x0x Rumelihisari Something old, something new

x0x Rumelihisari Something old, something new

By Gulenay Borekci

'I sat in Rumeli Hisari / I sat and sang a song...' So says the poet
Orhan Veli in his poem Song of Istanbul, which he later said was
written in a state of 'indescribable grief'. It tells of the profound
loneliness of one period in his life, or perhaps, who knows, all of
it. It seems as if everyone but the poet has a friend or lover to talk
to, tell their troubles and cheer them up. While he, the loneliest man
of all, wanders amongst the graves on the hillside above Rumelihisari,
talking to the gulls and pouring out his thoughts to them.

Rumelihisari does not have such melancholy associations for most of us
though. The generation who spent their youth here in the 1980s
remember it not as a place of loneliness, but on the contrary, of deep
friendships and the taste of freedom. In spring and early summer the
green almonds and fresh cherries of Rumelihisari were a delight.

The 17th century Turkish writer Evliya Celebi wrote that these huge
luscious cherries were known as 'Anatolian pomegranates', and that
'just two weighed a beaten riyal.' Our walks on sunny spring mornings
usually ended up at Ali Baba's coffee house, which was like a second
home to us. There we recited poems, discussed films, argued politics,
exchanged books and records, fell in love, laughed a lot, and
occasionally, supposedly, studied. Years later when I decided to visit
the district again, I felt a vague sense of jealousy. It was no longer
'mine' or 'ours', but belonged to everyone. Ali Baba's coffee house
had disappeared, and Rumelihisari was no longer the tranquil backwater
that I remembered. Now throughout the summer concerts are held in the
great castle whose walls sweep up the hillside overlooking the
Bosphorus, and they have transformed the lower part of Rumelihisari
into a brightly lit, lively and crowded place. But I found that there
was no need to regret the changes.

The castle itself was still the same, and the tea garden which had
opened in place of the coffee house melted the ice and won my heart.

The grilled freshly caught fish in hunks of bread was just as
delicious, and there was also tasty gozleme (thin pastries with
various fillings cooked on a griddle) and hotdogs. The district of
Rumelihisari which has such an important place in the memories of my
youth lies on the European shore of the Bosphorus between Baltalimani
and Bebek. It is as exuberant and lively as Bebek by the shore and as
peaceful and self-contained as Baltalimani in the back streets. The
elegant waterfront houses have been restored, and in the narrow
streets behind them wooden houses darkened by time and oldfashioned
shops preserve the spirit of old Istanbul. The area is so steep that
some of the streets are flights of steps, and if you climb these you
discover marvellous views over the Bosphorus.

Other streets are lined by high walls and seem to isolate you in their
own world, as if you were neither within nor completely outside time.

One of the most famous buildings here is the 18th century Yilanli Yali
- House of Snakes. An interesting story is connected with this name.

About two centuries ago Sultan Mahmud II was passing by in his royal
barge when he saw this house, and liked it so much that he decided to
buy it. But one of his companions knew the owner and, reluctant to see
his friend lose his house, dissuaded the sultan from this plan by
claiming that the house was infested with snakes. Ever since it has
been known as the House of Snakes. Rumelihisari is the place where the
Turks first settled on the European side of Istanbul and is noted for
its many historic buildings. Undoubtedly the most celebrated of these
is the hisar (fortress) after which the district is named.

When Sultan Mehmed II was preparing for the conquest of Istanbul, he
had this castle built so as to control shipping along the Bosphorus.

Contemporary sources record that a thousand stonemasons and over two
thousand labourers worked on its construction, which was completed in
just four months. The plan was drawn by the sultan himself and the
architect was Musliheddin. The three towers at the corners were built
by the sultn'sd vezirs Halil Pasa, Zaganos Pasa and Saruca Pasa. Of
the mosque built by Sultan Mehmed II inside the castle, only the lower
part of the minaret remains today. The amphitheatre here was
constructed in 1953. Evliya Celebi relates the following story about
the castle: When Sultan Mehmed decided to take Istanbul, using the
pretence of his passion for hunting he asked the Byzantine emperor for
permission to build a hunting lodge on the site. The emperor agreed on
the condition that the hunting lodge be not larger than a cow's hide.

The sultan had a hide cut up into very narrow strips, which were then
joined together and used to measure out the ground plan of the
fortress. Meanwhile, of course, he was busy with preparations for the
coming siege. The story is pure legend, of course, being too similar
for coincidence to the myth of Dido and the founding of the city of
Carthage. As evening fell a light breeze began to blow off the sea,
calling me down to the shore. By now I felt quite at home again. The
horns of the ferries, cheerful voices, and the chinking of glasses and
plates mingled in the dusk. After a ten year absence I had
rediscovered RumelihisarI in a single wonderful day.

* Gulenay Borekci is a freelance writer