flag, but wore headbands, 

declaring that they too were Turkish

David and Becca in the middle of the demonstration

This sign says, "We are Turks", and in front are Azerbaijani veterans, 

carrying Turkish flags

Survivors of the massacre

This sign says, "We live to survive because we are Turkish".

The people marched to Taksim square, where they held a rally, 

but we decided it was time to go, so we fought our way through 

the crowds, and took the dolmuş home.

Photography Day 6: Istiklal and Taksim Square

 New lamps for old!

We came across this man selling lamps in Karaköy

No visit to Istanbul is complete without taking time to stroll down Istiklal Caddesi (Independence Street). It was once known as Grande Rue de Pera, home of foreign embassies and fashionable shops, but was renamed in 1928 to commemorate the 1923 conclusion of the Turkish War of Independence. Today, it is definitely the place to be seen, judging from the hoards of people walking up and down its almost 3km length, so it was imperative that Jerry should include this on his itinerary.

The funicular that travels from Karaköy to Istiklal Caddesi

We took the ferry from Kadiköy to Karaköy, and headed for Tünel, the funicular that would take us up the steep hill to Istiklal. Tünel opened in 1875, and is the third oldest underground system, after London and New York. It is not a long journey, as the Tunnel is only 573 metres long! Once at the top, we began our walk along Istiklal. The first thing we saw was the vintage tram, that rattles up and down between Tünel and Taksim Square, usually with a bevy of young boys hanging off the back.

The vintage tram that travels along Istiklal.

It had stopped for some reason, so people were posing 

for photographs next to it

There are always crowds, promenading up and down Istiklal

We came across this street performer...

... and a man selling Turkish ice-cream, called dondurma.

Turkish ice-cream is an acquired taste. It is made from powdered
orchid roots, milk, sugar and mastic (a tree resin),
and is rather chewy and glutinous.

We stopped off for a typical Turkish lunch. I had chicken kebab....

...followed by Aşure, also known as Noah's Pudding 

We finally reached the end of Istiklal, and came to Taksim Square, often referred to as the "symbolic heart" of Istanbul.  It is there that the Independence Monument stands, a testament to the achievements of Kemal Ataturk, founder of the present day Republic of Turkey.

One side of the monument depicts Ataturk the soldier...

...and the other side shows Ataturk the Statesman.

Of course, this is only a fraction of the photos I took that day. Istanbul is very photogenic, and I will never tire of it. I hope Jerry enjoyed the day as much as I did!

Getting Around in Istanbul

The Galata Tower

Public transport in Istanbul is one of the cheapest and best I have experienced anywhere in the world, only Buenos Aires comes anywhere near. Recently, I have been showing Sue how to get around the city on all the various types of transport. Our first venture was over to Beyoğlu, as she had read about the Galata Tower in the Lonely Planet Guide, and was keen to see the famous view over the city.

The view of the Bosphorus from the Galata Tower

We live on the Asian side of Istanbul, and as we needed to cross to the European side, we first caught a yellow dolmuş to the Kadiköy ferry docks. The word "dolmuş" means "stuffed" in Turkish, and is the name of the shared minibus taxis. They travel up and down set routes throughout the city and are a great way of getting about. They have no scheduled stops along the way, as they pick up and drop passengers on request. The drivers are always on the lookout for potential customers and often hoot as they drive along, to let people know they have room for more.

The view down to the ground from the Galata Tower

The dolmuş drivers are very adept at driving on Istanbul's busy roads, and weave in and out of the traffic at a hair-raising pace; all the while collecting fares passed to them from behind, distributing change, answering calls on their mobiles, and remembering passengers instructions as where to drop them off.

 

We saw this knife grinder sharpening a knife for the kebab shop.

From Kadiköy we took the ferry to Karaköy, on the other side of the Bosphorus. Ferries criss-cross the Bosphorus every day, and mostly manage to avoid the international shipping passing through the straight. Amazingly, there are very seldom any accidents involving ferries on this very busy waterway.

To access the ferry, I used my akbil (see left). The word "akbil" is a condensed form of the Turkish words "akıllı bilet", which means "intelligent ticket", and is so useful for travelling around Istanbul. It is a pre-paid electronic pass that can be used on ferries, buses, trams, the metro, Tünel, and the funicular. It consists of an electronic button, set on a plastic fob, that conveniently fits onto a key chain. An akbil means no waiting to buy tickets, and not only gives a 10% discount on the original fare, but for any subsequent transfers within 2 hours, the discount is 50%. There are machines to fill the akbil at all ferry ports and railway stations. It is very easy to do, and there is always someone nearby to offer assistance should you need it

 

The vintage tram that runs from Tünel to Taksim Square

Once across the Bosphorus, we headed for Tünel. This is a short funicular railway connecting Karaköy, at sea level, with Beyoğlu, 60 metres higher up a very steep hill. Tünel was built by French engineers and has been used continuously since January 1875. It was built to transport people and goods up the steep incline from the waterside in Karaköy to the embassies and residences in Beyoğlu. From the station at the top of the funicular, we walked a little way back down the hill to Galata Tower; from the top of which we had a magnificent view of Istanbul.

Istiklal is always crowded with people

We saw these mouthwatering desserts in Istiklal

After descending from the tower, we had lunch at The House restaurant, and then walked all the way up Istiklal to Taksim Square, where we caught our dolmuş home.

Sue at the top of Istiklal, by the roasted chestnuts stall.

Goodbye Dick and Marilyn

Marilyn and Dick in the Surrey with the Fringe on the Top!

Marilyn and Dick have returned home and the apartment seems empty without them. We had such fun while they were here. On Friday we took the ferry to Heybeli Island where we stayed in the, very grand, Halki Palace Hotel. The original building is thought to have been built between 1852 - 1862 and was a fine example of Ottoman architecture. Although the hotel burned down in 1991, it was completely reconstructed as an exact replica of its earlier grandeur. That evening we enjoyed a meal of mezzes and fish in one of the restaurants by the harbour before returning to our hotel to sleep enveloped in the silence of the island - such a change from the hustle and bustle of Bagdad Street!

The Halki Palace Hotel

The next day, we had planned to go to Büyükada - Big Island - but we discovered that the Prime Minister was visiting it that day and it would have been very crowded; also Marilyn wasn't feeling very well, so we opted for a tour of Heybeli instead. On Heybeli, private cars are not allowed so the only form of transport is by horse and buggy. This is a very relaxed way to travel and there isn't even noise from the horses' hooves as they are shod with rubber. That evening it was raining, so we ate in the hotel dining room - another sumptuous meal! On the way back to Istanbul on the ferry, a rather large lady decided that David should shove up and let her sit down - even though there wasn't any room. He would have stood up and offered her a seat if she hadn't actually sat on him!







After all the eating we had done over the weekend, we decided to be more active on Monday. David went back to work and Marilyn, Dick and I took a dolmuş to Kadıköy and the ferry to Emınönü. There we disembarked and walked across the Galata Bridge, took the Tünel up the hill and then walked along the three kilometres of Istiklal Caddesi (Independence Avenue) to Taksim Square (often called the heart of modern Istanbul). (See photo of old Italian Church off Istiklal.) Our ultimate objective was the military museum to see the daily show. Unfortunately the museum is closed on Mondays, so we were foiled. Dick and Marilyn will have to come back again so we can do that another time! On our crossing we were fascinated to see the cruise ship, The Queen Victoria, in harbour. It is very impressive!






Tuesday was Marilyn and Dick's last day, so we went to a must-see in Istanbul, the glorious Aya Sofya. Hilmi, our driver, snaked through the Istanbul traffic to deliver us right next to the museum. The Basilica of St. Sophia, was built by Constantine the Great and reconstructed by Justinian in the 6th century. It is an impressive building and we marvelled at how they could possibly construct it without modern tools. After admiring the mosaics and exploring the site, we left for the Grand Bazaar so Marilyn could buy some pashminas, only stopping briefly for a less than memorable lunch - the only one disappointing one in 12 days. Finally, Hilmi whisked us back to Bagdad Street in time for Marilyn and Dick to pack before going to the Mid-Point restaurant next door for a wonderful dinner - thank you Dick and Marilyn!

Cheers, until next time!

Spoons at the ready for the amazing desserts!