TABLE
OF CONTENTS
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Mystical World
By Evan Kleiman
Traveling through time,
internally I
visualize the many ways in which Turkey has evolved into what it is
today. In particular, I see the mythical city of Istanbul, one of the
most
magnificent and beautiful Global Cities I have ever stepped foot on.
Its
blend of cultures, its European and Asian fusion, its geographical
splendor, its mixture and diverse influence of architectural styles and
deeply rooted character that loudly reveals itself as I slowly gaze
my eyes all around.
The transnational impacts on
Istanbul
became
tangible when I
entered a local market and found the same Vermont-produced
brand of granola that
you can find in supermarkets all over America. In no time I am walking
through streets
that mirror the architecture in San Francisco, one block to the right I
am walking through an ancient district to find myself climbing
the tallest tower in Istanbul called Galata Tower. This structure
is eminent, just from observing each layer from the ground to the
clouds in the sky; you can see the city all around from its top, while
the tower can be seen from all around Istanbul as well.
As I embrace the vernacular
influence
still present,
I breathe the crisp and fresh air. While simultaneously in the other
nostril I inhale the toxic fumes of the transnational reality that is
rapidly taking over Istanbul in its road to EU membership. Learning of
the essence of this historical city and understanding the layers it has
gone through to get to the place that is Istanbul today is vital in
analyzing the relationship between its vernacular and transnational
elements. The transnational power is a force that can be
overpowering. However it appears as if Turks have strongly attempted to
preserve the tradition, local markets, and local trade. For that it is
especially difficult to justify the shiny golden arches of McDonalds
standing taller and more dominant than the thousand-year-old mosques
and temples. Or the Starbucks coffee next to the 85-year-old Turkish
coffee shop.
The Bosporus bridge that connects
Asia
and Europe
in Istanbul is a microcosm of what globalization is doing to the world,
connecting us all making it so that there is less and less of a
distinction between what is vernacular what is externally influenced,
what is internally influenced, and how the transnational
implementations have affected the city as a whole. There is so much
going on that even natives often struggle to connect. Anthropologist
Jenny White notes
in "Bridge between Europe and Asia," “each time I
return to
Istanbul, there is more construction." In the article, White engages in
an
exploration of the polarization, globalization and bridge between two
worlds. "By 1986 it seemed the wall of high-rise apartment blocks
reached all the way from the outlying airport to the old Byzantine
walls
that still demarcate the site of the old city”(1). The expansion of the
city is rapid, the land is being developed anywhere and everywhere.
In order to understand the
character
of this
breathtaking city of Istanbul it is important to understand the impact
that natural disasters have had on the city, causing it to have been
recreated numerous of times. You can tell by just walking through the
streets, and going destination-less through the alleyways that it's
almost as if each block has its own character, style and
influence. While I try to visualize and connect together the
individual
pieces (neighborhoods) of the puzzle that is Istanbul, I have an
idealistic dream that all of these locals reconstructed, repainted, and
transformed their unique visions into value, hence the diverse yet
collective beauty of so many different styles. There is something so
powerful and special about the preservation of the vernacular, the
history, and the peoples who created Istanbul into what it is today.
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