Notes on Istanbul, books and research. A document, a building or a question in each post.
On Zincirleme Reaksiyon the subject was how we should convey what we value. Figs, apricots and kebabs are each fine on their own; but unless Türkiye is shown as a whole, they remain mere samples.
For Milliyet Pazar’s spring feature, Seyhan Akıncı invited me to devise a spring itinerary through Istanbul. Within those same pages, Özgül Cömert narrates the season through the lexicon of botany; it fell to me to specify where, and precisely when, these floral displays might best be observed.
The conversation with Emrah Safa Gürkan began in the rooms of Casa Garibaldi, the seat of the Società Operaia Italiana di Mutuo Soccorso, the Italian workers’ mutual-aid society, in Beyoğlu, which keep the building’s history as though not a day had passed.
For the pages of Milliyet Pazar, Seyhan Akıncı solicited my analysis regarding the Historic Peninsula. The core inquiry was clear: why does this intra-mural nucleus, once the capital of successive empires, continue to command global fascination, and where should a first-time visitor commence their exploration?