Where the West and East meet

Founded over 2500 years ago, once known as Byzantion, the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantium), then known as Constantinople, then as Islambul, then as Stanbol... Known in Turkey as the city of seven hills, previously recognized as the queen of cities or gateway to happiness or known as: Istanbul.

With 15 million inhabitants in the agglomeration, a rich and tumultuous history, located on two continents and caught between modernity and tradition, cosmopolitanism, liberalism and Islamism, Islam, Christianity, and Alevism, the diversity of this city is impossible to capture in a single article after just a few days.

What remains are our personal impressions. We stayed in a very affordable hotel (while many Turks would say Istanbul is incredibly expensive), run by a nice couple who happily assisted us with our needs. (Only the lady of the house could not grasp that vegetarians do not eat sausage.)

The neighborhood was described in Google reviews as bad, but it was not: it was poor, extremely hilly (impassable in icy conditions), the houses were often dilapidated, and there were an astonishing number of cats. But neither the warm-hearted people nor the friendly cats made for a bad neighborhood. One cat visited us in the breakfast room five times one morning during breakfast. After that, we were gone - not the cat. There were numerous small shops and fast food restaurants in the neighborhood with relaxed and warm proprietors. The warmth ended in traffic and was replaced by raucousness in honking, accelerating, and cursing. But it was always possible to dash quickly across the street on foot even when the light was red.

In our neighborhood, to Mr. Ärmel's delight, the old tram also ran. To the south, we liked less the old town with its many shops and the Egyptian bazaar, where the merchants charmingly offered to take some of our time and some of our money - which they successfully managed. Overall, however, it had less charm, although it did feature the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia, thus noteworthy and historically impressive architecture. However, we couldn't overlook the €48 for the museum and visit to Hagia Sophia. Additionally, Mr. Ärmel grumbled because he believed that the requirement for non-Muslim women to cover their hair in the (formerly Christian church) Hagia Sophia, while also an expression of respect for believers in the mosque, was also disrespectful to women, whereas Ms. Waas, while also critical of some aspects of the image of women in Islam, felt that one should not ignite a fundamental debate as a guest and tourist here and put on the headscarf without issues.

A particular highlight for us was the Bosphorus cruise with numerous sights (and a questionable obsession with national flags) and the trip to the cosmopolitan, liberal, youthful, colorful, and bustling Kadiköy on the Asian side of Istanbul.

Wherever we were in Istanbul, we appreciated the loving treatment of the street cats, to whom little houses and food were often provided, as well as the approach towards the overweight street dogs, who moved freely in the metropolis and were occasionally petted.

The food was good and affordable, and the sweets were excessively sweet. However, they were very decorative in the displays of the beautifully designed shops and cafes.

Overall, there were many playful and nicely crafted corners, although in some places the beauty had faded. Miniskirts and burqas found themselves side by side wherever we went (we didn’t reach the outskirts of the city), and sometimes even engaged in conversation with each other.

Gay life was indeed visible, albeit somewhat hidden, although it certainly took some courage to show pride in Istanbul.

That not everything is sunshine and happiness in Istanbul was evident from the police barriers and armored vehicles at Taksim Square, reminding one that the mayor of this city is currently in prison, a victim of a political farce perpetuated by the fascist AKP.

Yet the threatened freedom is still palpable in this open-minded, liberal, and beautiful city, and we call to the residents of this city in the face of the threats posed by Erdogan: Stay strong, Istanbul, you beauty!