As we pulled farther away from the shore, the European side of the city expanded into a thousand new angles; something about the hills and curves and magnificence of the point of view meant that you always felt you were seeing the Old City for the first time. To this day, on those ferries, even in my darkest moments, I feel nothing but complete joy, as if immediately thrust into a state of meditation I cannot achieve on land, or on any other boat—an Istanbul-specific, ferry-bound peace.
