Kedi – the cats of Istanbul

If a city should carry the name ‘City of Cats’, I’m undoubtedly gonna vote for Istanbul. Millions of cats house here together with millions of people and cars. But this doesn’t make a difference to for example my home country. The biggest difference is that the people of Istanbul adore their cats, look after their small stubborn gods, feed and caress them. The cats are the real owners of the city and they cross your way whenever you are. Every shop has its own little tiger and every little tiger has a name and history. As a person who loves cats and admire their individuality I felt in love with the streets of Istanbul. I touched and cuddled maybe more than hundred of cats. But wanted to take home to Germany only two. Azime (means strong woman in Turkish) from Beyouglu and a black unknown one from Tom Tom. If you want to catch a glimpse of this ‘catty’ spirit, watch this nice and entertaining documentary: ‘Kedi’

The SciFi author Ursula K. Le Guin writes this about cats and I would totally agree with her:

‘Cats have a sense of appearance. Even when they’re sitting doing the wash in that silly position with one leg behind the other ear, they know what you’re sniggering at. They simply choose not to notice. I knew a pair of Persian cats once; the black one always reclined on a white cushion on the couch, and the white one on the black cushion next to it. It wasn’t just that they wanted to leave cat hair where it showed up best, though cats are always thoughtful about that. They knew where they looked best. The lady who provided their pillows called them her Decorator Cats.’

Café Ilmisimya in Karaköy

Kadiköy, the Asian side of Istanbul

Tom Tom and the reincarnation of my previous Bulgarian cat

She was cute, the black unknown

In comparison to my own cat she is a treasure!

People of Istanbul even build houses for the street cats
Cat Art 1
More cat art
Cat gangs of Karaköy
Found a picture of my cat, Chupacabra
Mother’s milk…
Even in Hagia Sophia there is a Lucipher walking around

Leave a Reply