The Great Cities: Istanbul

Another sterling publication from Time-Life Books in their Great Cities series, although this one is quite dated, 1978. But Colin Thubron's scintillating prose makes up to a great extent for its vintage; in keeping with his other works, he approaches the city from the ground level, so to speak, observing the condition and activities of the common people on the streets, rather that conferring with the captains of industry or the political bigwigs. So inevitably, the decrepit condition of the streets and buildings, the crumbling infrastructure, the challenges of living with poor levels of basic services, and the dogged spirit of the people, are what come to the attention. In a way, this probably represents more than anything the reaction show more of a Westerner (and a non-Muslim, to boot), as the nostalgia for the lost world of Christian Constantinople comes forth strongly. A Muslim writer would probably see in the massive mosques and palaces the confirmation of the glory of his faith; the Christian, however, feels the pang of the seat of Orthodox patriarch reduced to a vestige, the few remaining churches and synagogues with almost no attendance, the gradual emigration of the many ethnic communities like the Jews, the Armenians, the Greeks, and others, the relegation of Sancta Sophia to a museum (and now, with the Islamic revival, back to a mosque in use). In turn, ethnic Turks have come in from the Asian mainland, and the 'European' stock of the local populace (descenced largely from the Christian captives imported under the Ottoman regime) correspondingly decreases. Of course, 45 years down the timeline, one expects that the city would have been refurbished, with broad avenues and shining malls and high-rise buildings; we need to compare the current conditions. show less