Turkey

Difficulties in Diyarbakir

diyarbakir turkey kurdistan wall

It is not unusual to meet Turks in Istanbul who have never been farther east than Ankara, the capitol in the center of the country. Turkey is large, but it’s not gigantic, so the common refrain of Turks who haven’t experienced half of their homeland could seem a little bizarre.

To understand why, it’s important to understand Diyarbakir.

Diyarbakir Streets

The region of Southeast Turkey is also known as Kurdistan, and Diyarbakir is Kurdistan’s historic center. As the largest city east of Gaziantep, it’s an unofficial capitol city, and the fulcrum of the unrest that has defined this region for many Turks. Diyarbakir calls up the memories of the riots, terrorist attacks, and fighting that happened throughout the ‘90’s, as the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (abbreviated as the PKK) clashed with the Turkish government. Diyarbakir still carries a stigma—when I would tell friends the itinerary of my Southeast trip, Diyarbakir was the only place that got the reaction, “Why would you go THERE?”

Watermelon Man Diyarbakir

Well, I’m insatiably curious, and it is the major city in that area, and more importantly: the cheapest flight back to Istanbul left from the Diyarbakir airport, so it was inevitable that I’d end up there. Also, Diyarbakir has been more or less peaceful for over a decade, though police vehicles and checkpoints are far more common in and around the city. I wasn’t scared about Diyarbakir, and I wanted to see this city that so many Turks had no desire to go to. I found a fascinating city, but not an easy one.

Diyarbakir Dark Walls

Diyarbakir has a different vibe than Urfa or Mardin. The city is dominated by a dark ancient wall. Parts look like leftovers from medieval Europe, while other sections stand broken down like jagged teeth in the city center. It gives a distinct feel to the place. Even their major mosque, with its gray stone and dark red carpets and shelves of books, weirdly resembles ancient England rather than the rest of Turkey.

Inside Diyarbakir Ulu Cami

Diyarbakir Grand Mosque Courttyard

This is a rough city. I was torn between my fascination with the textures of the place, the life on the street, and the ever present discomfort I felt as a foreign woman. More than anywhere else on this Southeast jaunt, my otherness was apparent and held me back. The poverty was more visible, and much of the city (especially around the old walls) had the roughness of Tarlabasi in Istanbul– a neighborhood I love. But Tarlabasi is just a small part of the city, surrounded by very different (and traditionally safer) neighborhoods; Diyarbakir feels in parts like a giant Tarlabasi.

Rundown Car Diyarbakir

Awful Boy in Diyarbakir

Shadowy Men

When men followed us or small boys made rude gestures, it became easy to write off the city completely. But then there were small delights: a man pushing a green wheelbarrow full of live chickens. The waiter who went out of his way to make us a table when his restaurant was full of people breaking their fast. The view of the Tigris from the top of the old city walls. The boy who spent ten minutes making sure I got on the bus that would take me to the airport, even though he didn’t speak any English.

Nothing is ever straightforward in Turkey. Even the most difficult cities can surprise you.

Diyarbakir and Ataturk

(As in my post about Mardin:  It is important to do research about the current situation in Diyarbakir before you travel there. When I was there in July, there were no problems. However, with the ongoing fight in Kobane, there have been riots in Diyarbakir that have turned violent. Remember the refrain: be smart, not scared. Do your research before you show up, but know that the city is not at war. This is a difficult and fascinating city, and unlike any other I’ve been to in Turkey.) 

9 Comments

  • Katie @ Second-Hand Hedgehog
    November 10, 2014 at 1:27 PM

    Fascinating stuff, Katrinka. I’ve been hearing loads about Turkey recently from various blogs, but I’d never even heard of Diyarbakir before. Which, considering how big a city it is, is slightly bizarre.

    I know what you mean about being torn in your view of a city. I used to have a similar feeling about Paris (though for slightly different reasons), and I definitely feel uncomfortable about Dubai, despite the fact I had some incredible experiences there. But I’m glad you felt you enjoyed Diyarbakir over all, even if it wasn’t all perfect. But then, I guess we don’t travel for perfection, do we? We travel for what’s real.

    Thanks so much for sharing this – Eastern Turkey is definitely somewhere I should look into more closely.

    http://www.secondhandhedgehog.com/

    Reply
    • Katrinka
      November 11, 2014 at 10:14 AM

      Thank you Katie! Diyarbakir is definitely not on the well-beaten tourist path here, and tends to be heard of in the context of politics rather than travel. The Southeast in general is a neglected part of the country for tourism, now that the Syrian and Iraqi borders are closed. People used to spend time in the South en route to Aleppo or Damascus.

      I would go back to Diyarbakir, but maybe with a male friend. I want to explore without being hassled 🙂 It’s good to be honest about which cities are difficult for you, whether it’s Paris, Dubai, or Diyarbakir!

      And you should DEFINITELY look into Eastern Turkey, it’s a completely fascinating part of the country!

      Reply
  • Tom @ Waegook Tom
    November 10, 2014 at 4:47 PM

    This is a really interesting read! I *was* going to go to Diyarbakir on my first trip to Turkey back in 2010, but a bout of explosive vomiting and diarrhea thanks to tap water in Malatya made the thought of the 5 hour bus trip less than desirable. I’m loving your photos here and you’re right, the mosque does look like it belongs somewhere in northern England, or at the very least in Game Of Thrones…

    Reply
    • Katrinka
      November 11, 2014 at 10:15 AM

      You probably would have enjoyed it, Tom! The food and architecture is great and I think Diyarbakir is a different experience if you are male.

      Reply
  • rabirius
    November 15, 2014 at 7:19 PM

    I love Diyarbakir – though when I visited it the first time there was a lot more tension with military planes flying over the city. But I think a lot of this tension has left now.
    Okay, in the old town you can still feel it a bit – but there also is a lot of development and one can experience Kurdish culture.

    But popular areas in the new town, like Ofis, now feel very relaxed.

    Okay, you could argue that I’m a man and it is different – but a good friend of mine (a woman) travels there often and loves the city. 🙂

    Reply
  • Jenni / Globe Called Home
    August 4, 2015 at 1:26 AM

    Very interesting to hear about your experiences traveling there as a woman. I’m not always comfortable traveling around in Turkey or the Arab world because of the men who start following… and it happens even if I’m with a male companion! But then again, some of the things you see there are just beautiful.

    Hope you don’t mind me linking to you from my post about new world heritage sites!

    Reply
    • Katrinka
      August 4, 2015 at 5:10 AM

      Thank Jenni! I don’t mind if you link at all. You might also want to read about my experience in Diyarbakir this March, which was much more enjoyable (though I wasn’t there alone then either): http://katrinkaabroad.com/2015/05/23/reconsidering-diyarbakir/
      I love traveling alone, but I love feeling comfortable too– maybe if my Turkish was better, it would be a different experience!

      Reply
  • PASQUALE
    September 26, 2017 at 11:47 AM

    Hello Katrinka,nice storie about Diyarbakir.Next tomorrow I will arrive to Diyarbarkir airport (Gate for Erbil in Kurdistan,Iraq),so you know if there is some public transport,bus to the center.Thanks.

    Reply
    • Katrinka
      September 26, 2017 at 11:50 AM

      Hi Pasquale, I wrote this in 2014… and I’m sure you know (or at least, I hope you know) that a lot has changed in Diyarbakir since then. I would assume there’s a Havas bus, but I don’t actually know.

      Reply

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