At Atasehir

Low-cost mass housing grows out of the surrounding plains like dragons' teeth in the Asian outskirts of Istanbul.

Enormous apartment complexes such as these ones in Atasehir house more than a hundred thousand people each. Such mini-cities usually come complete with their own shopping malls, schools, post offices, etc. This way, you can live in Istanbul without ever needing to see the Bosphorus.

...and they are still building more and more. Perhaps not the best sight in the world, but then again how are you going to acommodate a population of seventeen million people?!

High and Dry

A skill in joint-wrapping is essential if you want to impress indie girls in the back alleys of Taksim.

Faded Glories

An old, wooden mansion in Kadikoy is decaying in neglect.

Superimposed Ads

This combination of overlaid ads and decaying paint has unintentionally turned the facade of this old building into a work of Pop Art.

Sculptures from the Depth of Time

It might appear that this statue is a Giacometti or a Moore, but it is actually five thousand years old. Built by the mysterious Cycladic civilization in the early bronze age, thousands of such idols litter archaeological deposits in the western Aegean and Cyprus. They are thought to be ceremonial in purpose, perhaps for burials, but nothing is certain.

Most Cycladic sculptures are uniform, having similar humanoid shapes and proportions. But this one, with a frikkin' snake's head is an exception; a puzzle in an already puzzling realm. What did it represent? A snake-god? A demon? A one-off flight of fancy? We can never know. Both are from the excellent Museum of Cycladic Art in Athens.

Heavy Machinery

Massive cranes unload a shipment of excavators on the docks of Haydarpasa. These docks have become the focus of a recent debate involving an urban renewal project that planned building huge, ugly skyscrapers over the area.

Jam-Packed

Are these people trying to get into a jam-packed techno club? Nope, this is one of the ubiquitous mini-buses that you can see all over Istanbul.

A House Centipede

Just look at those stripes! I saw this house centipede (Scutigera coleoptrata) on the pavement two days ago. These centipedes, unlike their mostly blind, fossorial cousins, have well developed eyes and long legs that enable them to run and climb with ease.

They start life with eight legs and gain new leg pairs every time they shed their exoskeleton, so I'm guessing that it must have had four or five molts. It must also be leading a life of adventure and danger, since some of its legs have been broken off at the hands of unknown predators.

At the German Hospital

The German Hospital in Taksim was built in 1852, when the German Empire was pursuing its Middle-Eastern ambitions by pimping the Ottomans big time. (See my previous post on the Haydarpasa station in Kadikoy)

Having once been charged the equivalent of €100 for two measly stitches on my forehead, I can readily attest that the "pimping" is still going on in this hospital.

"Zula"

Yet another "vintage boutique" in Cihangir that sells useless shit you don't need and can't afford.

Emo Turco

Two Angry Turkish emo-girls...

...and the object of their affections, a skater boi. From Besiktas square, home to skaters and punks of all ages. The tomb of the notorious Turkish pirate Hayreddin Barbarossa is also located here.