The tranquility of İstanbul’s outlying villages

Going fishing in the calm of the evening as well as growing vegetables in one’s own backyard are some other common city-dweller dreams. Often though, the retirement period that was imagined doesn’t wind up going as planned. Some have a hard time separating from their children, while others feel the need to work for financial gain. Then again, there are some lucky folks who are able to live the serene village life they had dreamed of while still managing to be near the city where their kids live. These are people who live in tiny villages which are really as close to İstanbul city centers like Taksim and Kadıköy as an hour or so away.

We were curious about who these people might be, and so we set out to find out. In doing so, we toured around many of İstanbul’s local villages, from Üvezli to Seymen, from Pirinççi to Paşamandıra. We traveled roads bearing signs such as “Watch out for cows,” and drank our tea in little coffeehouses near tiny village centers. We strolled through gardens and paths. And we saw that these local city villages are not really much different to those which dot Anatolia. With their wooden homes, their bright green forests, their rivers that flow through the seasons, their little lakes and their historical touches, they all carry a part of Anatolia within them.

One of these village residents is

“Uncle Ali” from the village of Kömürlük. We come upon him as he works in his garden. This winter he hasn’t really planted anything in his garden, but he’s already thinking about summer vegetables. Ali sells the tomatoes and peppers he grows to customers that come from the city. The growing interest in organic crops has motivated many of the people, like Ali, who live around here. Most villagers now make sure that customers from the city can buy their garden fresh vegetables and fruits.

Another village dweller we come upon, “Aunt Fatma,” is gathering wood in her village of Kurna, and bringing it back to her home to burn in her special wood burning stove. Later, she goes to fill up water containers at the village fountain. Unlike Ali and some other village dwellers, Fatma does not grow vegetables to sell, but just enough for herself. Her neighbor Kenan does the same. Kenan moved to Kurna

after retiring. His wife and children still live in İstanbul, and he is here alone now. As he puts it, he is “relaxing his mind here.”

The most noticeable aspect of İstanbul’s villages is the aging population that inhabits them. With youth heading to the city to find work, village squares are left to the elderly. Some of these elderly people spend much time fishing, others hunting in the nearby forest. But they all share one habit, and that is spending time in the coffeehouses in the village centers. Not many games get played at these coffeehouses, but instead people get caught up in deep conversations over their teas. They allow themselves the pleasure of a serene, slow-paced life practically in the shadows of the skyscrapers that continue to rise up every day in nearby İstanbul.

Of the people living in these villages, there are those who actually gave up every-

thing they had had in the city to move here, before retirement age. Seventy-eight-year-old Hikmet Yılmaz is one of these people. Forty years ago, he sold the three taxis he had owned in Üsküdar and moved to the village of Yeşilvadi near Şile. Uncle Hikmet was once even the village’s “muhtarı.” He says the motivating factor for his departure from Üsküdar was the changing city around him. He recalls the years of his youth fondly, and that period that İstanbul was going through then, too. But he also emphasizes that for him, leaving the city was the right thing to do. He recalls, “İstanbul was fast becoming a place where you could no longer live.”

Their only complaint is the price of milk

While everything is natural and healthy in these villages, life is not without complaints from the villagers. In Çatalca the greatest complaint is about the price per liter of milk. The same milk we buy in grocery stores for TL 2-3, they have a hard time selling for even 75 kuruş per liter. The same situation is found in some of the villages to the east of Şile, and added to this complaint is the going rate for hazelnuts, too. Every year, people here worry about what price the government will set for hazelnuts. Another widespread complaint? That thieves are constantly stealing cows belonging to villagers from the “river villages” of Şile. Some villagers say that “it has come to the point that we’ll be forced to give up animal husbandry.” 

All the villages need is their forest to thrive

Ormanlı village/Çatalca

Ormanlı is a sweet little forest village, inhabited by many Turks who came from Greece and Bulgaria. There are also lots of ruins of Greek buildings here, since it used to be a Greek village. The crops grown in this village include wheat, barley and sunflowers, and in the summer, you can see lots of storks sitting atop the electricity posts here. Ormanlı is only 2 kilometers from Terkos Lake, which is partially fed by the Istıranca River near Ormanlı. You can catch fish in the lake and the river here. If you want to head to Çatalca from here (it’s 32 kilometers), you have to hop on the Yenibosna-Yalıköy bus line.

Kurna village /Pendik:

This village is only 15 kilometers from Pendik, and lies just next to the Ömerli Dam. The most noticeable aspect of this village is the long lines that form in front of its fountains. After all, the water that flows from these fountains is fresh and sweet tasting, a combination of rainwater and crystal clear melted snow. As a result, it’s not just Kurna denizens you’ll find waiting to fill up their water holders, but also people from nearby villages and even larger towns. The 500-year-old mosque in Kurna is mostly in ruins due to lack of care. You can reach this village from the Pendik turn-off on the İstanbul-İzmit road.

Pirinççi village/Eyüp:

This is really one of İstanbul’s oldest villages; Pirinççi is a small settlement squeezed between mountains, trees and gardens. The Pirinççi River that runs through the region helps water the fields of those working in agriculture here. And when there is heavy snowfall, the village’s road connection to Sultangazı is cut off. There are no mass transit vehicles that head into Pirinççi, so if want to go there, you have to drive from either the Kemerburgaz or the Habibler road.

Don’t be surprised by the sea as it rises up in front of the road to Şile

Üvezli and other river villages of Şile/Şile:

The first thing you note on entering the village of Üvezli is traces of eastern Black Sea villages; wooden homes and vibrant green natural surroundings. The Ahıska Turks, who emigrated between the years of 1877-1878 from Georgia and Artvin, started to move to this cluster of villages known by many as the “river villages,” namely: Üvezli, Kömürlük, Kervansaray, Bıçkıdere, Oruçoğlu, Ulupelit and Darlık. The residents of these village have strong ties to one another. Tradition reigns strong here. Until about a decade ago, many of the homes here didn’t even have televisions. The villagers living here depend on forestry, agriculture and animal husbandry for their livings. In the summer months, people can purchase organic vegetables grown in gardens here. The river villages lie around 60 kilometers from Üsküdar. You can reach them by bus on the Şile-Üvezli line.

Paşamandıra/Beykoz:

Paşamandıra is surrounded by wide, bright green meadows. It is a small village located by the side of the Riva River. Agriculture is very important in this region largely inhabited by emigrants from Kastamonu and Trabzon. In Paşamandıra you can find wheat and corn, and hazelnut, apple, pear, quince and fig trees and there are many horse farms. “Grill and eat” restaurants line the road here. This village is only 23 kilo-

meters from Kavacık, and can be reached by bus from Beykoz.

Seymen/Silivri:

A large portion of the tulips that line the boulevards and squares of İstanbul are actually grown in this village. Grown in 14 different

colors, these tulips help support a full 23 families. Interestingly, the tulips grown here began to be grown during the Ottoman era. Most of the residents of this village are either from Thrace or the Black Sea region, and although these two regions are quite different from one another, over time, the village residents have grown fond of each other’s foods and traditions.

Uskumruköy/Sarıyer:

 This village is surrounded on both sides by the Bahçeköy and Belgrad forests. And some of the animals that make these forests their habitat can be seen in and around the village. There is a lookout tower called “Ovid-

ius” built by the Genoese here. Uskumruköy, with its garden restaurants and tea gardens, is only 9 kilometers from Sarıyer.