Text and image by Diana Miu – As Erdoğan’s fight against secular Turkey moves forward, bans and laws on alcohol consumption are strengthened, affecting both storeowners and young people. Maçka Park, 2022. Image credit: Gökhan Tan It’s 7pm and the Maçka Park seems to be getting more crowded every minute. Friends of friends are joining, young couples are laying down their picnic blankets and opening … Continue reading Bottoms up in Maçka Park
Text by Anna Monastyrova – Photo source; Instagram, @nevsinmengu For decades several journalists in Turkey have been prosecuted as terrorists who are trying to overthrow the existing regime. But the recent “disinformation bill” submitted to the parliament signifies a new approach to the oppression of journalistic freedom of speech. We can’t help but wonder, are independent Turkish media heading for complete extinction? The original aim … Continue reading Journalist, Not Terrorist
Text and photo by Jesse Hattink – Earthquakes happen all around the world and can cause a lot of damage. There is a 70 % probability that an earthquake will hit Istanbul in the next 20 years . How does the municipality prepare for this, and is it even possible to prepare? Kandilli observatory in Istanbul monitors earthquakes all over Turkey. to do this they … Continue reading “It is not a question if it will happen, but when it will happen”
Text and photo by Nina de Groot – In Istanbul, the shopping experience is one of a kind, as most shops in the tourist areas close after midnight. In this big city in Turkey the life does not stop, and the streets of Istanbul do not sleep at night. Walking around in the streets of Besiktas in Istanbul, it is noticeable that there are a … Continue reading Shop till you drop in the Istanbul night
Text by Romy Voswijk – Photo from Instagram, @kadincinayetlernidurduracagiz As femicides are on the rise in Turkey, women in Istanbul fear for their safety. That is why the organization We Will Stop Femicide was created; to stand up for victims of abuse. However, the platform is now facing a court case for ‘conducting activities that violate laws and morals.’ Dozens of women with purple jackets and … Continue reading Are women’s rights in danger in Turkey?
Text and video by Natascha de Vries – Defne fell in love with belly dancing at a young age. She had her first dance classes in the Bijlmer neighbourhood of Amsterdam, and she has been dancing since. Now, it’s even her profession. This video shows a glimpse of the work of a belly dancer in Ista nbul. Continue reading Belly dancing through Istanbul
Text and picture by Daniël Reusink – Istanbul is dealing with a big shortage of taxis. For some inhabitants it is a daily struggle to fight, sometimes literally, for a cab. Taxis in Istanbul are a popular mode of transportation because of their flexibility to travel through the crowded city. Despite the high demand for taxis, the taxi companies and the taxi union have been … Continue reading Istanbul’s taxi shortage drives people mad
This winter, in early January 2020, I spent one day in another world. A world where one bottle cap with ice tea makes a child happy, where the toilet is the shower at the same time, and where 25 people sleep on the floor in two small rooms. I found this world in a slum in Istanbul. Text and photos by Ronny Taferner Istanbul is … Continue reading Two wonderful families, living in trash
This Metropolitan city contains of over 15 million inhabitants with a wide range of nationalities. The traditional Turkish culture blends with cultures from the many tourists that enlighten the city. What does this mean for their nightlife culture? Text and photo by Sandra Deira Özgür Erdogu (37) is a business owner in Taksim and has seen the many changes the city has been through in … Continue reading Istanbul Nightlife
Istanbul has over 1,000 mosques. If you look closely and compare them with each other, it quickly becomes clear that the vast majority follows the same model and that some characteristics are always repeated. But there are also some of the newly built ones, whose architecture is a bit daring and leaves behind the traditional construction methods of the Ottoman and the master architect Sinan. … Continue reading Building Faith
