Posts about Istanbul
Information on Istanbul from the staff of Context Travel.
We are sitting in a small cafe, in one of Istanbul’s rapidly gentrifying neighborhoods: Tophane. Here you are in the center of a rapidly changing art scene, with local artists creating a cultural bridge between East and West.
As the recent article in the NYTimes noted, the art scene is expanding (perhaps ready to explode). Why is this happening here and how is it affecting the area? We recently met with Nihad Akyol of TRCollector’s Club and art historian Suzan Kalayci to get an insider’s view on this interesting rebirth. Read more »
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May 18th, 2012 under Art, Istanbul, Uncategorized.
Istanbul is a city of all seasons and colors, but spring adorns the city with tulips and redbuds as a rich color palette.
Tulips are the prominent symbol of Istanbul and celebrated with a festival throughout April. Redbuds follow tulips in early may, delighting the eyes along the Bosphorus.
Tulips journey starts from Central Asia. Seljukian Turks introduce tulips to Anatolia in the early 12th century and Ottoman Sultans cherish the tulips with pointed petals as “Ottoman Tulip” in the Imperial Gardens of their palaces in Istanbul. Tulips were the symbols of status and wealth, as rare tulip bulbs were sold for high prices, often reaching the equivalent of today’s $80.000. Tulip has even acquired a religious significance due to its name’s resemblance to the name of “Allah”, the God, and “Hilal”, the Crescent. The foreign name has derived from the Turkish word of “tülbent”, gauze or muslin, or “turban” so called from the fancied resemblance of the flower to a turban.
Ottoman Sultans since Suleyman the Magnificent (1520-1566) adorned the palace gardens with tulips and wore kaftans with tulip motifs. Tiles, porcelains were produced primarily for the palaces with various tulip designs. Tulips were frequently used in Ottoman literature and songs. An ambassador to Istanbul who was struck with the abundance of tulips in the city and took some bulbs with him back to Europe, there he offered these tulip bulbs as a gift to his friend botanist Carolus Clusius. He developed many varieties and began to grow tulips in the Netherlands in 1594.
However, the tulip craze continued in the Imperial capital. “Tulip Period” Ottoman court poet Nedim, describes Istanbul and palace gardens full of joy and “beautiful people” in his poems where he frequently uses tulips in his poetry. The name of the “ Tulip Period” (1718-1730) derives from the abundance of tulips in Ottoman court life during the time of peace after many years of military conflicts. Ottomans were inspired from the Western court life and adopted a “festive” lifestyle.
Istanbul’s tulips are brought back by “Tulip Festival” during the month of April with 11.5 million tulips decorating the streets and parks of Istanbul. Apart from tulips, 4 million other flowers have been planted across İstanbul, including hyacinths and narcissuses.
The festival events will be spread throughout Istanbul with photography contests, exhibitions, concerts in Emirgan Park, Sultanahmet Square, Camlica Park, Hidiv Kasri (Khediv Pavilion) in Cubuklu.
As weather warms up by the end of April, tulips leave the scene and redbuds start to bloom filling the hills along the Bosphorus strait. No other flower or tree befits Bosphorus more than redbuds. Known as “Erguvan” in Turkish, redbuds are very much associated with Istanbul and Bosphorus. The purple color of redbud flowers was the royal color of both the Byzantine Emperors and Ottoman Sultans.
Spring is the best time to enjoy a glass of black Turkish tea in a traditional “tulip-shaped” tea glass under the “erguvan” trees alongthe Bosphorus.
As poet says: “Come when the redbuds bloom…”
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April 13th, 2012 under Istanbul, Special Events, Uncategorized.
Last weekend, Park Hyatt Macka Palace Istanbul Hotel hosted the Masters of Food and Wine event with the theme of “Byzantium and Food”. Context Travel culinary docent and renowned food writer, Aylin Oney Tan has worked together with Park Hyatt Istanbul’s creative chef Julien Piguet on designing the menu for a Byzantine inspired dinner.
Carefully selected ingredients based on research and historical evidence were brought together to create a rich menu and an Imperial atmosphere at the Prime Restaurant of Park Hyatt Istanbul. Aylin’s explanations throughout the dinner, brought to life the flavors and traditions of Byzantine Empire accompanied by selected local wine made of local grape varieties to match the courses.
We asked Aylin and Julien about this unique Byzantium meal they put together:
CONTEXT : Do we know any recipes from the extravagant tables of the Empires or the daily meals of locals of Constantinople?
AYLIN : We do not have exact recipes, but we have an idea on what was eaten, and about most praised ingredients. We also know a great deal on health-food relation and seasonal products.
CONTEXT : How was your market tour? What ingredients are the living descendants of the Byzantine cuisine and can still be found in Istanbul?
JULIEN : It was a great experience for me. I went to the market before obviously, but for the first time I had somebody to explain me the history of those specific products, Aylin was a great teacher, and so this tour was really interesting and tasty.
AYLIN : It is really exciting to see that many traditions still survive in contemporary Istanbul cuisine. Green olives in brine, cured bonito, waxed fish eggs, examples are endless. Julien did a great job combining exquisite spices like saffron, humble food like chickpeas and seafood of Bosphorus creating sublime recipes.
CONTEXT : How did you decide on the courses preparing this menu?
AYLIN: I read a great deal about the period. Andrew Dalby’s book, “Flavours of Byzantium” was always at our hand. Purple is the color of Byzantine and we gave an importance to every detail with a touch of purple. Table setting had a touch of purple, salt cellars were of purple mussel shells, I was dressed in purple, there was a purple coloured ingredient in every single dish.
JULIEN :Aylin gave me the list of ingredients, the details and the history of the Byzantine Cuisine and then I created a menu, we exchanged ideas, she was correcting if certain products should not be included and finally I gave a personal touch to design the dishes in a bit modern style whlie keeping the correct taste and ingredients.
CONTEXT : How can you describe the whole experience?
JULIEN :Very interesting and exciting, waiting for the next dinner!
AYLIN : A very tasty way of understanding the history and continuity!
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April 5th, 2012 under Food and Wine, History, Istanbul, Special Events.
In the past four months I was fortunate enough to visit seven different countries and meet lots of lovely people. Along with business meetings and cultural visits, I also got a chance to try some spectacular food. Here is a brief summary of my favorite meals and snacks: Read more »
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March 27th, 2012 under Athens, Barcelona, Berlin, City Life, Food and Wine, Istanbul, Madrid, Paris.
Maybe you’ve already had a day in Istanbul during a cruise, or only visited the highlights in a hurry. Either way, it’s high time to return to this, vibrant, bustling city caught between Europe and Asia—for at least 36 hours. Don’t leave without seeing the Byzantine masterpiece of the Hagia Sophia and the historical city within the walls, but also don’t leave without exploring for something more. Here are our suggestions:
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March 12th, 2012 under Art, City Life, Culture, Food and Wine, Istanbul, Shopping.
New symbol for Turkish Lira
March 1st was an exciting day for all of us in Turkey as we watched the Prime Minister, R.T. Erdogan, announce a new symbol for the Turkish Lira on prime time television. Until now, the Lira didn’t have a symbol of its own. We merely used the letters TL to represent the currency. But Turkey is growing and expanding, not only politically as a regional power, but economically as an international power. So, the Central Bank of Turkey decided to create a symbol to increase the currency’s popularity and bolster its credibility.
To choose the new symbol for the Lira, the Bank ran an open contest. Over 8000 people applied, with only 7 making the final round. The winning design is from Tulay Lale, a female engineer. Her design resembles an anchor and it is easy to remember. Central Bank has also launched a website to download the new symbol to computers and mobile devices.
Currently there is no key command in either Windows or Mac for inserting this symbol while you type. But, we assume one will be forthcoming in a new system update.
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March 1st, 2012 under Istanbul, Uncategorized.
Last summer we had a client approach us with a new idea. She was spending nearly a month in Paris with her children and had heard about our Family Program of walks designed for kids and led by museum educators. We normally think of these as tours—one-off experiences that families enjoy during a visit. But what if, this client asked, she string together many of these—including a number of customized walks—into a kind of immersive, cultural summer camp. Wow, we thought, what a great idea. Read more »
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February 14th, 2012 under Athens, Barcelona, Berlin, Boston, Context Travel, Culture, Family Travel, Florence, Istanbul, London, Madrid, Naples, New York, Paris, Rome, Venice, Washington.
At Context, our philosophy has always been about promoting and protecting the cultural heritage in each of the cities in which we operate. This heritage most familiarly comes in the form of monumental sites such as the Colosseum or iconic topics such Gothic architecture in Paris. But it also exists in smaller, sometimes more interesting, off the beaten path sites such as the Croton Aqueduct in New York or topics such as Thomas Jefferson’s time in Paris. Very often, however, these less well known aspects of a city’s heritage can be overlooked by enthusiastic visitors and busy locals.
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January 31st, 2012 under Athens, Barcelona, Berlin, Boston, Context Foundation, Culture, Edinburgh, Florence, Istanbul, London, Madrid, Naples, New York, Paris, Philadelphia, Rome, Venice, Washington.
Colorful lights decorating Istiklal Street starting from December are the first signs of a joyful holiday period in Istanbul. As majority of the population being Muslims, Christmas is not an official holiday, however, you can feel its spirit until New Year’s Eve which is a major celebration for locals. All sizes of Santa Claus toys, decorations, Christmas trees are sold in the shops and markets of Istanbul. 200 years old confectioneries such as Sekerci Cafer Erol, fill their windows with colorful candies, Turkish delights of many flavors and snowflake decorations. You will not miss “Jingle Bells” tune if you turn on the radio or walk into a modern shopping mall where a huge Christmas tree is placed and decorated in its center. Interestingly enough, you may run into Santa Claus selling New Year’s lottery tickets. Read more »
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November 22nd, 2011 under City Life, Culture, Food and Wine, Istanbul.
Istanbul is abuzz with dozens of new galleries and yearly art shows, like the Istanbul Biennale, which just finished (November 13). Following in its footsteps, currently, is Contemporary Istanbul, an exciting contemporary art exhibition that focuses on the interface between the orient and the occident and underscores Istanbul’s growing sophistication. In its 6th year, Contemporary istanbul picks up where the Biennale leaves off and aims to make the art scene in Istanbul a more thorough experience. Read more »
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November 17th, 2011 under Art, Culture, Istanbul.
