Friday, July 17, 2026

Türkiye Kedisi - Cats of Turkey

 

Resting in the ruins of Ephesus

For Nicole's Friday Face Off I am sharing cats' faces today. In August 2018, after we had come back from our trip to Turkey, I had already written about the cats of Istanbul. However, somehow I missed to give the cats outside of Istanbul the same "honor". Until today.

In Göreme

The Turkish people are very cat (and dog) friendly people. Especially cats are seen everywhere - most of them are stray cats that nevertheless are looked after. And they are loved by everyone and everyone looks out for them. It was quite amazing to witness.

The cats seem to hang out everywhere - in the streets, in ancient historical sites, in national parks, in museums, even in mosques.

Keeping us company while we had dinner in a street café in Selçuk

We visited the Ephesus Museum in Selçuk and look who was hiding there! Professor Cat, taking a nap.


The roof of the building across from our beautiful small hotel in Selçuk was a meeting point for cats of the neighborhood.





But the highest number of cats we saw in the archaeological site of Ephesus.


It was a punishable hot day and the cats took all the spots in the shade.





They were completely unimpressed by this:


They did what cats can do best - sleeping, napping, resting.



Only a few were a bit more alert.



I guess sleeping in such a historical place on such ancient stones is just perfect for cats. Meow.


If you love cats, you will love this 2016 movie, "Kedi" (cat), about the cats in Istanbul. I loved it. Here is the trailer. 

I might not be able to get to your blogs today. Kibeau is ready to cross the rainbow bridge (he is 18 years old) and we hope the vet can come over tomorrow. Today is probably his last day and I want to be at his side. He has always loved company.


2 comments:

The Rev. Arnoldo L. Romero, MLA said...

My wife and I had two outdoor cats on different occasions during our first 30 years of marriage. However, we always had dogs. Now we have 3 indoor cats and no dogs. They are all rescues. We found 2 out in the middle of the streets of Del Rio, and 1 found us, when she ended up in one of our flower beds. They are sweet, loving, and loyal companions. Happy FFO!

Christine said...

Lovely cats