The Karakoy area
conjures vivid memories for Mr. Pamuk of his childhood.
He pointed out a row of
bicycle shops, where his father bought him his first two-wheeler.
A bit farther
on is a passageway leading to the Tunel, one of the world’s oldest subterranean
transit lines.
The two-stop subway, built by French engineers, began in 1875
and still links Karakoy Square with the embassy district in the central Beyoglu
district.
In its early incarnation the train consisted of a steam engine that
pulled two wooden cars, with separate compartments for men and women.
“The
empire fell apart, and there was no other subway line in Turkey for 120 more
years,” said Mr. Pamuk, who loved riding the trains with his parents as a
child.
-Joshua Hammer
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