HART in the World: Istanbul
May - June 2015
On May 18, 2015, Prof. Shirine Hamadeh and doctoral candidate, Ümit Açıkgöz traveled to Istanbul with 10 Rice students from a variety of majors. They spent three weeks exploring Istanbul's rich history as the capital of the Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman Empires, and as the culturally thriving metropolis it is today.
Each day they held class at a different historical site (including the celebrated Hagia Sophia, Topkapı Palace, Süleymaniye Mosque) or neighborhood (such as Galata, Taksim, the Jewish quarter of Balat). The course was conducted as part lecture part seminar, with discussions and written assignments based on first-hand experience as well as assigned readings. It also involved visits to museums, art galleries, music recitals and performances, and encouraged creative ways of capturing the city's sights, sounds, and textures through text and image.