The Story Of Ali Rıza And Ahmet

How strange is the story of
Ali Rıza and Ahmet
One lives in the village
The other in the city
And every morning
The one in the city goes to the village
And the one in the village to the city

poem by Orhan Veli Kanik
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Hoy Lu-Lu

I wish I too had black friends
With strange unheard-of names.
I wish I could travel with them
All the way from Madagascar To China.
I wish one of them,
On the deck, gazing at the stars,
Would sing 'Hoy lu-lu' every night.

I wish I could run into one of them
Out of the clear blue
In Paris.

poem by Orhan Veli Kanik
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Good Weather

This good weather ruined me,
I resigned in such a weather
From my government job.
I got used to tobacco in such a weather,
I fell in love in such a weather;
I forgot to take home bread and salt
In such a weather;
My disease of writing poems
Recurred in such a weather;
This good weather ruined me.

poem by Orhan Veli Kanik
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For Istanbul

April

It's impossible
To write poems
If you're in love
And not to
If the month is April

Desires & Memories

Desires are different
So are the memories.
How can anyone live, tell me,
In a town that has no sunshine?

Insects

No use thinking,
Just crave!
See, that's what the insects do.

[...] Read more

poem by Orhan Veli Kanik
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To Leave This City

This is the city to walk around in the rain
Staring at the barges in the harbor
And to hum songs through the night.
The city has countless streets
Bustling with people running around...
The waitress who brings me my tea every evening
And whom I like a lot although she's a White Russian
Is in this city.

The old pianist who turns around
To look at me
When he sneaks in pieces by Schumann and Brahms
While playing waltzes and foxtrot
Is also in this city.

The ferry boats that caryy passengers
To the village where I was born are in this city.
So are my memories,
All those I love,
And the graves of my loved ones.

[...] Read more

poem by Orhan Veli Kanik
Added by Poetry Lover
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