April is one of the best months to visit Istanbul with full of surprises. The weather can be uncertain, but from the flowers around, you will feel the spring has arrived.

1 – 29th Istanbul International Film Festival

This year it will be held between 3-18 April  and we will start to wait for the ticket queues, spend time at cafes around theaters and try to catch the ferry to catch the film on different side of Europe or Asia; in any case we will enjoy our days very much by this festival. Tickets are available through internet by biletix and at the theaters in Beyoğlu and Kadikoy. 

2 – David Guetta concert on 10th of April

Grammy awarded music star David Guetta is coming to Istanbul for a great concert which will be held at Kücükciftlik Park at Maçka and we are ready to sing the ” I got a feeling” under the stars. (Hopefully if it doesn’t rain!).

3 -  23rd of April National Sovereignty and Children’s day

Another unique event in Turkey & Istanbul. It is a national holiday gifted to children by the founder of Turkish Republic – Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. Different ceremonies throughout Turkey are held and also many children from other countries join these ceremonies.

4 -  WWE Smackdown show

This is the first time we welcome the wrestlers in İstanbul. They will be in Istanbul as per Wrestle Mania Revenge Tour on 18th of April at Abdi İpekçi sports center, if you are interested you need to hurry up, tickets are available at
biletix

Known as one of the best live performance stage, Babylon has an extensive program in December with worldwide known artists. You can see the whole program of Babylon here.

1 – Delinquent Habits
Delinquent Habits made it to the top of Latin-Hip Hop in the latter half of the 90’s. Their debut “Delinquent Habits” combined Hip Hop beats with Funk trumpets and sold over 1 million copies and has achieved “hip hop classic” status the success. Their new album “The Common Man” is more critical and harsh but the hot groove and the catchy lyrics make it clear: Delinquent Habits knows how to party.

Warm-up & After Party with DJake
Standing 30TL, Students 20TL, December 4th 22.00

2 – Nigel Kennedy Quintet ” Jimi Hendrix Experience”
Music world’s rebel souled punk artists Nigel Kennedy is performing at Babylon for three nights! Accepted as one of the best living violinists, Kennedy commemorates Jimmy Hendrix songs with his last project. His “Vivaldi The Four Seasons” album which was realeased in 1989, sold over two million records and took place in Guiness Record book. Performed with The Who, commemorated The Doors and Jimi Hendrix, don’t miss this unique classic performance!

Standing 60 TL Student 50 TL Table 90 TL, Dec 9th 21.30, Dec 10th 21.30, Dec 11th 23.00

3 – SMADJ featuring Erik Truffaz & Talvin Singh “Selin”
Fusion expert, lute player & electronic music producer Smadj released his new album “Selin” where he will perform with trompet master Erik Truffaz and Talvin Singh. The album reflects Smadj’s impression of Istanbul. Hear the new songs from Smadj with Truffaz and Singh at Babylon.

Standing 25 TL Student 15 TL, Dec 17th 21.30

4 – İlhan Erşahin’s İstanbul Sessions featuring Erik Truffaz
İlhan Erşahin’s Istanbul Sessions project, which is going to be released soon, makes a quick entry to 2009/2010 season. World wide known musical identity “İlhan Erşahin” with his style created by saxophone and Rhodes, enriched with groovy bass of Alp Ersönmez and accompanied by drums of Turgut Alp and agile rhythms of İzzet Kızıl, will be will be performing with surprising guests at Babylon such as Erik Truffaz.

Standing 35 TL Student 25 TL, Dec 18th 21.00 and 00.00, Dec 19th 21.00 and 00.00

1 – Balad

Poet says ‘ If İstanbul is a mermaid than Balat will be her smile ’. It has cute narrow streets which ends to Golden horn with beautiful wooden old houses. People from different cultures and religions are mixed for centuries (Jewish, Armenian, Greek, Muslim) in Balat that you will also find many small churches next to small mosques and we guarantee that you will shoot many nice photos if you walk through in this nice neighborhood.

2 – Kuzguncuk

Another old Istanbul neighborhood located at the Asian side on the shore, it is not easy to reach there from the city center but it is worth it. Kuzguncuk is a calm place with its cats and very friendly residents; nice smell of the sea will be mixed with nice smell of fresh bakeries. If you get tired to walk around the old houses, you can have a cup of coffee at Sitare, very comfortable cafe with nostalgic decoration and delicious tastes.

3 – Samatya

Here is another historical neighborhood located very close to the old city. Many years Jewish, Armenian and Turkish people lived together in Samatya where as now most of them moved to other parts of Istanbul but outstanding churches are still standing with all their memories. It has also very nice small Bazaar at the center that you can enjoy a whole day watching people around.

** Samatya picture from ” a cup of caffein blog”

4 – Beyoglu ; 

Here we are again back to Beyoglu very popular pedestrian street close to the Taksim square, if you need a shooting that includes all colors this is the place you are looking for. You will find detailed information about Beyoglu if you click on “Beyoglu” tag below.

Here in Istanbul autumn is back and we are ready to welcome the autumn film festival between October 17 -25. This year festival is extended to include two weekends because of its success last year with 33,500 viewers and a capacity of 99 %. 

Emek Movie Theater hosts the festival and if you have not bought your ticket earlier, you should be at Emek, at least half an hour before the film and wait for the “reserved tickets” to be sold at the last minute.

We tried to give some tips about this year’s program as below; you can check the whole program here.

 1 – White Ribbon / Michael Haneke

One of the hit films of this festival is White Ribbon from Michael Haneke with three awards. This dark film focuses on a rural German school in 1913, which seems to be the sight of ritual punishment. If you are a fan of Haneke you must not miss this masterpiece. Imdb note is 8,3 /10

2 -  Che Part One – Che Part Two / Steve Soderbergh

Another film with three awards and 8 nominations, produced in 7 years with partnerships of Benici Del Torro and Steven Soderbergh. Interesting life story of Che has two sessions; part one named ‘ The Argentine’ and part two is ‘ Guerrilla ‘. Imdb note is 7,4 /10.

3 – Whatever Works / Woody Allen

Latest film of Woody Allen, at last he came back to New York streets. An eccentric New Yorker played by Larry David abandons his upper class life to lead a more bohemian existence. He meets a young girl from the south and her family and no two people seem to get along in the entanglements that follow. Imdb note is 7,7 /10

4 – Don’t look back / Marina de Van

A psychodrama about a photographer whose pictures tell a different story to that of her perception from two great actresses Sophie Marceau and Monica Bellucci.

These are just the highlights; there are many other hit films in this festival. You can buy tickets from biletix on Internet or from Emek movie theater in Beyoğlu. Ticket sales had started on 3rd of October that you may not find tickets for some of the popular films, don’t worry keep in mind that if you wait at the queue, half an hour before the scheduled time of your film, you can buy a ticket.

In Istanbul you will find many interesting museums that can be proven by the many cultures welcomed through out the century  like Greeks, Romans and many other Anatolian civilizations. Even you do not have so much time to spend in İstanbul we strongly suggest to visit at least one or two of below museums to explore this fantastic city.

 1  – Archeological Museum

It is very close to the Topkapı palace, it has three main sections which are 

a) Archeological Museum 

b) Museum of the Ancient Orient

c) Museum of Islamic Art

Over one million objects are exhibited from all of the eras and civilizations in world history such as Egyptian, Assyrian, Roman and Byzantian.  The rich collcetion of Ancient art are brought from different sites of Anatolia.

Open daily between 09:30-16:30 except Mondays.

Tel: (212) 520 77 40 and 41

2 – Dolmabahce Palace Museum

This Neo-Baroque style palace previously used as summerpalace of Ottoman Empirement. Turkish Republic’s founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk  had also spent last days of his life  in this marvellous palace. It is very close to the city center but you need to get an appointment at the entrance that  it is not allowed to be visited by yourselves, you can enter only with a group. It may take more than 3 hours to see all the rooms adorned with rich decorations, such as the world’s largest Bohemian crystal chandelier at the center hall. The chandelier has 750 lamps and its weight is 4.5 tons.

Open Daily 09:00 – 16:00 except Mondays, Thursdays

Tel : (212) 236 90 00/ 1359

3 – İstanbul Museum of Modern Art

 Another museum just next to the shore at Karaköy port, it was opened in 2004. At the first floor you can find the permanent collection which changes annually. Downstairs there are gallery houses, three to four temporary exhibitions are presented annually. These include a retrospective exhibition, a survey of Turkish modern art and an exhibition of global contemporary art. When you planned a second visit, you will not see only familiar favorites  but also discover new and exciting works of art. It has also a restaurant overlooking the Marmara Sea.

Open daily between 10:00 – 18:00 , on Thursdays 10:00 – 20:00 except Mondays 

Tel : (212) 334 73 00

4 – Museum of Turkish and Islamic Art

Located in the old city at Ibrahim Pasa Palace, the palace contains a famous collection of carpets, wooden works, stone art section, metal art section and etnography section. It is possible to see the stages of Early – Islamic Period ceramic art and the glass collection starts with the 9th century. This valuable Islamic glass samples include the 15th century Memluk candles and Ottoman period glass art samples.

Open daily between 09:30-17:00 except Mondays.

Tel: (212) 518 18 05 and 06

During the International Istanbul Biennial, many exhibitions are run parallel to the biennial all around Istanbul. Here are the highlights of them:

1 – Joseph Beuys at Sabanci

Sabanci University – Sakip Sabanci Museum hosts an exhibition called “Joseph Beuys and his Students – Selections from Deutsche Bank Collection”. The exhibition of one of the most important figures in German Art will be open for visit till November 1st. The exhibition shows some videos from his important performances and some of his patterns. The important aspect of this exhibition is that, works of Beuys’ student painters such as Anselm Kifere, Imi Giese, Jörg Immendorff, Inge Mahn are also brought here.

Click here for the location of the museum.

2 – Sarkis at Istanbul Modern

An important figure in Turkish Modern Art – Sarkis’ biggest exhibition held in his own town. It’s the first exhibition of a “living artist” held in Istanbul Modern. The name of the exhibition is “The Site” and lasts till 10th of January 2010. The exhibition holds big photographs, objects and installations of Sarkis’ half of a century old art life.

Click here for the location of the museum.

3 – 500 Yüksel Arslan Paintings

One of the most interesting figures in Turkish Art, Yuksel Arslan who has been living in Paris for a long time opened his most comprehensive gallery in Turkey. Arslan is mostly known for the series of “Kapital” inspiring from the book of Karl Marx, and five of the paintings from this series will be among the collection till March 21st of 2010.

Click here for the location of the gallery.

4 – One Shot Istanbul

Photography artist Alexander Berg will be exhibiting the portraits of Istanbul citizens on the walls of Taksim Metro. Alexander Berg’s “One Shot Istanbul” photography exhibition can be visited at the floor of moving walkways in Taksim Metro till October 25th.

Considered as one of the most prestigious biennials alongside Venice, Sao Paolo and Sydney, the International İstanbul Biennial aims to create a meeting point in İstanbul in the field of visual arts between artists from diverse cultures and the audience. The 11th International İstanbul Biennial takes its title from the song ‘Denn wovon lebt der Mensch?’ translated into English as ‘What Keeps Mankind Alive?’

The biennial is spread into different venues and will be open for visit till November 8th: Antrepo No.3 and Tobacco Warehouse at Tophane and Ferikoy Greek School at Sisli. Click here for their addresses.

1 – The Route

It’s better to start your visit at Antrepo, so that you would see most of the exhibition before getting exhausted. Keep in mind that, total length of the videos at the biennial are about 20 hours!

2 – The Shuttle

After Antrepo, you can see the works at Tobacco Warehouse, then walk back and take the free shuttle from Antrepo to Ferikoy Greek School. The shuttles depart every hour in weekdays and every half an hour in weekends.

3 – The Guide

Buy a guidebook from the box office and use the map to make an efficient visit.

Pay 10 TL and join guided tours at 11.00, 13.30, 15.00, 16.30 everyday.

4 – The Artists

These artists are highlighted by Radikal Newspaper, Turkey:

Jumana Emil Abboud, Rena Effendi, Vyacheslav Akhunov, Hans-Peter Feldmann, Aydan Murtezaoğlu-Bülent Şangar, KP Brehmer, Yüksel Arslan, Jesse Jones, Mohammed Ossama, Sanja Ivekovic, Cengiz Çekil, Ne Yapmalı?, Artur Zmijewski, Canan Şenol.

The island’s name means saddle bag in Turkish, deriving it from the two hilltops that embrace the lower harbours, though the Greeks called the island Chalki.

1 – Visit Halki Seminary:
Dating from 1844, it was the main school of theology of the Eastern Orthodox Church’s Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. It’s on the top of a hill covered with pines; and the harmony of the dark green and dark blue adds to the beauty of this old seminary. You can visit the monastry except on Sundays. Reservation: 0216 351 85 63 – 0216 351 84 17.

2 – Have a breakfast at Halki Palas:
It’s the oldest and the most glamorous hotel in Princess Islands dating back to 1850s, renovated after a fire in 1991. The hotel rooms have a wonderful view, it’s a good weekend break for Istanbul residents. If you are on a daily visit to the island breakfast at this hotel is highly recommended. You can also enjoy the swimming pool from June to the end of August.
Check their website here.

3 – Eat at a fish restaurant in the marina:
There are many restaurants close to the marina with good service quality and delicous food, especially fish with the combination of beautiful mezes and raki.

4 – Relax at Değirmenburnu:
It’s a picnic area with a broad view of Anatolian coast of Istanbul and other Princess Islands with a walking distance of 5 mins from the marina. A bottle of beer at the sunset would be a highlight for your Heybeliada visit.

1 – Burç Beach:

Originally as a private facility of Boğaziçi University for the graduates, Burch Beach does not strictly require this university’s IDs. If you’re not permitted ask for Dalia Beach which is also in Kilyos. The sea is usually rough, and this offers a great fun; you should do “body surfing”on the waves. International kiteboard championships are held here, and if you stay till sunset, you will have the chance to bump into some concerts or festivals like “Electronica Festival” held in July for 2 days.

2 – Altınkum (Golden Sand):

Being a cooling facility for Istanbul residents from 1930s, this beach is now run by a private enterprise. On weekdays it’s open for only women, so, on some weekends it’s likely to be overcrowded, so try to get there as early as possible. There’s a decent cafe in the facility, but you should also consider one of the fish restraurants by the seaside from the beach to Rumeli Kavagi.

(0212) 325 55 83

Marmaracik Koyu, Rumelifeneri

3 – SuADA:

If you want to swim in the middle of Bosphorus on a floating swimming pool, Suada is the matchless option. Suada is a floating club in the middle of Bosphorus with a splendid 360 degrees İstanbul view.  The restaurants and the bars on the facility are of good quality; the music gets louder in the late hours of the noon.

Click here for the info about location. 

4 – Kamos Beach Club – Kınalıada:

Princess Islands offer many beaches to İstanbul residents, and Kamos could be a good alternative, because the facilty has also a swimming pool apart from the beach. It’s on a very quiet bay surrounded by green trees on the back part of the island; the nature is beautiful and relaxing.

Kamos is in Kinaliada – in one of the Prince’s Islands, you can get there by ferries departing from Bostanci or Kabataş.

In movie theaters, most of the films are screened in original language with Turkish subtitles. Some popular films may need early reservation especially for their first screening days.

There are three major film festivals in Istanbul – the most traditional one is “Istanbul International Film Festival” (first two weeks of April); the other two are “If Istanbul” (in mid February) and “Filmekimi” (in mid October). Most of the Beyoglu theaters host the films during the festivals; and it’s highly recommended to watch the exceptional movies there.

1 – Istinye AFM Park Imax:
One of the newest movie theater complex in Istanbul in Istinye Park Mall with Imax technology. Click here for info about Istinye Park Mall.

2 – Kanyon Levent Cinebonus:
Another modern movie theater complex in Kanyon Mall. Click here for info about Kanyon Mall.

3 – Beyoğlu Emek:
The nostalgic temple of film festivals also offering seats in the balcony. It’s on Yeşilçam Street which is on the right of Istiklal Street before Galatasaray when you walk from Taksim.

4 – Rexx Kadıköy:
It’s one of the most crowded meeting spots in Kadıköy for Anatolian side residents, very close to the “street of bars”. The newly renovated theater no.1 can be recommended. Adress: Sakizgulu Street No.22.