Deepak Sapra writes, "I was in Istanbul recently, and want to share some
impressions from one of the most amazing cities on
this planet."
Deepak Sapra's home page
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Bridge Between two worlds
Istanbul is a city where one keeps shuttling between continents. The Bosphorous strait, flowing between
the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea, divides the city
into European Istanbul, which comprises the bulk of
the city to the west, and Asian Istanbul on the
east. The Bosphorous Bridge is quite literally a
bridge between two continents, with signboards
proclaiming 'Welcome to Europe' and 'Welcome to Asia'
at either end. Most tourist attractions like the
Topkapi, the Aya Sophiya, the Sultanahmet Mosque amd
the Hippodrome are in the Older part of the city on
the European side, while the commercial areas are in
the newer part of the city on the European side. The
Asian part is mainly residential, and home to the
majority of Istanbul's 14 million population.
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Much like its geography, the city is caught between
two worlds. One part is going all out to make
efforts to become part of the European Union, in
letter, spirit and dispensation (notwithstanding their dislike for the Greeks ). Yet, there is a large part of the city which is very oriental.
The
crowd on Taksim Square will contrast phenomenally with
those in the Kapalı Çarşı (Grand Bazaar). The hippest
and most fashionable of Turks can be seen strolling
around on the walking street off Taksim square, just
like in West Europe, while the traders and
ware-sellers on the Kapalı Çarşı will try every
possibility in the book to sell their amazing
collections: small blue coloured eyes to ward off
evil, Turkish dolls (similar to the Russian ones, one
inside the other), Turkish çay (tea) sets, Turkish
carpets (some 'Made in China'), Turkish delight
sweets, coffee beans, spices and condiments, incense
sticks are all up for sale. Bakhlawa is one of the
most common sweets, and little carts selling sweets
and snacks are all over the place. No place in the
city is far from a çay bahçe (tea garden). And
neither from the ubiquitous McDonald's.
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| Istanbul is a city where one keeps shuttling between
continents: European Istanbul, which comprises the bulk of
the city to the west, and Asian Istanbul in the east.
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A 'Secular' Muslim republic
Turkey is a unique country in many ways: in addition
to belonging to two continents, it is a secular country
with a predominantly Muslim population - over 90%. A
question most commonly asked in many parts of Turkey
is, "Are you Muslim ?". If the answer is "no", the response to that is simply,
"O, Christian". Many still harbor the impression that
a person can either be a Muslim, and if not, s/he has
to be a Christian. Try explaining that you are Hindu, and at many
places it will not be understood at all. Whatever that be,
Turkish hospitality will take over, with the inevitable offering of
çay and sweets. Being a predominantly Muslim
country however does not deter the mushrooming of watering
holes, pubs and night clubs, especially in up-market
Istanbul. Theater and movies are aplenty, and the
Turkish film industry churns out approximately 100
movies a year.
Finally, a respectable Currency
The year 2005 has seen the introduction of the Yeni Turk Lirasi
(YTL) or the New Turkish Lira. This has made the
currency much more respectable compared to the earlier
Turkish Lira which converted to 1.25 million liras to
a dollar. A taxi ride cost millions, Salaries ran into
billions and lottery tickets promised trillions. The
Turks smartly knocked off six zeroes and the currency
now looks much more respectable. Visibly happy over
the move, Cenk Bey (bey is used to signify respect,
the equivalent of -ji in Hindi), my Turkish friend
says, "We are blessed. We can now use coins"
 
It's all about football
The Turks love their football like they love little
else. Everyone, just everyone, from little boys to old
men, all are equally fanatical about the game. Many
reckon Turkey's World cup semi final performance as
the most significant thing to have happened to Turkey
after Mustafa Kemal (Ataturk). Nitty gritty details
about the Turkish league and the other premier
European leagues, the English, Spanish and Italian in
particular are discussed, analysed, debated and
dissected in detail. So great
is the passion for the game that recently, the
Adiyaman's gap association, set up a team consisting
of all visually impaired players.
Big city, little roads
Traffic moves really, really slow in Istanbul, a
situation not helped by narrow lanes and alleys in
many parts of the city. Turks keep a good distance
between vehicles and consider it extremely impolite to
honk. Buses are aplently, and many of them have
vestibules with two carriages,
thereby doubling the number of passengers traveling.
The metro is good, but coverage is poor. It helps
commuters beat the road traffic in the commercial
areas of Levent to Taksim. The fastest, and most
popular mode of transport is the ferry which also
provides spectacular views of the Bosphorous. On
board, çay and coffee are available in abundance,
helping Turks stay close to their favourite drink.
Istanbul is very much the cultural, historical and
commercial hub of Turkey. Ankara is the country
capital, where the government sits. People from
Istanbul don't think too highly about those in Ankara,
considering them to be bureaucratic, not enterprising
and slow. Doesn't it remind you of a couple of cities
closer home. The cities are very well connected,
though, and the eight-laned (at places, 12) modern
highway helps people from Istanbul zip fast to Ankara,
complete work and get back, all in the same day.
Epilogue
Istanbul has seen the mighty Byzantium, Constantinople
and the Ottoman empires come and pass. While the
mosque minarets dot is landscape, so do state of the
art skyscrapers. The amazingly devout resonance of
muezzins calling from the mosques contrasts sharply with the
cacophony of DJ's playing the latest dance numbers.
Burqas and skirts. Being ambidextrous comes naturally
to Istanbul, a fact that adds to the romance of the
place. Taking history in its
stride, moving ahead at a racy pace, nonchalantly
balancing contradictions between two worlds, Istanbul
is a city I always love to come home to.
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