Turkish smoking ban? Your survival plan

by Tom Johansmeyer on

I never thought I’d have to write about a smoking ban in Turkey. It just struck me as one of a handful of locations that would never extinguish the flame. But, on July 19, the impossible will come to pass.

In part, it exists already. Since May of last year, smoking has not been permitted in Turkish taxes, malls, offices and ferries. Of course, the prohibition does not seem to have been taken literally. Cabbies, for example, pass ashtrays back to passengers, so they can duck down, smoke … and not get caught.

The rules become much tougher this July. Lighting up will not be permitted in any enclosed establishment. Unless you’re sitting outside, you won’t be smoking in Istanbul. Fines of $2,800 suggest serious consequences.

This is expected to cause financial woes for roughly 15,000 teahouses in Istanbul, according to The Atlantic. Hundreds have shut down already, and the absence of smoking in these men’s havens, at a minimum, provides additional pressure.

Other signs of the apocalypse were not reported in the article, but you have to imagine they’re coming soon.

Breaking: Yet another plane crash. This time near Amsterdam

by Jamie Rhein on

I have to say, as much as flying does not bother me, it’s a bit unnerving to click on The New York Times to see if any thing new has happened in the past few hours to find out that the new thing that has happened is another plane crash. This time the crash was just outside Amsterdam, but in a soft field instead of on a house near Buffalo, New York, on snow near Nome, Alaska or on the Hudson River.

The Turkish Airlines Boeing 737-800, en route from Istanbul, was almost to the airport when it suddenly lost speed and dropped. According to one person on board, the crash only took a few seconds. According to the article, most people did not suffer major injuries even though the plane broke into two pieces because there wasn’t much fuel left. If there had been more fuel, the outcome would have been worse. Still, the outcome wasn’t good.

Nine people died, including both the pilots. There were 25 with serious injuries, 24 with minor injuries and the rest walked away. In all there were 134 people on board. Considering that I was just in Amsterdam a couple months ago and flew into Schiphol Airport from the U.S., I’m thinking about how those fields looked when we were coming in for our landing. Yep, it’s a bit unnerving.

[This photo by PhillipC is of tulip fields when he was in route to Amsterdam from Gatwick.]

Ferry Pier Sinks in Istanbul

by Josh Lew on

It was a rather bizarre series of events. A floating ferry dock on the European side of Istanbul became unhinged, began to list, and then sank during a particularly violent storm over the past weekend. Usually it is the boats themselves that are at the center of ferry disasters (like the tragic accident in the Philippines earlier this year), not ferry terminals, which are, theoretically, firmly attached to land.

The pier at the port of Karakoy began to sway dangerously during the storm. Everyone on the dock was evacuated before it broke free and sank into the Bosporus (the strait that divides the two sides of Istanbul). Though Karakoy is a major ferry crossing, it is not the only way to get from the European side of the city to the Asian side. There are other ferry crossings (though these will be a bit more crowded until Karakoy is rebuilt and reopened). There are also private ferries and, of course, the two massive bridges that span the Bosporus. The sinking shouldn’t hinder anyone’s Istanbul vacation plans…though it might make them think twice before stepping onto a ferry dock.

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Photo of the Day (10.28.08)

by Grant Martin on

Usually I pick a Photo of the Day that’s somehow reflects on my current situation or feeling as I shop around for photos. But sifting through some of the pictures during my weekly duties last week, I stumbled across the picture of a mosuqe taken by flickr user flicts in Istanbul.

I’m a sucker for mosque and cathedral photos, probably because I’m always in awe of the architecture and silence in the structures, and this photo was no exception. Great shot, flicts.

Have any cool photos you’d like to share with the world? Add them to the Gadling Pool on Flickr, and it might be chosen as our Photo of the Day.

Photo of the Day (08.12.08)

by Grant Martin on

Istanbul’s Blue Mosque — one of my favorite places in the world in one of my favorite cities in the world. Walking into The Sultan Ahmed Mosque is one of those jaw dropping experiences that you remember for the rest of your life, its vaulted ceilings and Ottoman and Christian influences gently meeting far above the silent crowd. Today’s photo of the day comes from smallscreen, who does an excellent job capturing the detail of the central and satellite domes. A truly exceptional shot.

Have any cool photos you’d like to share with the world? Add them to the Gadling Pool on Flickr, and it might be chosen as our Photo of the Day.