Güntürk Üstün | Mediterranean Poetry

Raised in Izmir by the Aegean Coast, Mr Güntürk Üstün, a retired medical doctor, a poet, a long-time transportation fan has lived in Istanbul for the past 24 years and he currently works on his new books of poetry [He has written and published 7 books (all in Turkish) until now]. His poems have been published in various literary journals and anthologies in Turkey as well as in a English language poetry website called Mediterranean Poetry [www.odyssey.pm] based in Sweden. As an avid reader and researcher on the transportation issues, he also comments regularly (as a weekly columnist) by using some of his poetic skills in a popular Turkish logistics/transport news website [Lojiport]. Mr Üstün is fluent both in English and French. He divides his time between Istanbul and Izmir.

BIBLIOGRAPHY (Published Books)

Kıyı Şeridi Ve Kıyı Sakini Şiirleri (June 2014)

Demiryolu Palas Oteli’nden Şiirler (April 2015)

Limanı Gören Bir Çatı Katından Şiirler (November 2016)

Raylı Sistemin Uzun Öyküsünün Kısa Şiirleri (November 2016)

Denizyoluna Turkuaz Gölgeli Dizeler (May 2017)

Raysever Şair Merhabasının Dizeleri (May 2017)

Havayoluna Selam Uçuran Dizeler (September 2018)

NOMADIC WAY OF DREAM

Some shattered things
Don’t ever change
And it’s always the same
Forlorn and somber story
For my nomadic way of dream
All fall and winter long

Her face, her eyes, her hair
Her lips, her smile, her voice
Her lustful silhouette plus
Her giddy fragrance
Comfortably lying down
In my vivacious memory

And they all make me feel like
I’m walking through
The Porto Pino Beach’s sand dunes
Heated by the blazing July sun
While carrying an ice-cold bottle
Of natural passion fruit juice

I decide to move a little further
By closing my eyes tight
And I could almost be
At the cyan front door
Of her deserted humble house

Yes, living and learning together
For extended periods of time
Was impossible with her
But sadly, I got no woman and place
Left to go back to safely now

MARITIME TRIPLETS (Part-7)

Whatever the literary world’s final decision
About the poetic value of my Maritime Triplets is
It will be highly controversial in my watchful eyes

I should admit that I’m not so good with names
But I remember Clarissa well, waiting for me next to her car
Outside the Civitavecchia cruise terminal on that cool spring day

Some senior passenger ships might have
All the positive luck of returning to active service
From radical refurbishment, some don’t!

A sunlight and surf state of mind draws
Many tourists to Alaçatı every summer
By tucking Çeşme in a tiny crisis of jealousy

Non-military high tech
On the rise on the high seas
To prove that cruises are getting futuristic

It took a while to uncover the issue but cruise culture
From the Mediterranean has officially or unofficially
Reached all the distinguished global ports

I pretended to go farther along the French Riviera last night
So I visited “To Catch A Thief” from my considerable DVD collection
In the refreshing company of a scrumptious vanilla-pineapple milkshake

A jewel in the crown of Turkey’s Mediterranean coastline
“Adrasan Beach” looks like a well-hidden natural pool
Attracting fans of tranquility and safe swimming

Unlike the ocean liners of yesteryear bringing
A nostalgic grandeur back isn’t and shouldn’t be
The contemporary cruise liners’ futile task

Breakfast orange juice matches
The long curly hair of my treasured girlfriend
And her yellow-and-white striped beach towel

Trips to Corsica, Sardinia and Sicily
As island hopping across the Mediterranean
Pretty much guarantee bragging rights

Let the ever awake ocean lulls you easily to sleep around midnight
And leaves you undisturbed until after eight each morning
While your are a guest at your favorite big beach hotel

After taking a peek inside the historic
And functioning lighthouse at the cape
We looked to the horizon for a glimpse of a ferry or freighter

Oceans, seas, rivers secretly single out
To elucidate the meaning of existence
As the perpetual flow of nonsense

Despite the sand and surf
In some beaches, it’s the sunsets
That really seal the deal for visitors

In the four corners of the world
The proud and passionate Mediterranean
Never fails to bewitch and surprise

A 15-minute easy walk from the ferry dock
Got me to a newly opened trendy boutique hotel
Which will be my home for the next four days

Sensitive, sensual and stirring
Mediterranean women’s flammable loving
Is not for the male faint of heart

Four choux or éclairs with a cup coffee or tea at a bakery
Four choux or éclairs with a cup of hot chocolate at a pâtisserie
Four choux or éclairs with my pastry chef girlfriend at a seaside café

The multicolored Mediterranean cities are all bustling
With fire of life and joy of living plus a rich cuisine
That it is virtually out of the question to resist

For lunch, we headed to that well-known grill restaurant
And discovered that there was no better place than its terrace
To have a laid-back drink with an absolutely killer view of the harbor

Because the astonishing Aegean coastline
Doesn’t sit on open ocean, there’s little surf
But plenty of opportunity to swim comfortably around

Young women’s fancy street style
Doesn’t capture much the fuzzy attention
Of the green-eyed Mediterranean boardwalks

Audacious, fascinating, unique, sublime and mysterious
The city of Paris awaits to show you its maritime secrets
By way of the River Seine’s pleasant undulations and flow

Our chances to come face to face with dolphins
Which are the Princes’ Islands’ friendliest neighbors
Are getting smaller and smaller with times

A ConRo vessel crosses the challenging waves
Facing the strong westerly winds intrepidly
In the unpredictable Atlantic Ocean

After such a yummy but heavy Mediterranean menu
All I need is a cup of watermelon granita
Served with a glass of cold limoncello

The limpid and tepid waters around Göcek
Make it a consummate location for enticing diving
Inviting snorkelling and other aquatic activities

Here, on this almost untouched island
Cerulean waters meet powder-fine sand
With piles of striking seashells and pebbles

For long haul, guaranteed sunshine
Antalya is always an apt and perfect option
Better wear your hat and sunglasses

Stuck between the radiant Nice and Monaco
The poky but appealing Beaulieu-Sur-Mer
Is definitely pleased of not being Saint-Tropez

The romantic and ecstatic beauty of Paris lifts my soul
Its ethereal and seductive language makes me swoon
And its irresistible gastronomy tries to delay my departure for Ventimiglia

I adore seas, seaports and ships
Always have, always will and that’s where
My soul-soothing seafaring poetry started

For other contributions by Güntürk Üstün, please follow the links below: