The Cats Taking Over Istanbul
How Istanbul’s culture is so heavily correlated with cats
When I visited Istanbul this summer I found everything I was expecting: good food, scenic views, and plenty of history. What I wasn’t expecting, however, was how it seemed that stray cats had monopolized the city; and everyone was okay with that. The cat empire ruled.
There was a cat on every corner. There were cats in museums, in my hotel pool area, and in the travel agency I had visited. What’s interesting is that Istanbul isn’t infested with cats. Istanbul does not have a cat “problem”. The people of Istanbul have made the city optimized for cats and coexist with them.
People left out bowls of food and water outside their businesses for the cats to drink and eat. Many people had befriended the cat on their corner and occasionally let them in for a treat and had reserved an area for them when they came inside.
Needless to say, as a cat person, I was thoroughly enjoying my time in Istanbul.
The history
So, why are cats such an integral part of Turkish, more specifically, Istanbul, culture?
Well, Istanbul and cats share a lot of history.
