Experience street life through a virtual app.

If you're craving the feeling of sitting in a car and cruising through unfamiliar cities and new roads, listening to the crackling sound of the local radio blaring from inside the car while also hearing the bustling sounds of the streets… You'll be surprised to learn more.Drive & Listen- A new application has been released that can provide users with all of these vivid experiences.

This "tour" not only provides you with authentic visuals of the city you're driving through, but its special feature lies in the sounds. The engine noise blends with the murmurs of the streets – a vibrant symphony so immersive you'll easily believe you're sitting in a real car; at the same time, the "in-car" radio plays popular local songs or reads live news broadcasts in the local language.

This app was created by Erkam Şeker, born in Istanbul and currently pursuing a master's degree in Munich. He launched the app on the Heroku cloud platform amidst global travel restrictions due to Covid-19. The Drive & Listen app quickly became a lifeline for travel enthusiasts yearning for a trip, or for those stranded and homesick…

“I really missed the feeling of driving around my hometown, including its daily traffic and noise, so I searched for some Istanbul street videos on YouTube to watch,” Erkram recounted. “It was quite fun. But then I started thinking: why not listen to the radio while driving – to have a more complete, authentic experience? I'm sure others feel the same way.”

When users open the app, they select the city they want to drive to, based on videos Erkam curates from YouTube travel channels or dashcam footage submitted by other users. "I add new cities every day," Erkam says, "Many people from all over the world even message me and offer to contribute videos." After selecting a city, users can choose to listen to street sounds or live broadcasts from local radio stations to enhance the experience.

"Initially, I created this app to alleviate homesickness, but now I realize it's also a new way to explore cities – right from your home. And it also helps us become more patient and relaxed during these days of restricted activity."

Lan Oanh