office/art museum

The red brick building in the middle of the picture of buildings in Rumeli Hisari is the destination for today.  The building sits on the European side of Istanbul, just south of the 2nd bridge.  

It is known at Perili Kosk and has a unique style of architecture.  Heading toward Bebek via ferry, the building's turret stands out on top of the building just beyond the Rumeli fortress.  

The building is the headquarters of the Borusan Holding company, Monday through Friday, and a contemporary art museum on Saturday and Sunday.  A clever use of space, indeed.  Although the building looks very heavy from the outside, the inside is very airy and light.  Large windows and glass walls between offices provide the interior with wonderful natural light.

On each level there are terraces, with spectacular views of the Bosphorus.

  The "boru" in Borusan means tube or pipe, and this was the original charter of the company, to make pipes.  Much of the contemporary artwork is made with lines, tubes, pipes - a nice connection to the company's beginnings.  Our favorite piece was a set of three jumbles of colored telephone wire suspended from a shelf.  Below the jumbles were light sources, which lit up various and changing portions of the wire.  It is hard to describe, but the Madrid based artist, Daniel Canogar, is a master of magical light.  He is also the artist featured in a special exhibit on display until April 15, 2012, titled "River of History".

No photos can be taken inside the office/art museum, but I did take a picture of the brochure photo of the board room.  The glass tube light fixture is by Keith Sonnier, and the line painted walls by Jerry Zeniuk - contemporary pipes!

This would be a wonderful place to work, as long as you don't mind clearing your desk off every Friday for the weekend museum visitors!

Death on the Balcony

This morning, we had a small freshly broken egg on the balcony.  Most likely, it belonged to a pigeon.  We have lots of pigeons in the neighborhood, which I have seen as a nuisance.  I think they are attracted to the cat food left outside for the stray cats.  During last week's snow, a number of pigeons were hanging out on our neighbor's balcony.

 Twice we have had snow for several days in a row.  Much, much more snow than last winter.  The city did put salt down on selected roads, and I never saw a snow plow or shovel.   But, back to the birds.  Since I am now feeling sorry for the new baby pigeon that will not be this spring, I pronounced the day "be nice to birds day".

 The pigeons in a tree by the Beykoz harbor today, were a pretty sight.  If you can't see them here, ...

a little bit closer, ...

 and a another little bit closer.

Seagulls are all around the Bosphorus.  Here are a few on the steps used to embark on the ferry, ...

 all pointing into the wind.

Hope you see lots of birds today!

a ferry ride

Just before heading out on my adventure for the day, I spotted a naval ship cruising down the Bosphorus.  You do not see naval ships very often.  After it was out of range, I left the apartment and took the bus to Anadolu Kavagi, the northernmost ferry stop on the Asian side.  My goal was to take the ferry from Anadolu Kavagi across the Bosphorus to Rumeli Kavagi.  This is the only Bosphorus ferry crossing that I had yet to take.  Temperatures today were forecast for the low 60's, so it seemed a good day for this excursion.

 While in Anadolu Kavagi, it was much easier to spot the castle at the top of the hill with the leaves off the trees.

 The ferry pushed off from the village of fish restaurants and fishing boats, ...

My Mom's house sold last week, and to celebrate, I brought my copy of her front door key with me and slipped it into the Bosphorus.  It can spend the rest of its life flowing back and forth between the Black Sea, just beyond the horizon line of this picture and the Sea of Marmara.

 Looking back to Anadolu Kavagi and the castle.

 And approaching Rumeli Kavagi on the European side of the Bosphorus.

 We were in about 50 feet of the ferry landing when an attendant on land shouted to us.  Evidently there were no passengers to get on the ferry, so we did not stop, but continued to the next stop, Sariyer.  That was fine with me.  I was heading there to see the exhibit of terra-cotta figures at the Sadberk Hanim museum.  No picture taking at that museum, but it is a very good one.

 After Sariyer, I bussed down to Yenikoy and after passing the cats on the pumpkin ledge, ferried back to Asia

Cengelkoy

Cengelkoy is a village on the Asian side of Istanbul.  The word "cengel" means "hook" and in this village, it represents the shape of the inlet along the Bosphorus.  

 Cengelkoy is located two villages to the north of the first bridge.  On a clear day you can easily see the outline of the historic section of old Istanbul.

 Smaller boats are harbored here, with experience needed for maneuvering the dock in the dark.

The most famous spot for tea in Cengelkoy, is under the sycamore tree.  An ancient tree with a huge trunk and supported limbs sits between a small mosque and the Bosphorus.

Team rivalries go back many years in Turkey.  In the Ottoman period, two teams competed in horsemanship - the cabbage men and the okra men.  A fountain in front of the police station shows the cabbage men support.

 Throughout Turkey, the very small Cengelkoy seedless cucumbers are the best.  I doubt many or any are grown in this congested village, but the name remains.

Cengelkoy also has a very nice bakery with their bread making processes displayed in ceramic on the store front.

 A few eateries offer the delicacy of kokorec, which is lamb intestine cooked on a rotisserie.   I have never tried it, so I cannot vouch for its taste.

 I can vouch for the almond meringue cookies, which are a tasty treat!

Fall Colors - Japanese Garden

On a sunny day this week, I decided to visit the Japanese Garden in the Bosphorus village of Baltilimani, on the European side.  From Anadolu Hisari, I jumped on the ferry heading north.

 Along the Bosphorus, there are some golden trees.

 And in the Japanese Garden, there were lots of red maples. In the spring, the garden was so full of cherry trees, that I did not expect to see so many Japanese maples.  But the garden is wonderfully designed to showcase the seasonal changes.

 After my garden visit, I walked south to the Bosphorus villages of Rumeli Hisari and Bebek and caught the ferry back to Anadolu Hisari.  As the ferry was pulling in to the landing, I spotted some red just under the hisari or fort.

Best wishes for a Happy Thanksgiving!

Baltalimani Japanese Garden

Baltalimani is a Bosphorus village of Istanbul on the European side, between Emirgan and Rumeli Hisari.  It is home to a Japanese garden. 

Shimonoseki, Japan is a sister city of Istanbul, as it also sits on a strait and has a similar look.  In November 2003,  the Japanese garden was established in honor of thirty years of friendship as a sister city.  The plants and decorative items in the garden were gifts from Shimonoseki.  This is the Kamon Strait in Shomonoseki and with a quick look, one might easily confuse it with the Bosphorus strait in Istanbul.

The grounds are laid out with Japanese ornaments, walking paths, ...

 

a pond, large rocks, ...

a little house,

and some Japanese carp flags.

I have visited a few times.  It is a pleasant quiet spot in a noisy city.  The cherry blossoms were the best in the city in May, ...

and the Japanese maples were striking also.

A lovely spot for a city respite.