I’m a winter baby and I love when the temperature drops so I can roam Istanbul to my heart’s content without getting too hot. It’s really lovely to experience Istanbul in winter, as Julia Bayne, business owner at Istanbul Place Apartments – offering historic apartments for short stays in Galata – knows well. You remember…
Turkey has long produced exquisite and practical objet d’art made from paper, stone and glass. Careful attention to detail and a focus on maintaining tradition, means many items are still being made using production methods dating back hundreds of years. Beautiful on their own merit, they conjure up images of distant lands where order, method…
My parents came from working class families and became middle class through a lot of hard work after winning university scholarships that lead to good jobs and comfortable incomes. However they were both born at the beginning of the Great Depression, and it marked their attitudes to money. We lived by the rule waste not…
In an effort to improve my Turkish and learn what’s going on in my neighbourhood, I regularly check out the Kadikoy Council website. That’s how I discovered their initiative, Dukkan Kadikoy Council Waste Free Shop. It sells products and foods that are long-lasting, ecologically sustainable, produced from indigenous seeds, non-poisonous and seasonal, sourced from local…
I often hear expats living Istanbul say how they wish there were libraries here where they could go and hang out , somewhere to do some writing or just seek inspiration. Here are four easy to get to libraries anyone can enter without having to be a student, a paying member or by prior arrangement….
I’m never without a book in my hand, next to my bed or in my handbag. They’re as essential to me as breathing. Wherever I travel or live, finding the nearest bookshop is high on my list of things to do, and thankfully Istanbul is well stocked. There are pasajlar (passages) on both sides of…
The internet is full of lists of top ten, eleven best or simply must buy Turkish souvenirs from your trip to Turkey. Carpets, apple tea and nazar boncuk are high on the list, but I can’t fit any more Turkish carpets in my house, apple tea is something only tourists drink and I have a…
As a young teenager I was a tomboy, so getting my first bra wasn’t something I looked forward to. When the fateful day came my mum took me to a long established Sydney department store for a proper fitting. There we were looked after by a woman with an enormous shelf-like bust. On this rested…