Its name may literally mean “Old City”, but Eskişehir has put on a bright new face in recent years. The opening of a contemporary art museum in September 2019 has helped draw renewed attention to this northwestern Turkish city, known for its pedestrian-friendly green spaces, colorful historic district, and photogenic network of canals. Here’s why you should consider visiting.
New Modern Art Museum
With two universities supporting a vibrant population of 800,000, the city possesses a youthful and energetic atmosphere. The distinctive Odunpazarı Modern Museum, a showcase for contemporary art from Turkey, was designed by noted international firm Kengo Kuma & Associates. This remarkable building sits at the intersection of Eskişehir’s newer city center and its traditional quarter of Ottoman wooden houses.
History, Art, and Local Crafts in Odunpazarı
Odunpazarı is the first stop on a visitor’s agenda, bustling with domestic tourists on weekends who stroll its cobbled streets and capture pictures of its vividly painted buildings. One of the lovingly restored historical homes in the area houses the City Museum/Museum of Contemporary Glass Art, centered around an airy courtyard featuring a central fountain. Another elegant late-19th-century mansion has been transformed into an artistic space known as Eldem Sanat Alanı.
Within a traditional Odunpazarı home, the intriguing Crimean Tatar Culture House provides ethnographic displays about the Turkic ethnic group that migrated here in the 18th and 19th centuries. This area is also famous for its culinary specialty, the flaky mincemeat-stuffed pastry known as çibörek, often enjoyed with pickled hot peppers in a traditional open-air café nearby. For a sweet treat afterwards, visit the small yet charming confectioner Mustafa Zade Lokumları.
Just uphill, the serene and lush complex surrounding the Kurşunlu Mosque serves as a center for local crafts, featuring an active glass-blowing workshop as well as various galleries and shops within its atmospheric chambers, including one showcasing carved pipes and other objects made from meerschaum, a white stone celebrated in the Eskişehir region.
Regeneration of the Riverside
After exploring Odunpazarı, head for Hamam Yolu Caddesi, a pedestrianized promenade filled with parks and people. As you stroll north toward the winding Porsuk River, you will find pleasant walkways and cafes enhanced by Italian-style gondolas. The revitalization of the formerly polluted Porsuk River, alongside the removal of cars from large downtown areas, marks major urban improvements thanks to the leadership of long-time Mayor Yılmaz Büyükerşen.
Esra Eldem, gallery manager of Eldem Sanat Alanı, reflects on the transformation: “Mayor Büyükerşen has really changed the city.” After studying and working in Istanbul, she returned to Eskişehir three years ago, drawn by the new opportunities. “There’s definitely something emerging here,” she says.
Getting There
New high-speed train connections from Istanbul (approximately 3 hours) and Ankara (1.5 hours) make Eskişehir an ideal weekend excursion from either of Turkey’s two largest cities. Given the city’s rising popularity, it is advisable to plan ahead for your travel arrangements to ensure availability.
