Ortakoy

Today's tour was to Ortakoy (middle village) on the European side of Istanbul. Ortakoy is well known for its most beautiful mosque, which sits at the edge of the Bosphorus. It was built in 1855 in the neo baroque style. Within the area of a block around the mosque, is a church, and...

a synagogue. As buildings are packed tightly into a small space in Ortakoy, it was impossible to get two much less three of these buildings in the same picture. The church and the synagogue were both tightly locked up. The mosque was open, but I lacked the required long skirt and scarf to enter, so the insides of these buildings will remain a mystery.

Walking on the road parallel to the Bosphorus, you find the Kabatas Boy's School. The meaning is a bit deceiving, as the school is located in Ortakoy, not Kabatas, and since 1994, enrollment is open to girls as well as boys. The school was founded in 1908, is very prestigious high school, and I think, private.

Adjacent to the Kabatas Boy's School and in a deeper shade of yellow, is the Galatasary University. Both schools face the Bosphorus, and I don't know how any learning could take place in classrooms with such beautiful views. I, for one, would be staring out at the vessels traveling the Bosphorus day dreaming.

Now that you have seen the schools up close, you can try to find them in this picture taken from the mosque.

Last, but not least, I found the Simla Gallery in Ortakoy, which has an exhibit of Sabrina Fresko's jewelry, called "Sculptures to Wear". Sabrina's workshop is in the same building and she teaches all aspects of jewelry metalworking. Sabrina's jewelry will be on display at MOMA in New York City in May 2011, as part of their "discover Turkey" theme.

Here is a bracelet she designed and made, which was published in Time Out Istanbul, a source for finding interesting things in Istanbul.

Beginning tomorrow, I will be one of Sabrina's students, trying to create my own sculpture to wear.