Every morning, suntanned pensioner Metin Cakmakci rushes to his favorite beach on Istanbul’s Asian side to snag a lounge chair under an umbrella.
“Such a sea for a huge city like Istanbul, that’s not bad,” smiles the 74-year-old, pointing to the crystal-clear water off the Princes’ Islands in the Sea of Marmara.
Istanbul, a bustling megalopolis of 16 million between two continents and two seas, does not immediately evoke a seaside resort.
But just like residents of New York, Beirut and a handful of other world cities, Istanbulians can swim all summer long and return home on the subway with sand under their sandals and layers of salt on their skin.
“You used to be able to access water anywhere,” Cakmakci recalls.
“Now, of course, there are buildings everywhere. The coast has changed. We all sort of live on top of each other now.”
Istanbul officials have added a hundred extra sunbeds to Cakmakci beach, making room for 300 people under 170 umbrellas, just a 25-minute walk from the pensioner’s home.
Visitor numbers have skyrocketed this year, says Sezgin Kocak, who oversees the overseas beach.
Much of the increase can be attributed to an economic crisis that has pushed consumer prices up 80 percent in a year.
– Burkinis and bikinis –
“A lot of people can’t afford to leave Istanbul anymore,” explains Canan Civan, a bikini swimmer in her 60s.
“But even if I had the money, I wouldn’t go anywhere else,” she adds.
“Instead of taking a 10-day vacation, I’d rather come here every day for three months.”
Between the Black Sea in the north, the Sea of Marmara in the south and the Bosphorus in between, Istanbul has 85 barrier-free beaches and bathing areas.
Whether public or private, some attract a more traditional clientele who drape themselves in veils, while others come out in bikinis and gleefully baring their skin.
Like Turkish society itself, both often share the same space.
At other times, an invisible demarcation line appears. One such line is in the Sile district, where the Black Sea meets the northern rim of the Bosphorus – the stretch of water that separates Turkey between its European and Asian halves.
On the bikini side, Eren Bizmi is trying to start a volleyball game with some friends from work.
“Istanbulians know that you can find a beach 35, 40 minutes from the center,” says the 32-year-old real estate agent. He explains the Black Sea is best because it is “less salty” than the Sea of Marmara.
“And I can work at the same time,” adds Sema Basaran, the only woman in volleyball.
“If a customer calls, I can show him a house and come back,” smiles the 22-year-old.
No one mentions the two mines that washed up in the area earlier this year – a stark reminder of the war that pitted Ukraine against its Russian invaders across the Black Sea.
– Bathers at the Bosphorus –
Finally, there are the bathers of the Bosphorus, swimming between Europe and Asia under the serene gaze of the city’s grand palaces.
Eren Tor and his friends meet every morning in Bebek, an upscale neighborhood on the European side of the continental divide.
“It’s a privilege to be able to swim between two seas and two continents,” says the 64-year-old retiree.
The water reaches 23 degrees Celsius (73 degrees Fahrenheit) in summer and drops to an average of 11 degrees Celsius in winter.
But every day, “even in the winter, even in the snow,” says Tor, he comes for his morning Bosphorus dip. He scrolls through pictures on his phone to prove his point.
“He is the only one!” One of his friends laughs.
Almost the entire group has been swimming here since childhood, getting acquainted with the tricky currents of the strait, which can quickly sweep you away.
Levent Aksut, 92, says he swims “three to four times a week.”
The only problem, says his son Caner, “is that the government doesn’t want to see people in bathing suits”.
Bathers believe that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s Islamic-roots party is deliberately restricting bathing space in the city, overlaying the banks with construction works and cement.
But her own ritual persists.
After climbing a ladder set up on the cliff, they dry themselves on the benches on the quay and sip coffee.
“What more do you want?” asks Tor.
#Swim #continents #Istanbul
