Istanbul, the Weeping City

​Haldun Hürel's work, "Istanbul, the Weeping City," offers a deep sense of nostalgia by contrasting Istanbul's magical and fairytale past with its chaotic metropolitan life of today. Hürel describes the old Istanbul, adorned with iconic structures such as Hagia Sophia, Sultanahmet, Süleymaniye, and Fatih mosques, along with the beauty of its changing climate from district to district, revealing the harmony and colors the city once possessed. The author reminds us of the historical fabric and cultural richness of districts like Galata Tower, Maiden's Tower, Üsküdar, Çengelköy, İstinye, Kanlıca, and Kalamış, emphasizing the beauty of old Istanbul that lives on in poems, songs, and memories.​

However, Hürel sincerely expresses that today's Istanbul has become a giant gradually losing its balance, articulating the city's transformation and its lost values. This work portrays Istanbul as a city where one side laughs while the other constantly sheds sorrowful tears, offering both an elegy and a dirge for the endless city of Istanbul.