Paul Benjamin Osterlund

@paulosterlund.bsky.social

391 followers 104 following 40 posts

Istanbul-based independent journalist.
Check out my Substack FLANÖR
flanor.substack.com

Reposted by Paul Benjamin Osterlund

Turkey recap @turkeyrecap.bsky.social
[ View ] Apr 28, 2024 at 11:41 UTC

🍖"Istanbul: The State of the Stomach" by @paulosterlund.bsky.social.

0 replies 2 reposts 1 likes

Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Apr 02, 2024 at 22:46 UTC

Sunday’s elections proves that there is no such thing as a “Turkey expert.” At best, those of us who follow the country will be perpetual students of Turkey.

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Mar 12, 2024 at 20:39 UTC

My latest:

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Mar 06, 2024 at 18:46 UTC

Salepepe: Istanbul’s Globetrotting Pizza My latest for Culinary Backstreets

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Mar 05, 2024 at 15:13 UTC

My latest:

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Feb 24, 2024 at 15:08 UTC

Diyarbakır-Mardin hattında: Asma, su, toprak ve tarih

Güneydoğu Anadolu’nun inatçı şarap üreticilerini yazdım 🍷

aposto.com/i/diyarbakir...

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Feb 12, 2024 at 20:41 UTC

Pretty sure it did!

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Feb 12, 2024 at 18:31 UTC

Not to mention my Farm Bank story, which technically took two years 🤪

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Feb 09, 2024 at 16:58 UTC

My latest for Culinary Backstreets:

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Reposted by Paul Benjamin Osterlund

Özgür Öğret @ozgurogret.bsky.social
[ View ] Feb 08, 2024 at 10:16 UTC

“Impunity in violence against journalists inevitably results in even more violence and a less informed public everywhere, every time. It’s never too late to improve Turkey’s impunity track record for crimes committed against the news media.”
cpj.org/2024/02/turk...

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Feb 07, 2024 at 13:41 UTC

Very close to the center though! When I fly in there I just walk out of the airport and take a dolmuş into town 😂

1 replies 0 reposts 2 likes

Reposted by Paul Benjamin Osterlund

al-Mutaghatris @al-mutaghatris.bsky.social
[ View ] Feb 06, 2024 at 20:52 UTC

one year anniversary of the devastating earthquake in Southeastern Turkey/ North Syria. Photo by @paulosterlund.bsky.social

0 replies 1 reposts 1 likes

Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Feb 01, 2024 at 17:36 UTC

My latest for my Substack FLANÖR:

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Jan 24, 2024 at 12:11 UTC

When I was posting on the other site about Greeks in Athens deported from Istanbul during the Cyprus crisis some knob was like “well have you written about Bulgarian Turks and Crimean Tatars exiled from their homelands? No you haven’t” and I was like “in fact I have, here are the links” 🤦🏼‍♂️

1 replies 0 reposts 3 likes

Reposted by Paul Benjamin Osterlund

Alexander Christie-Miller @achristiemiller.bsky.social
[ View ] Jan 22, 2024 at 18:10 UTC

First review of ‘To The City’! A lovely write up by @paulosterlund.bsky.social accompanied by his own evocative pictures of the land walls: flanor.substack.com/p/to-the-cit...

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Jan 22, 2024 at 11:31 UTC

My latest is a review of @achristiemiller.bsky.social’s excellent new book To The City: Life and Death Along The Ancient Walls of Istanbul

flanor.substack.com/p/to-the-cit...

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Dec 22, 2023 at 08:37 UTC

Quite an eclectic Best Bites Istanbul: 2023 for Culinary Backstreets. My picks include a delightfully odd Abkhazian meze, fiery Nepali dumplings, perfect Adana kaburga çöp şiş and delicious Tokyo-style Neapolitan pizza.

culinarybackstreets.com/cities-categ...

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Dec 10, 2023 at 17:12 UTC

My latest for Culinary Backstreets about my favorite neighborhood sandwich shop:

culinarybackstreets.com/cities-categ...

0 replies 0 reposts 1 likes

Reposted by Paul Benjamin Osterlund

Dilek @dilekgoker.bsky.social
[ View ] Dec 08, 2023 at 19:26 UTC

Mütevazı bir mekana gittik bugün arkadaşımla, @paulosterlund.bsky.social birden fazla kez yazmıştı Çağlayan'daki Kaburgacı Koray'ı, metro ile Taksim'den Çağlayan'a geçmek çok kolaymış, mekan temiz bir mekan her şeyin lezzeti yerinde fiyatlar makul iyi işte bir yer daha öğrenmiş olduk👍

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Dec 07, 2023 at 17:25 UTC

30 yaşıma girdikten bu yana, daha gençken nefret ettiğim CROCS alasım gittikçe artıyor. Meğerse ABDdeki mid-thirties olan arkadaşlarımın çoğunda CROCS var 😂

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Dec 07, 2023 at 16:10 UTC

net yay

1 replies 0 reposts 1 likes

Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Dec 06, 2023 at 11:43 UTC

Tarlabaşı, 5 Aralık 2023

0 replies 0 reposts 5 likes

Reposted by Paul Benjamin Osterlund

Selim Koru @selimkoru.bsky.social
[ View ] Dec 04, 2023 at 16:20 UTC

My recent piece kulturkampftr.substack.com/p/a-turk-in-...

0 replies 2 reposts 3 likes

Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Nov 25, 2023 at 13:55 UTC

I recently explored the perimeter and interior of the controversial Taksim 360 project in Tarlabaşı, which began in 2012 and is still incomplete. My latest:

flanor.substack.com/p/urban-tran...

1 replies 2 reposts 4 likes

Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Nov 24, 2023 at 01:21 UTC

Love hearing boomers calling weed “dope” 🤣

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Nov 21, 2023 at 06:41 UTC

My latest, about Antakya Mutfağı, a fantastic restaurant in Beyoğlu serving the best Hatay cuisine outside of Hatay:

culinarybackstreets.com/cities-categ...

0 replies 0 reposts 4 likes

Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Oct 31, 2023 at 16:36 UTC

My latest, with some thoughts on Istanbul following the centennial of the republic and leading up to the 2024 local elections:

open.substack.com/pub/flanor/p...

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Oct 26, 2023 at 20:26 UTC

Taksim Metro, 26 Ekim 2023

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Reposted by Paul Benjamin Osterlund

Sinem Adar @sinemadar.bsky.social
[ View ] Oct 22, 2023 at 07:55 UTC

It is clear: militarism, nationalism, and Islamism are Turkey's three musketeers. The order and shade might change depending on the situation, but the trio is there to stay.

1 replies 3 reposts 8 likes

Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Oct 19, 2023 at 15:12 UTC

My latest for Culinary Backstreets about about Bay Köfte, an excellent food truck in Dikilitaş serving staples like köfte and sucuk ekmek mixed with roasted vegetables and kuymak cheese from Trabzon:

culinarybackstreets.com/cities-categ...

0 replies 0 reposts 4 likes

Reposted by Paul Benjamin Osterlund

Alexander Christie-Miller @achristiemiller.bsky.social
[ View ] Oct 14, 2023 at 21:42 UTC

Welcome to bluesky @kenansharpe.bsky.social, who has insightful commentary on Turkish music, culture and politics.

2 replies 3 reposts 10 likes

Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Oct 11, 2023 at 19:26 UTC

Let’s get more people on this thing! I’ve got five invites, those who know journos who want one get at me!

0 replies 0 reposts 1 likes

Reposted by Paul Benjamin Osterlund

Selim Koru @selimkoru.bsky.social
[ View ] Oct 11, 2023 at 13:10 UTC

This place is so much better than twitter/X. I'll be linking to my pieces here from now on.

You can also sign up for my newsletter here: kulturkampftr.substack.com

0 replies 4 reposts 11 likes

Reposted by Paul Benjamin Osterlund

Ingrid Woudwijk @ingridwoudwijk.bsky.social
[ View ] Oct 05, 2023 at 19:45 UTC

About a year ago, I interviewed Dicle Müftüoğlu and Sedat Yılmaz for a report on the jailing of Kurdish journalists, they were all but optimistic and it’s telling that they are now both in jail

0 replies 5 reposts 3 likes

Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Oct 04, 2023 at 14:51 UTC

My latest for my Substack FLANÖR about an iconic Ankara shoemaker who made footwear for Zeki Müren and Bülent Ecevit.

flanor.substack.com/p/the-shoema...

0 replies 1 reposts 1 likes

Reposted by Paul Benjamin Osterlund

Diego Cupolo @diegocupolo.bsky.social
[ View ] Oct 04, 2023 at 18:00 UTC

The Zangezur corridor is pitched as a project to connect Nakhchivan to the rest of Azerbaijan and Turkey to the rest of Turkic world.

But the route could have broader implications, like facilitating Russian sanctions evasion or curtailing Iranian trade.

My latest for @turkeyrecap.bsky.social:

0 replies 5 reposts 4 likes

Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Oct 04, 2023 at 14:51 UTC

My latest for my Substack FLANÖR about an iconic Ankara shoemaker who made footwear for Zeki Müren and Bülent Ecevit.

flanor.substack.com/p/the-shoema...

0 replies 1 reposts 1 likes

Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Sep 30, 2023 at 17:12 UTC

Beşiktaş İskelesi ⛴🕯

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Sep 25, 2023 at 17:06 UTC

yok canım Kadıköy’de mi rakı içeceğim 😎😜

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Sep 25, 2023 at 16:39 UTC

😒

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Sep 24, 2023 at 18:21 UTC

Kasımpaşa, Deniz Lokantası 🤌

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Sep 23, 2023 at 23:06 UTC

Hızlı Taksim Geceleri ✨

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Sep 20, 2023 at 16:59 UTC

The latest from my Substack FLANÖR:
flanor.substack.com/p/up-all-nig...

0 replies 0 reposts 5 likes

Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Sep 19, 2023 at 22:49 UTC

Kurtuluş Son Durak, Efsane Dürümcü Baba. Semtin en harika sokak lezzeti 🌯

0 replies 0 reposts 5 likes

Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Sep 19, 2023 at 22:14 UTC

Gonna start sharing more here!

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Paul Benjamin Osterlund @paulosterlund.bsky.social
[ View ] Sep 17, 2023 at 18:56 UTC

I keep losing followers on Twitter and gaining them on here. Coincidence? Either way check my Substack FLANOR:
flanor.substack.com