For my first Turkish Ramazan I was living in Istanbul. It was November 2000 and I was living in Erenköy, a leafy suburb on the Asian side of the city. At that time there were no natural gas connections so the air was thick with coal smoke from apartment heating systems, darkness fell around 5pm…
This story comes from my bookExploring Turkish Landscapes: Crossing Inner Boundaries. When I was at high school I studied history. Learning dates wasn’t something I was any good at and while I didn’t actually fail, it was a struggle. The facts and figures the teacher wrote on the board lacked colour and excitement and nothing…
There are many things I love about my life in Istanbul, in particular the way the locals prepare for traditional Turkish celebrations. Whether the special event is a wedding, Christmas, New Year’s Eve or Ramazan, they approach it in their own truly unique style. Here are some photos I’ve taken over the years that give…
“One Saturday last summer I was on the phone chatting with my ninety four year old auntie in Australia. She and I love to talk and can do so for hours but this time I was distracted. The sound of drumming was coming from outside my window. At first the noise was muffled and indistinct…