June6_The Invisible Side of Gentrification in Istanbul’s Trendy Asian-Side Neighborhoods

This excursion explores the hidden face of gentrification in down town  Asian-side. We will be moving from Moda to Yeldeğirmeni, increasingly popular neighbourhoods of Kadıköy  district, which developed in 19th century as an important residential and commercial center. Different social geographies are layered around Kadköy’s market, its ferry connections and coastal neighborhoods: Moda became associated with more affluent and cosmopolitan residential life, while Yeldeğirmeni, closer to Haydarpaşa train station and transport infrastructures, carried histories of modest housing, migration, non-Muslim communities, labor, and early apartment life. After periods of decline, disinvestment, and physical wear in the late twentieth century, both neighborhoods have been revalued since the 2000s and 2010s, but in different ways: through cafés, cultural venues, restored buildings, short-term rentals, creative-class settlement, and new forms of consumption. This walk asks what remains behind this attractive public image: whose memories are preserved, whose lives are displaced or made invisible, and how urban belonging is reshaped through gentrification.

First part of the tour will be spent in Moda, the affluent part of Kadıköy. Moda 63 is a memory space run by Aziz Nesin Foundation located in a former family apartment, where domestic objects, family archives, and everyday traces open a more intimate layer of Kadıköy’s urban history. The second part will take place in the modest neighbourhood of Yeldeğirmeni. Participants will walk through a short route featuring selected historic apartment buildings, which may include Altınöz Apartment, Tevfik Tura / former Demirciyan Apartment, Valpreda / Italian Apartment, and Celal Muhtar Apartment, using these buildings as street-level entry points into early apartment culture, minority and Levantine histories, Haydarpaşa-related labor and mobility, property relations, naming practices, and the transformation of the old residential fabric into today’s desirable urban landscape. The excursion will end at arthereistanbul, an artist-run space in Yeldeğirmeni founded by displaced Syrian artists, with a short briefing on art, refuge, cultural solidarity, and the role of creative spaces in a changing neighborhood.

Physical and technical details

How to get there
The participants will join other groups going to the Asian side, at the Konak Hotel / Elmadağ at 09 15. Groups will cross to the Asian side together via metro and metrobus on the highway. The tour leader meets the group at Terminal Kadıköy.

Timetable

09:15 Departure Konak hotel

09:30 Departure Taksim, transfer to Asia via Mecidiyeköy

10:15 Arrival Terminal Kadıköy, common exploration of the Terminal, the new commercial transport hub together with other groups 

10:45 Departure for Moda 

11:15 Moda 63

12:30 Departure for Yeldeğirmeni through the historic Kadıköy Çarşı (Bazaar), street level stroll with apartments

13:30 Arthere

14:30 Arrival TAK, common lunch

The walk, the terrain and the difficulty level

The total walking distance is approximately 4 – 4,5 km, within ca 2 hrs, depending on the final number of apartments stops in Yeldeğirmeni. The walking itself will take around 75–90 minutes. Approximately 1–1.5 hours will be spent indoors, mainly at Moda 63 and during the final briefing at arthereistanbul. The apartment buildings in Yeldeğirmeni will be observed from the outside as short street-level stops.

The route is mostly urban asphalt and pavement. Some sidewalks may be narrow, uneven, or crowded. There may be mild slopes and some cobbled or uneven surfaces, especially in side streets. The tour is physically Easy to medium. The route does not require intense physical effort, but participants should be comfortable walking for several hours with pauses. Comfortable walking shoes are recommended.

As lunch will be taken late snacks and tea/coffee will be organized during the field trip.

The tour will be conducted by Ezgi Karaoğlu