İstanbul is a city in motion. A city one feels bombarded by sounds, people and constant movement. The city used to have more tranquil corners which have unfortunately been invaded by millions of locals and tourists racing to get in to have a bite of the experience. But there is still one place that feels like a safe haven far from the madding crowd, perfect for contemplation and reading, two essential things for the soul and that is the Ahmet Hamdi Tanpınar Library inside Gülhane Park.
Ahmet Hamdi Tanpınar was a professor of Literature at İstanbul University and is considered as one of the greatest Turkish novelists of the 20th century by literary critics. He has become exceptionally popular in recent decades in Turkey especially with one particular novel that has also been translated into English named ‘The Time Regulation Institute’. Personally I find him rather challenging to read as I have a hard time grasping his references that no longer feel relevant to the contemporary world and his language full of old Turkish words which I can not grasp.
The library dedicated to this great novelist is inside a 19th century Ottoman building that used to function as the watch tower of Ottoman Sultans that enabled the Sultans to gaze at the passing Ottoman troops. This explains why it is located on the end of a steep slope overlooking the road that takes one from the Sultanahmet square to Sirkeci.
The library hosts a rich collection of Turkish books focused on literature, art and history. I have had the chance of working in the library many times with my laptop but this is no longer possible as the management wants this library to be a place only for book lovers who love to read but the irony is that there are so few of these people in the city which explains the reason why the library is almost always so quiet, of course except for the moments when tourists and youth visit the library for taking selfies.
I love the architecture of the building with high ceilings, beautiful wall decorations and elegant furniture. with a lovely view of the Gülhane Park. It is a typical example of 19th century Ottoman artistic and architectural aesthetics.
So if you like to read in peace in a historical building, pay a visit to this library and don’t forget to see the lower floor where classical concerts are held from time to time.
