Çiçek Pasajı

Çiçek Pasajı (literally Flower Passage in Turkish), originally called the Cité de Péra, is a famous historic passage (galleria or arcade) on İstiklal Avenue in the Beyoğlu district of Istanbul, Turkey. It connects İstiklal Avenue with Sahne Street.

Opened in 1876, Çiçek Pasajı is a covered arcade with rows of historic cafes, winehouses and restaurants.

The site of Çiçek Pasajı was originally occupied by the Naum Theatre, which was severely damaged by the Fire of Pera in 1870. The theatre was frequently visited by Sultans Abdülaziz and Abdülhamid II, and hosted Giuseppe Verdi's opera Il Trovatore before the opera houses of Paris.

After the fire of 1870, the theatre was purchased by the local Greek banker Hristaki Zoğrafos Efendi, and architect Kleanthis Zannos designed the current building, which was called Cité de Péra or Hristaki Pasajı (Hristaki Passage) in its early years.Yorgo'nun Meyhanesi (Yorgo's Winehouse) was the first winehouse to be opened in the passage. In 1908, Grand Vizier Mehmed Said Pasha purchased the building, and it became known as the Sait Paşa Pasajı (Said Pasha Passage).

Following the Russian Revolution of 1917, many impoverished noble Russian women, including a Baroness, sold flowers here. By the 1940s the building was mostly occupied by flower shops, hence the present Turkish name Çiçek Pasajı (Flower Passage).

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Wikipedia