In Istanbul, you capture the city’s essence best in its second-hand bookshops. These places reek of history, love, and longing. As you allow the subtle, smoky scent of history wafting from the stalls to envelop you, you’ll find these unique spots have a mystical air, offering books from every genre and era. It’s not just the books, which are doorways to colorful imaginary worlds, but also the vendors who come to life with their smiles and knowledge, enchanting you every time. These walking libraries, which can recount the experience of any randomly chosen book from the countless towers of books in front of them, symbolize not just the soul of the books but also the spirit of Istanbul itself. The bookshops, where not only books but also postcards and records can be found with their historical textures, are addictive. Knowing that every sentence written on the postcards has touched someone’s life and seeing the smiling faces on those pictorial papers fills one with the energy of life. The Istanbul second-hand bookshops, embodying life at every step, have opened their doors, waiting for us to bear witness to life.
