Yesterday, I was strolling through Akmerkez, Istanbul's premier shopping mall*. Minding my own business, listening to my iPod, I unexpectedly ran into my friend Bahar. Sort of made me feel like I am settling in a little bit. Now, this is not the first time this type of thing has happened. In November, I was walking down Istiklal Avenue, central Istanbul's main thoroughfare, when I was recognized by a friend of a friend.

What's weird is that greater Istanbul has about 14 million residents - by far the largest city in Europe. I think that perhaps various parts of Istanbul are frequented by different circles of people, so that a series of "villages" has formed within the metropolis, as in New York City.

In any case, it feels good to be able to run into people on the street.


*Real estate geeks will note that Akmerkez won the 1995 ICSC International Design and Development Award. They actually did a pretty good job on the structure and layout.