used to be called constantinople at the roman and byzantine era, this is istanbul, the city that bridges europe and asia with its mighty bosphorus. the city has lived in my imagination since i started to read the book with the same name by the nobel laureate writer, orhan pamuk. although i haven't really finished the book, istanbul in my head was a city with such great glory in the past possessing a certain melancholic vibe with all the tragedies and historical events that happened in the city. i always imagined istanbul like a city in black and white, encoded, leaving space for people to interpret the city on their own. i could imagined myself standing overlooking bosphorus and being overwhelmed by it.
visiting the city on the peak of summer, i felt like i was lost, beaten by the heat and humidity all over the city. i was lost to the brick and mortar that built up the modern look of the city. i was lost to all the motorize vehicles that filled up the streets of the city.
although i didn't find the melancholy and the glory i was expecting, i found bits of joy along the journey: the addiction to turkish çay, the delicate blue mosque, the mysterious basilica cistern, the beautiful topography of the city at night, the ferry ride on the bosphorus, the bagel-lish simit, the adorable old town of galata. and also, although it's a pity that we can't cross the bosphorus on foot, it's an interesting experience being able to be in europe and in asia both on the same day.
