My planned journey to the airport changed dramatically at the last minute when I missed the last coach to London by a few seconds; because of the awkward early morning flight time I had to leave for the airport almost nine hours before take-off – but now, having missed the first step of the long journey to Istanbul, my anxiety over the whole move was at approaching an almost hysterical level.
Luckily, my brother-in-law offered to drive me to the airport in the early hours of the morning. The night was cold, the moon hung high and bright in a mostly clear sky, though not without a few dustings of clouds scattered across the horizon. I wasn’t sure whether it was just my anxiety, but there was an air of suspense in everything – only drunks, lunatics and anxious travellers seemed to be about; cars drove erratically between lanes with no indication of where they intended to go or where they’d actually end up.
I met Ian at the airport at around 5am; he had been waiting there since midnight. We both looked and felt exhausted and we hadn’t even left the country yet. As if Easyjet flights weren’t headache-inducing enough that they insist on having them at such odd, early morning hours. After check-in, all our efforts were towards fighting against sleep – it infiltrated all our senses and made us vulnerable to believing that we were actually enjoying each other’s company. I kid. I was actually very glad to have Ian coming along with me; I was excited to be able to show him around the city, hopeful that he would find it as inspiring as I do.
After a slightly delayed take-off, we arrived in Istanbul an hour later than planned. The first thing which immediately hit us was the heat; it must’ve been around 25 degrees, which isn’t exactly unbearable, but the combination of being so exhausted from dragging luggage around since the early hours of the morning and having no sleep at all, made the journey from the airport to the flat really difficult. Sabiha Gökçen airport is located at the far end of the Asian side of the city; it deals mainly with domestic flights and smaller airlines. While the airport itself is quite tiny and pleasant, getting to the main part of the city from it feels like a mini-epic journey in itself; the Asian part of Istanbul is far more industrial looking than the European side, with factories and apartment buildings taking up space on most of the skyline.
There’s also a noticeable difference between the pace of life on the Asian side when compared with the European side. There’s always a sense of urgency on the European side, it’s impossible not to get swept away by the crowds and bustling traffic – the only way to survive is to keep up and assimilate yourself with the constantly evolving energy of the city. Compare this with the Asian side, and you’ll find its far easier to relax and just simply slow down. My exploration of the Asian side is limited to two main areas; Kadıköy and Üsküdar, the latter of which is really beautiful district along the coast, with cobbled streets and cafes and restuarants a pennys drop away from the Bosphorus.
I met Volkan (my housemate) at Taksim Square before we took the metrobus to the apartment. Both Ian and I were so exhausted by the time we arrived at the apartment, that we just sleepwalked through the rest of the evening. After we left our luggage at the flat, Volkan had enthusiastically taken us to the shore of the Marmara Sea, which is about a 30 minute walk from the flat, but we were so tired that I don’t think either of us appreciated it as much as he had been hoping. I think as an introduction to Istanbul, Ian was perhaps thrown in at the deep-end – not getting a chance to simply stop, take a deep breath and take in the city. It had been a very rushed and tiring first day, though I’m hopeful it won’t always be like this.
Posted on November 27, 2010
0