Short Course World Championship in Istanbul

The 2012 FINA Short Course World Championship will be hosted at the Sinan Erdem Dome in Istanbul between 12-16 December 2012.

Some of the biggest names in swimming, around 900 athletes, including Olympic champions such as U.S. swimming icon Ryan Lochte, France’s Florent Manaudou, Italian Federica Pellegrini and Hungarian Laszlo Cseh, will take to the pool during the 25 meter races.
The FINA World Swimming Championships (25 meters) is a five-day sports competition held every two years.

Graffiti Festival 2012

The biggest graffiti festival of Turkey will be held on 15th of July 2012, Sunday, in Taksim Square - Istanbul. The event, called as "Meeting Of Allstars", will bring together many world-known graffiti artists from various countries and from Turkey as well.

Ataturk Airport breaks record

Istanbul’s Ataturk International Airport (IST) has broken its all time record for air traffic. On June 15th, 2012, the number of planes departing and arriving at Ataturk Airport was recorded as 1,090. In other words, one plane either departed from or arrived at the Ataturk Airport every 75 seconds.

Ottoman music research center opened

Turkey’s first institute created to study Ottoman era music has been opened within the body of Istanbul University (IU). The Ottoman Music Application and Research Center will create an inventory of music at the time of the Ottomans.

The center will analyze all libraries, manuscripts in the Topkapi Palace, the IU State Conservatory, which is the continuation of Darülelhan, where the first research on music was made in the Ottoman, musical instruments in the university’s rare works of art unit and special collections in order to create a database.

Madonna concert in Istanbul: June 7th, 2012

Madonna, the Queen of pop, has announced plans for a 2012 World Tour. She is coming to Istanbul in June 7th to perform at the Turk Telekom Arena to more than 60,000 Turkish fans and music-lovers. The 53-year-old entertainer is still in good shape with her songs and loved very much in Turkey too.

Madonna’s last concert in Istanbul was in 1993.

Istanbul Music Festival, June 2012

40th edition of Istanbul Music Festival will be held at various venues between 31 May - 29 June, 2012, with the participation of more than 750 local and foreign artists such as Fazil Say, Helene Grimaud, Anne-Sophie Mutter, Milos, Gidon Kremer, and many others.

Istanbul Fashion Week 2012

Istanbul Fashion Week will be on show between 8-11 February 2012, aiming to gain recognition for Turkish designers and brands in national and international tribunes and to make a contribution to Turkish economy while increasing the design power in the fashion industry.

400 years of Turkish-Dutch relations at Pera Museum

Turkish-Dutch relations are on exhibit at the Pera Museum in Istanbul. Commemorating 400 years of cultural, diplomatic and trade relations between Turkey and the Netherlands, the Pera Museum is presenting an exhibition titled “Sultans, Merchants, Painters: The Early Years of Turkish-Dutch Relations.” The exhibition includes over 80 works comprised of oil paintings, watercolors, engravings and books, and will continue until April 1st, 2012.

New York Times article on Istanbul excavations

The New York Times has published an article regarding the excavations and new findings at the Kucukcekmece Lake of Istanbul, revealing interesting facts and artifacts of this early settlement of ancient Constantinople.

You can read the full article at http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/24/science/istanbul-yields-a-treasure-trove-in-ancient-bathonea.html?_r=2&ref=science

Cihangir is one of the "Five best places in the world"

The Guardian newspaper named the "Five best places to live in the world", and Istanbul's Cihangir neighbourhood is one of them.

You can read the full article at:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2012/jan/20/five-best-places-to-live-in-world

New exhibitions at the Borusan Contemporary Art museum

Borusan Contemporary Art museum, housed in the "Haunted Mansion" (Perili Kosk) in Rumelihisari neighbourhood along the Bosphorus in Istanbul, is housing the "River of History" exhibition by artist Kathleen Forde and also the "Segment #1A" exhibition by artist Dr. Necmi Sonmez until 15th of April 2012.