Istanbul'un Deniz Hamamlari ve Plajlari

This article was downloaded by: [TÜBİTAK EKUAL] On: 22 March 2010 Access details: Access Details: [subscription number 909176704] Publisher Routledge Informa Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered office: Mortimer House, 3741 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK Journal of Tourism History Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/title~content=t794297813 Istanbul'un Deniz Hamamlari ve Plajlari B. Nilgün Öz a a Department of Architecture, Middle East Technical University, Ankara, Turkey Online publication date: 30 November 2009 To cite this Article Öz, B. Nilgün(2009) 'Istanbul'un Deniz Hamamlari ve Plajlari', Journal of Tourism History, 1: 2, 171 — 173 To link to this Article: DOI: 10.1080/17551820903342705 URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17551820903342705 PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE Full terms and conditions of use: http://www.informaworld.com/terms-and-conditions-of-access.pdf This article may be used for research, teaching and private study purposes. Any substantial or systematic reproduction, re-distribution, re-selling, loan or sub-licensing, systematic supply or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. The publisher does not give any warranty express or implied or make any representation that the contents will be complete or accurate or up to date. The accuracy of any instructions, formulae and drug doses should be independently verified with primary sources. The publisher shall not be liable for any loss, actions, claims, proceedings, demand or costs or damages whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with or arising out of the use of this material. Journal of Tourism History 171 Downloaded By: [TÜBTAK EKUAL] At: 18:45 22 March 2010 cold war are able to re-visit their birthplaces at the Curonian Spit. They come back as tourists to a place which they had to leave in the course of the Second World War. Another group of articles explores West German tourism in the twentieth century. Till Manning and Christopher Kopper focus on mass tourism in the 1960s and 1970s. The 1960s and the economic miracle are also taken up by Cord Pagenstecher in his comparison of guidebooks. The last article by Karl-Heinz Wöhler constitutes the most theoretical contribution to this volume, in which he recognizes a persistent structure in the way tourists perceive and experience unknown spaces: the unknown is always an incentive to affirm the difference between the self and the other. In conclusion, this newest edition of Voyage gives interesting insights into recent German research on the history of tourism. Fewer articles or more pages per article might have given the authors the chance to develop their ideas in more detail and in some cases more convincingly. Finally, it is surprising how a debate on tourism
a topic which usually opens up more international themes
remains so centred on Europe or even Germany. Claudia Mueller Centre for Tourism and Cultural Change Leeds Metropolitan University Leeds, UK c.mueller@leedsmet.ac.uk # 2009, Claudia Mueller Istanbul’un Deniz Hamamlari ve Plajlari (The sea hamams and beaches of Istanbul.), by Burcak Evren and Inkilap Yayinevi, 2000, 247 pp., 40 TL (EUR 18.52) (hardcover), ISBN 975-10-1651-7 As Turkey is surrounded on three sides by sea, it is natural to assume that the coast as a destination and source of entertainment has always been a part of Turkish society. Well-known for today’s popular foreign tourist resorts on the Mediterranean and the Aegean, the Turkish seaside is also a magnet for Turkish people: most have ‘summer houses’ and enjoy long weekends or extended holidays by the sea. This was, however, not always the case. For the Ottomans the sea was mostly considered as part of a panorama, something to be admired from a distance in their houses and palaces situated on the coast; ‘entering’ the sea was out of the question, especially due to religious and social barriers. But the late years of the Empire saw this deeply engraved tradition slowly fade away, and what started out as sea hamams in the nineteenth century gradually moved towards modern bathing beaches and holiday facilities during the early years of the Turkish Republic, which was established in 1923. With its main focus on Istanbul, Burcak Evren’s book was the first to engage seriously with this neglected aspect of Turkey’s recent past or ‘unofficial history’ as the author puts it. Although it is nine years since this important book appeared, it is little known outside Turkey and has never been translated, so this review is intended to make its content available to those who do not read Turkish. In it, the author Downloaded By: [TÜBTAK EKUAL] At: 18:45 22 March 2010 172 Book reviews describes the way the sea became an important part of everyday life in the young Turkish Republic, the challenges faced and the changes seen in society, as well as the architecture and the urban fabric of the seaside which was transformed to accommodate a newly embraced lifestyle that endorsed sunny beaches and lively swimsuits. Set in seven chapters, the book draws on a variety of sources, including numerous photographs from personal archives, excerpts from contemporary novels and magazines, and cartoons and graphics, many published for the first time. Arranged chronologically, the opening chapter, entitled ‘The Ottoman flirtation with the sea’, sets the scene introducing the reader to the range of visual and literary sources. Although written sources attest that the Ottomans were swimming as early as the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, nineteenth-century visual material clearly demonstrates that swimming was still uncommon as an act of leisure except at the sea hamams in districts such as Galata, Buyukdere, Bakirkoy, Tarabya, Yesilkoy and Moda. Thirteen sea hamams in Istanbul are the subject of Chapter 2. Sea hamams were enclosed timber spaces, much like today’s indoor swimming pools. They were constructed on the sea, reached via narrow bridges, and it was possible to swim inside them without being seen from the outside. Information is provided about the first examples of sea hamams, official regulations regarding their construction and operation, types of sea hamams, their architectural features, entrance fees and related taxes, and how sea hamams made their way into the lives of the Ottomans. The third chapter is about the architectural and social transformation of the seaside through the introduction of formally organized beaches in the late Ottoman and early Republic periods. Although beaches began to appear in Istanbul in the early 1920s, it can be seen that the major catalyst in their spread was the modernisation project begun by the Turkish Republic, which involved a new lifestyle that encouraged casual and pleasurable activities, such as going to the beach without any segregation between men and women. Citing examples from 20 beaches, the author gives detailed information about how each of these emerged, the buildings associated with them, their capacity, impacts on local social life and their fate in the face of redevelopment especially in the 1980s. This chapter also introduces the games played on the beach, highlights the dilemma of the era concerning whether women should aspire to white or dark/suntanned skin, and informs the reader of the beach-going etiquette under the Republic. Bathing outfits and the strict rules of swimming and sunbathing are the themes of the fourth and fifth chapters. Information is presented on how the dress code for the sea changed from makeshift loincloth to more sophisticated bathing suits and reference is made to contemporary sources that prescribe the ‘dose’ of sea required for those seeking a cure for illnesses. The sixth chapter focuses on women and beaches in Turkish literature, giving examples from the works of renowned writers including Refik Halid Karay and Sait Faik Abasiyanik. For the final chapter, entitled ‘And then the sea ended’, the author does not require any words. He simply reproduces two photographs of Ataturk’s summer residence in Florya: the first one taken in the 1930s showing Ataturk himself in the sea, and the second one from 1999, a year before the book was published. In the latter, in a way proving that an era has come to an end, the beach is coated with Downloaded By: [TÜBTAK EKUAL] At: 18:45 22 March 2010 Journal of Tourism History 173 leaked fuel from a tanker. The book ends with a very useful biography section providing details of the lives of 30 individuals mentioned in the text. What makes this book stand out among others on the popular history of Istanbul is that it enables a rare opportunity to grasp fully an under-researched yet significant element of the social history of Turkey. The author puts into perspective an era that is long-forgotten and many do not question. He brings it back to life through numerous vivid photographs, contemporary voices and caricatures, with all its exhilaration, laughter, freshness, idealism and naivety. Since the book’s publication, some of the beaches in Istanbul have been re-opened amidst great fanfare and expectation. It is debatable, however, as to whether this attempt has been successful in terms of rejoining the people with the sea. The past decade has also seen political back-tracking on the modern enterprises of the early Republic with an increase in segregated beaches for men and women. At a time when the public beach in Florya
gifted by Ataturk to his people with a wish that they could holiday together
is cordoned off to create an exclusive area for the VIP guests of the local government, it is crucial to remember how the people of Istanbul and later the whole Turkish nation ‘entered the sea’, and Burcak Evren’s book is an important contribution towards that goal. Its translation into major foreign languages would make it possible for valuable information concerning Istanbul’s sea hamams and beaches and their impacts on Turkish culture to reach a wider audience. B. Nilgün Öz Department of Architecture Middle East Technical University Ankara, Turkey bnlgnoz@yahoo.com # 2009, B. Nilgün Öz