Greetings from Istanbul, where stray cats and dogs are loved
This shop owner at the Spice Market lured us in by shouting, “Philippines! I’m a friend of Edu Manzano!” He sells this amazing winter tea with eucalyptus.
I’m in Istanbul for filming. Yeah, I won’t use the other verb. After the coup attempt and the terror attacks, the city feels melancholy and antsy. But it’s still gorgeous. There are fewer people about, but traffic is still heavy.
Again I’m impressed at the number of big, fluffy, friendly cats and dogs on the streets. Our guide explained that the strays are tagged, neutered and vaccinated, then returned to their neighborhoods where the residents feed and look after them.
Royd misses his beagle.
You can measure the humanity of a society by the way they treat their stray cats and dogs.
If people are hungry and desperate, I would understand if they killed dogs for food. But killing a dog for onscreen entertainment, even if it claims to be art with a message, is wrong.
Killing dogs is wrong. And killing people is wrong. It’s not an either/or. And it’s a reflection on our society that it has come to this.
Off to work. I leave you with this mountain of baklava.
Answers to questions you might be asking, unless you wandered onto this site purely by accident >>>
January 7th, 2017 at 13:17
So it’s snow storming in Istanbul now. I was just thinking of the homeless people out in the streets. Then I read this morning on a Facebook group that the metro was/is running all through the night to help people go home. Also, that people can call 153 if they see homeless people so that they can be taken to shelters. It is not easy to leave this city not because I can’t but because Istanbul really has me by the heartstrings.
January 7th, 2017 at 17:42
oriames: Thanks for joining us yesterday!
January 7th, 2017 at 18:49
My pleasure! I just realized today I already follow the director on Instagram. Greetings to everyone and I hope you all enjoy the rest of your stay in Turkey.
January 10th, 2017 at 07:07
Not a big fan of alvin, and after killing a dog in oro, i like him even less.