and Çatalçeşme (Forked Fountain). During the reign of Sultan Abdul Hamid II (1876–1909), some pashas, high officials and wealthy traders purchased land around Bağdat Avenue and erected luxurious chalet-like wooden mansions, a few of which still exist today. Before World War I, the avenue was paved with cobblestones, and carriages were used for transportation. In the early years of the Republican era, the original cobblestoned avenue was covered with asphalt, and a tram line was constructed between Kadıköy and Bostancı. Until the 1960s, the coastal area close to Bağdat Avenue served as a summer resort primarily for the city's upper and middle classes, who mainly lived on the European side of İstanbul closer to their businesses. Following the opening of the Bosphorus Bridge in 1973, these low-rise summer houses were pulled down in favour of new high-rise condominiums and some suburbs along Bağdat Avenue developed into particularly desirable residential areas. Attractions There are several large public parks just off Bağdat Caddesi. These include Özgürlük (Freedom) Park in Selamiçeşme and Göztepe Park which offers wonderful displays of tulips in April and of roses in June. The small mosques along Bağdat Caddesi only date from the late 19th century. Most prominent are the Zühtü Paşa Mosque in Kızıltoprak (1885) ad the Galip Paşa Mosque in Caddebostan (1889). In the back streets of Göztepe there is a fine Toy Museum, signposted by lampposts in the shape of giraffes. Overlooking the Sea of Marmara at Caddebostan stands the magnificent, if abandoned, Ragip Paşa Mansion, a work of August Jasmund in 1906. Right next door is the mansion built for his daughter Tevhide Hanım. Celebrations Bağdat Avenue hosts a cultural parade on the evening of Republic Day, which is celebrated every year on October 29. Celebrations also take place on Bağdat Avenue whenever the home football team Fenerbahçe SK wins the championship title in the Turkish Super League. Fenerbahçe fans gather here and celebrate by singing, dancing, driving and sounding their car horns all night. Since the 1960s street racing has formed a local sub-culture, with wealthy young men tag-racing their imported muscle cars. Most of these young men are now middle-agers reliving their years of excitement as famous professional rally or track racers. With the heightened GTI and hot hatch culture starting in the 1990s, street-racing was revived. Towards the end of the 1990s, midnight street racing caused many fatal accidents, which were only