Fantôme d'Orient

A weary sailor awakens in the quiet of his family home, restless and haunted by memories of a distant Istanbul that has lingered in his mind for a decade. As midnight deepens, he wanders through rooms that seem to echo the ornate arches and scented tiles of an ancient eastern palace, each corner stirring a lingering, melancholy charm of the Orient. The impending month‑long voyage to Constantinople becomes both a personal pilgrimage and an unsettling confrontation with a past love that vanished like a fleeting circus performer.

Through lyrical introspection, the narrator confronts the tension between his restless sea‑life and the pull of a city that has become a phantom haunting his dreams. The story unfolds with vivid sensory detail—turbulent seas, fragrant fabrics, and the echo of promises—inviting listeners to share his blend of anticipation, dread, and yearning for a place that feels both home and mystery.