Istanbul Metblogs » Idil Jans

Istanbulian and Turkish blogger protests

Idil Jans — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 22:03:20 +0000

After the ban of many a video streaming websites by the Turkish government, bloggers decided to take the matter into their own hands by protesting the Chinese style censorship going on. We were getting used to the void left by YouTube when suddenly, Dailymotion, another video streaming website got banned also.

You can find more information on the ban on this website. Show us your support by leaving a comment and having a whinge with us about the whole situation :)

Terror in Uskudar II

Idil Jans — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 07:41:38 +0000

Here are the first visuals from the attack scene.

Terror In Uskudar

Idil Jans — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 07:32:14 +0000

Three hand grenades were thrown at the building of the municipality of Uskudar, in Istanbul. 1 person has been injured from there knee following the attack and two people, 1 of them being a woman, escaped on a motorcycle and are being hunted down.

Is this going to be a weekly occurance? Are we not going to be safe any more? There is total ground for paranoia.

Istanbul bomb blasts – Gungoren

Idil Jans — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 08:04:23 +0000

Last night two bombs went off in the area of Gungoren – killing 17 and injuring 154. Two RDX bombs went off at 15 minutes interval, the first was a smaller explosion aimed at getting people to flock towards the sound of the bomb to see if they could help incase anyone was injured and the second set off 15 minutes later, with a bigger blast, turning the area into a warzone. The PKK are obviously the first group that come to mind in case of terror attacks but lets not forget El Kaide , who attacked the American embassy in Istanbul not long ago.

This isn’t the first and it will unfortunately certainly not be the last terror attack against Istanbul, we’re all like sitting ducks provided security measures are not increased.

Ant Oracle

Idil Jans — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 09:51:36 +0000

We unfortunately all know by now that Istanbul is expecting a devastating earthquake which is apparently going to be its downfall. Ever since news of this prediction is out, scientifics and nerds all have been trying to figure out the exact when and where of this 7.0 earthquake that is going to bring Istanbul down to its knees. One of these people, Kadir Sutcu, who isn’t an expert on the matter, claims that he can predict when the EQ will hit by studying the habits and irregularities of the two ant colonies that he is keeping at home. He successfully predicted an earthquake a week ago and sent thousands of mails out to people to warn them before it hit. He claims that ants start acting distressed and that a lot of them start dieing 24 hours before the earthquakes hit. You can follow his work through his website; dkos and subscribe to his mailing list if you believe his theory that ants might be able to predict and save lives. At this point, I’m thinking that it can’t hurt.

Summer Comes a-knockin’!

Idil Jans — Wed, 28 May 2008 10:18:12 +0000

I’ve been back in Istanbul for one week now and god knows how I’ve missed it so.

My first weekend back was spent shopping and since the weather was so gorgeous, we decided to indulge ourselves with a boat tour. If you don’t already know, there are boat tours of the Bosphorus that leave every day from Ortakoy (where we boarded) and Eminonu. The sights are truly magnificent, especially during the warm weathers so it is highly recommended that you drop whatever it is you are currently doing and hop on to a boat to enjoy the Bosphorus like it should be enjoyed.

Bombing attempt in Kadikoy

Idil Jans — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 11:57:04 +0000

A bomb was placed infront of a McDonalds in Kadikoy near Kazasker but didn’t detonate. It seems that there was a problem with the wiring and the cellphone it was attached to.
I wonder when we’ll be allowed to feel safe again.

Short relocation

Idil Jans — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 11:53:23 +0000

I have unfortunately been in Berlin for the past two months which makes me appreciate my home town so much more.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure to some, Berlin is a great place to be. But there is no sun. There is no Bosphorus. There is no warmth. Istanbul is so addictive that I’m having massive withdrawls. I can’t wait to go back. Hopefully I should be back home sooner than later.

Enjoy the new, don’t forget the old.

Idil Jans — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 11:31:10 +0000

Have you noticed?

You must’ve.

I mean, it’s so pretty and obvious..

We’ve been painted over and now sport a funky new Metblogs Istanbul site!

Please register through the link on the side bar if you wish to comment, it only takes a couple of seconds and will make me so happy. Really.

Check out the neighbours

Idil Jans — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 08:10:38 +0000

We’re momentarily blessed with beautiful weather so like the good Istanbulite that I am, as soon as I saw the sun this morning I set out to walk to Kurucesme for grocery shopping.
I was very pleasantly surprised when I got there because of the travel ads for Greece that were plastered all over the walls.
Don’t believe everything you hear, even though there is a supposed hatred between the two countries, I think it’s time for everyone to grow up, get over it and embrace each other before it’s too late.
Hopefully the ads won’t be defaced.