Have you ever tried swimming between two continents? Well, many people in Istanbul have, taking advantage of the perfect climate during the summer months, and swimming in the waters that separate the Asian & European sides of the city.
The Sea of Marmara as it’s commonly known is located entirely within the borders of Turkey, connecting the Black Sea to the Aegean via the Bosphorus Strait. Around 280km long with an average depth of 494m, it hasn’t got many strong currents and therefore even though you can’t swim from one side to the other, it’s high salinity and temperate conditions make it the perfect place in which to have a dip. You might also be interested to know that The Marmaris Sea does have two Island Groups, firstly the resort areas of the Kizil Islands and secondly the Marmara Islands from where the majority of Granite, Slate and Marble is quarried.
Istanbul itself actually as 85 accessible beaches and this year attendance amongst the locals in particular has rapidly increased as they struggle with economic difficulties, preferring to stay local rather than travel too far afield. Metin Çakmakc? is just one of the many people who visits his local beach regularly to swim in the Marmara, and he says that ‘A sea like this for a gigantic city like Istanbul is not bad, plus in order to meet demand officials have added another 100 sun-loungers to the beach in recent months, creating space for around 300 people’. ‘It’s only 25 minutes’ walk from my home’ he added.
Eren Bizmi is another who travels regularly to his local beach in the Sile neighbourhood, and he happily mentions that the Black Sea is ‘my favourite as it’s less salty’. It’s no problem if it’s gets busy though as he can find another beach within 35-40 minutes’ drive from his home in the city centre. There are some who even go as far as swimming in the Bosphorus Strait itself where the water can reach up to 23 degrees in the Summer. Best to learn the nature of the currents first though before just diving in!
