HELLAvatrip 2022 – εις την Πόλιν – Appendix 2 – Cats

Cats as seen in the cities. There were indeed plenty of them, mostly in Istanbul. The city hosts a sizeable feral cat population, with estimates ranging from a hundred thousand to over a million stray cats. According to the Wikipedia, many citizens view street animals as communally-owned pets, rather than traditional strays, and and the country has a blanket no-kill, no capture policy. On the streets of the city there are around 125k cats, at least according to the world's favourite encyclopedia. In many places, tiny “cat houses” have been prepared for stray cats (e.g. at the old Sirkeci station). The cats are being fed by the locals and overall seems well-kept.

Even Hagia Sophia used to have its own special cat – Gli. The cat was there for 16 years, between 2004 and November 2020.