Through its very design, Istanbul is a gateway. A city divided between Europe and Asia, its neighbourhoods straddle the banks of the two separate continents across the Bosphorus Strait. It is the first place many head to in a country whose borders remain more accessible than others, the first place that many head when home is no longer somewhere they can stay.
Perhaps the single place where this sense of crossroads can be felt most keenly is onboard one of the public ferries that circle six major harbours in the city centre each day. The political turmoil that sends people fleeing abroad can be felt everyday in the stories of these passengers.
