Seat of Our Pants » Diyarbakir

The Singing Kurds of Diyarbakir

Martin — Fri, 14 May 2010 18:01:48 +0000

A guy walked up to us on the street. He offered to take us to a place where they ‘sing without instruments’. Wary that he’d instead take us to his uncle’s carpet shop, he assured us that this certain pleasure was free of charge.

What next transpired must be one of the most magical moments of this trip. Fifteen Kurdish men, all dressed very properly and traditionally, sat together around a table, sipping tea and trading a song back and forth between them. I’ve never felt so… transported to another place, another era.

The Singing Kurds of Diyarbakir, Turkey from Martin Engstrom on Vimeo.

As you can see, when one of them tires, the next one will continue the song. The second singer is said to be quite famous around these parts, having his picture in a book that was being passed around the table.

Shortly afterward, our guide took us to his uncle’s carpet shop. But that’s another story…

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Dumb Things We Carry

Martin — Fri, 14 May 2010 17:56:03 +0000

Our friends over at No Place to Be recently asked us what the least used item in our backpack was. I think I answered that it was my Blackberry (haven’t turned the thing on since May 2009), but that was before we picked up the gem above.

Yep, it’s a plaster model of a section of Diyarbakir’s city wall. It is heavy, it crumbles when you touch it and it stains everything that comes into contact with it. It is also almost completely worthless. Since it was a gift, we felt we couldn’t throw it away.

If anyone wants to pay for the shipping, I’d be happy to re-gift it. Any takers?

UPDATE: I just re-gifted it to a family of Quebecois. They swore to pass it on to any worthy backpackers they meet. Godspeed, O Traveling Wall of Diyarbakir.

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Photo Gallery: The Back Roads of Ancient Diyarbakir, Turkey

Jaime — Thu, 13 May 2010 10:17:25 +0000

We decided to do the tried-and-true travel method of getting to know a new city: get lost. Today’s adventure was through the back streets of Diyarbakir’s old town. What we found was a confusing but surprisingly clean labyrinth of ancient culture and architecture.

You can check them out in this screen or see them in full screen by clicking on the FS at the bottom right of the gallery. Enjoy!

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First Impressions of Diyarbakir

Jaime — Wed, 12 May 2010 23:15:10 +0000

When planning our trip to Turkey we knew just a few things about the country. One: we wanted to go. Two: it’s the seat of civilization (translation: people have been here a long, long time). Because we are the type of travelers we are, seeing just Istanbul and the Aegean Coast wasn’t going to do it for us. There’s history in Turkey, much of it in places that have been closed for tourism until recently. What’s that you say? Far off places that have recently become accessible? Sign us up.

Debating men in Diyarbakir

The first stop in our quest for the ancient is Diyarbakir in southeastern Anatolia. The city is suspected of being at least 3,300 years old. That’s, oh, about 3,100 years older than my country (insert blush here). With that much history under its belt Diyarbakir is a great jumping off point for our time in Turkey.

: A chat by the Diyarbakir wall

Diyarbakir is a walled city, a testament to it’s long history of strife. Today’s 1.5 million residents have spilled outside the original wall, since that was built sometime around 500 AD. A walk along it (yes, you can walk on top of the wall) and a little imagination make for a great game of What Must it Have Been Like? Christ wasn’t even an inkling of an idea when people settled here. Think about it! This place is mind-blowingly old.

: Suit shopping, ladies?

We took a walk around the city today, led by a very nice local man. My first impression is of the city’s duality. It is both rugged and clean at the same time. It’s predominantly Muslim, yet storefront windows display mico-bikinis. We’ve been warmly welcomed, though have been told that avoiding certain areas would be in our best interest. It all adds up to make for an exciting entry point to this part of the world.

Oh, and we’ll also most likely be buying another carpet here. Darn you, smarmy rug dealers. You’re too good! But more on that later…

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