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Constantinople Goes European It all started when Chirtaki Efendi Zogrophos, a wealthy Constantinopolitan businessman, built the Second Empire-style Cité de Péra building on Beyoglu's Grande Rue de Péra (Istiklal Caddesi) in 1876. The Cité de Péra was to be the Ottoman Empire's best, "a monument that even Paris would be proud of," a bellwether in the revival of architecture in Istanbul. And so it was! By the latter half of the 20th century, however, the posh boutiques on the ground floor had all moved on, as had the tony offices above. The passage through the ground floor of the building, once the home of flower shops, was then occupied by meyhanes (tavernas) specializing in draft beer and rowdy behavior, but also good food. (See the next photo for more...) |
