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Workshop Venue: Boğaziçi University




Albert Long Hall (Büyük Toplantı Salonu)

South Campus

South Campus

Kennedy Lodge

View from the Roof of Engineering Building

The workshop will be held at Bogaziçi University, 34342 Bebek, Istanbul, Turkey. Bogazici University was formally established on September 10, 1971; however, its roots extend to Robert College, which was the first American College to be established outside the boundaries of the United States, in 1863. With the transfer of the site to the Turkish government, Bogazici University became the direct heir to not only the excellent facilities of Robert College but also to its distinguished academic tradition.

Many of the University's buildings are located on its South Campus, with the Bosphorus and the historical castle of Rumelihisar as its boundary to the east. This campus encompasses the oldest buildings of the University. The North Campus, Hisar Campus and Ucaksavar Campus contain the newer additions to the University facilities. A fourth campus, on the Asiatic side of the Bosphorus, houses the historic Kandilli Observatory which is the center of a nationwide network of seismic stations and a prominent research unit of the University. The fifth campus, the Saritepe Campus, situated on the shores of the Black Sea 20 km to the northwest of the South and North campuses.

Boğaziçi University Main Campus Map

You can reach all of the buildings from the map above. The important ones are listed below, with their campuses and numbers in the map:

  • Superdorm (@Ucaksavar Campus, No:1-4)
  • Kennedy Lodge & Faculty Cafeteria (@South Campus, No:20)
  • Roof of Faculty of Engineering (Perkin's Hall) (@South Campus, No:15)
  • Computer Engineering Department (@North Campus, No:2)
  • Electrical & Electronics Engineering Department (@North Campus, No:4)
  • Student Cafeteria 1 (@North Campus, No:3)
  • Student Cafeteria 2 (@Hisar Campus, in the entrance -not numbered in the map)
  • Infirmary (@South Campus, No:19)

Links about the university:

 

 

Workshop City: Istanbul




Ortaköy Mosque and the Bosphorus Bridge

Maiden Tower

Hagia Sophia Museum

Rumeli Fortress

Skyline of Maslak

Mosques in Istanbul at dusk

Chora Church

Istiklal Road in Beyoglu

Istanbul from above

Bosphorus Bridge

Istanbul (spelled İstanbul in Turkish) is the largest city in Turkey, and was the capital city of the old Ottoman Empire until 1923. The city has been known since ancient times by the older names Byzantium and Constantinople. Being a seaport, Istanbul is the main trade center of Turkey.

Istanbul is divided in three by the north-south Bosphorus Strait (Istanbul Boğazi), the dividing line between Europe and Asia, the estuary of the Golden Horn (Haliç) bisecting the western part and the Sea of Marmara (Marmara Denizi) forming a boundary to the south. Most sights are concentrated in the old city on the peninsula of Sultanahmet, to the west of the Bosphorus between the Horn and the Sea. Across the Horn to the north are Galata, Beyoğlu and Taksim, the heart of modern Istanbul, while Üsküdar is the major district on the comparatively less-visited Asian side of the city. The Black Sea forms the northern boundary of Istanbul. The city is actually in both Europe and Asia, but its important part is in Europe. Its population is between about 14 million people, making it one of largest cities in Europe.

Its original name was Byzantion in the Greek language, known as Byzantium in the Latin language. Byzantium was originally settled as a colony by Greeks from Megara in 667 BC, and named after their king, Byzas. In 196 AD, Byzantium was damaged by the Romans, then rebuilt by the Roman Emperor Septimius Severus. Constantine the Great thought this city was in nice location, and in 330, moved the capital of the Empire from Rome to there, as New Roma, renaming the city Constantinople (Constantinopolis in the Greek language), after his name.

When the Roman Empire was later divided into two, the East Roman Empire was known as the Byzantine Empire, and had its capital in Constantinople. Although it was captured by Crusaders for a time, it continued as one of political, cultural, religious and economical centers of Europe until it finally fell to the Ottoman Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror in 1453.

Istanbul (as Constantinople) was the capital of Turkey until the founding of the Turkish Republic in 1923, when the capital was transferred to Ankara. The name "Istanbul" was adopted officially in 1930.

Although thousands of years have passed, Istanbul still maintains its geographical importance. Today Istanbul is a huge metropolis connecting continents, cultures, religions and being home to fourteen million people; and one of the greatest business and cultural center of the region.

 

Istanbul is not explorable within a month :) But there are some popular places to visit so as to say that you have been to Istanbul. Some of them are as follows;

And not to forget!

Istanbul Video Clip

 

Local Culture / Customs



Turkish Tavern (Meyhane):

An evening with rakı and meze is a must on a visit to Istanbul

The age-old meyhane culture of Turkey has lived through periods of alcohol prohibition and seen the rise of more modern restaurants and bars but still survives in selected spots around the city. Time Out Istanbul takes you to have a look at one of them, Nevizade Sokak, in the centre of Beyoğlu.

In a warm summer evening Nevizade Sokak, a narrow backstreet in Beyoğlu parallel to the area’s main street ‹stiklal Caddesi, is filled with chairs and tables and about as many people as it can take. The atmosphere is one of joie de vivre. The restaurants’ interiors are occupied by those who didn’t come early enough to get a seat outside and those who didn’t want their tables to slightly slope down at an angle similar to that of the street. The aniseed-flavoured alcohol, rakı, is consumed in large quantities. In order not to have rakı on an empty stomach you’ll find a wonderful invention, the meze which are the hors d’oeuvres that go so very well with the national drink (Turks consume about 70 million litres of rakı per year). An evening with the combination of rakı and a variety of different mezes is a Turkish experience definitely worth trying and Nevizade is one of the best places to experience it as the meyhanes, traditional bars and restaurants serving alcohol and appetisers on the street are among the most famous ones in the city.

The meyhane culture has been present in Istanbul since the latter half of the 15th century and, surviving through periods of Prohibition and gone through changes, still remains an important part of life in the city. It is said that Istanbul’s meyhanes of the late 15th century were widely known also outside the Ottoman Empire. According to Evliya Çelebi, an Ottoman a travel writer of the 17th century, there were over a thousand meyhanes in Istanbul and about 200 in the Galata area alone at the time of his travels. Other Istanbul areas where many meyhanes were found included Kumkapı, Unkapanı, Fener, Ortaköy, Kuruçeşme, Arnavutköy, Kuzguncuk, Üsküdar and Kadıköy, all of which were also neighbourhoods with large non-Muslim populations. As a general rule, in those days the owners of meyhanes were indeed non-Muslims, mainly Greeks and Armenians.

Originally the drink served in meyhanes was not rakı but wine, but later on the former started gaining popularity and in time replaced wine as the most popular meyhane drink. Rakı is distilled from different fruits in different areas, but the most commonly used one is grape. Clear in the bottle, rakı turns opaque white when water is added (as it often is). A bowl of ice is usually also brought to the table with rakı and according to many it is definitely best served very cold. The milky white colour that the drink acquires after adding water or ice gives it the nickname “lion’s milk”, aslan sütü in Turkish.

The best way to go about choosing the mezes you want is to ask to see the mezes and wait for the waiter to bring a huge tray filled with various small dishes for you to choose from. You can start with a thick slice of beyaz peynir - the ubiquitous white cheese, and kavun - honeydew melon that compliment each other deliciously. Go on to try such delicacies as marinated artichoke hearts, aubergine salad, yoghurt mixed with garlic and grated carrot, fried liver, fried pastries filled with white cheese, marinated anchovies, “balls” made of lentils, peppers stuffed with rice, pine nuts and currants… the list could truly go on forever. To take the full advantage of mezes, you should call your friends and gather a big group so that you can try as many different types of meze as possible, and definitely not have any other plans for the evening!

A term sometimes used for this type of table set with rakı and mezes is çilingir sofrası, which roughly translates to “locksmith’s dinner table”. However, legend has it that the origin of this term doesn’t actually have anything to do with locksmiths but that it comes from the word çeşnigir, used for the food tasters at Ottoman courts. The food was brought to them in small dishes resembling those in which the mezes are usually still served.

When the number of near empty dishes piling up in front of you indicates that you might have tried just about all the mezes the place has to offer, you may possibly think that it’s time to head back home. Wrong! If your stomach has any space left in it after the various rounds of cold and hot mezes, it’s time to move on to the main course. And as Nevizade is right next to the balık pazarı, the fish market, it is likely to consist of freshly caught fish. by Jarmo Liikanen

Turkish Bath

Suleymaniye Hamam

 

Useful Information About Istanbul


Banking Hours & Shopping: Banks are open weekdays from 09:00 to noon and from 13:30 to 16:30. USD and major credit cards are widely accepted. Shops are generally open from 09:00 to 19:00, Monday through Saturday. Shops are closed on Sundays. However, in Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir and resort areas, the shops and shopping malls are open daily from 10:00 to 21:00/22:00.

Tipping: Though service charges may be included in general, it is customary to show your appreciation to hotel staff, to the waiters, if you feel satisfied. We suggest the following tipping scale: Hotels staff 5 YTL, usually 10% of the bills at restaurants (you are not expected to tip more than 30-40 YTL in any case) and a round up at taxis.

Local Transportation: The possibilities are bus, boat, taxi and subway. The systems are relatively simple once you get to use it. The major destinations are Eminonu, Besiktas and Taksim. Yet, 2-3 days may be a bit short to decipher the system (unfortunately, it is not user friendly). We suggest you to take a taxi which are abundant and relatively cheap compared to Europe. The subway in Istanbul is very young and extends to a very limited area.

Buses: The ticket is for getting on the bus, and it is not linket to your destination so there is no need to explain to someone where you are going. The ticket ("otobus bileti" or simply "bilet") cannot be purchased on the bus. At sizeable bus stops, such as the ones in Bebek or Rumeli Hisarustu, there is a booth that sells bus tickets so. Often other booths which sell soft drinks and newspapers also sell bus tickets. It is convenient to buy a group of tickets so that, if you need a bus at a small bus stop, you avoid the problem of trying to find a ticket. The colors of buses are irrelevant. What is relevant is the destination sign on the front of the bus, and sign on the right side (next to the entrance door) which describes its route. These signs also have route numbers. The bus-stops usually have the location displayed on the sign. With a city map, you can follow where the bus is going by noting these signs.

From campus: Upper Road: From Rumeli Hisarustu virtually all buses go to Taksim, Besiktas or Eminonu. All of them go through Etiler and Levent. Lower, Coastal Road: This line is for either Taksim or Eminonu via Besiktas.

To campus: Upper Road: You want a bus that says Rumeli Hisarustu on the font. With a bit of experience, you will also be able to make use of buses that say Etiler or Levent. For the upper road, your destination is one stop before the end of the line. Lower, Coastal Road: Bebek is usually not the final destination of these buses. Instead, you look for Sariyer and then look to be sure that one of the stops listed on the side of the bus is Bebek. General Comments: Buses are frequently crowded. Younger males yield seats to older people as a kind of reflex. No smoking is allowed. People exit from the rear. The button to get the driver to stop at the next exit is over the door; an illuminated sign before the driver means that someone has already pushed the button.

Taxis: Taxis are plentiful in Istanbul and are inexpensive by US standards. In this regard, Istanbul is easy for newcomers. No matter where you happen to get lost or run out of steam, you are likely to find an empty taxi to take you back to familiar surroundings. All taxis use meters; be sure the driver turns the meter on. The cost is what the meter says. Drivers always recognize the major part of the city you want to go to (i.e. Taksim) and need that information in order to take you to some particular address. Returning to the campus is accomplished by asking for Etiler and then Bogazici Universty.

Boats: The boat dock is at Bebek. This is a very pleasant way to travel, less crowded during rush hour than one would expect, and also a rapid way to get downtown on a weekday morning. Weekdays there are two early morning boats which go to Eminonu. Along the way they stop at Ortakoy and Besiktas. The schedule is posted at the dock, inside the waiting room. You purchase a token from the ticket window at the dock. If the boat comes and ticket windows is closed, then a boat worker will sell you the token. Going south, the final destination is Eminonu. These boats dock at a particular landing. To return from there, study the schedule posted inside the waiting room and look for boats that return to Bebek.

It is advised to use Akbil (Smart Ticket) for buses and boats. You can buy credits for your Akbil from the Akbil office in front of the Bogazici University bus stop.

You can reach other useful information under general information link.

 

 

Istanbul's Climate


It is not possible to put into one type the climate of region where Istanbul is completely located. The city has different climate conditions from many areas of inhabitance because of its geographical location and physical geography.

Three types of climate is dominant in Istanbul throughout the year. These are north and south entering climates and mild climate. The climates dependent on west and east directional winds are trivial. The most frequent of the three is the climate observed when northern winds are dominant. There are four phases according to the seasons; cold, hot, and two transitional phases: One of which is long and the other is short.

The climate in Istanbul is predominately mild with temperatures, even in winter, never sinking below freezing. Lightweight clothes are definitely advisable in summer, as it can become quite hot. During the summer, people will not expect you to wear a jacket to formal meetings.

 

 

Turkey




Olympos Beach

Nemrut Mountain

Pamukkale

Turkey has been a bridge between East and West and the breeding ground for many diverse civilizations and cultures throughout history, from prehistoric times to the classical Greco-Roman period until the emergence of modern Turkish republic. The country has historical treasures from thirteen civilizations, including Hittite, Phrygian (King Midas), Urartu, Seleukidian, Lydian (King Croesus), Hellenic, Persian, Roman, Seljuki and Ottoman. This is where Alexander the Great cut the Gordian knot near Ankara, where the Trojan war took place, and where the oldest city in the world, Çatalhöyük, was built circa 7000 BC.

Turkey has a young and dynamic population of 65 million and is one of the 10 emerging markets in the world. She has a secular, stable, democratic and parliamentary government. Turkey has been in the western alliance for more than a half century and she is presently a possible candidate for EU.

Turkey's long coastal borders with the Mediterranean, Aegean and Black Seas and the bridges between Asia and Europe, make her the center of major commercial and migration routes. Her rich geographical structure, with mountainous areas, fertile plains, and high-altitude plateaus makes the climate varied, and provides a colorful and rich diversity of urban settlements, tourist resorts, economic activities, as well as fauna and flora.

 

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