Istanbul Basics & Guides

One day, after having heard our neighbor's son practicing his guitar almost daily, I went to her door and asked in piecemeal Turkish if...

So you’ve come to Turkey and plan to stay for a while, or you already live here and have decided to save up some...

So, you’ve been in Turkey for a while and decided that it might make sense to buy a home or maybe you have your...

Long ago, great explorers traversed huge bodies of water with little more than the stars to guide them. And now? Well, you just need...

A few days ago I was waiting for the bus in the ridiculously long line at Beşiktaş Square - some mornings the line turns...

One of the many seemingly incessant complaints I hear from other yabancılar is a disdain for Turkish wines. Navigating the wine scene in Turkey...

Well, hello there. Chances are you are leaving Turkey with your pet, and you’ve stumbled upon this page looking for advice. Don’t worry, we're...

Galata is a beautiful neighborhood in the apex of Beyoğlu district. It used to be a sanctuary for Turkey’s Greek, Armenian, Italian and Jewish...

One of the simplest and easiest ways to help others is to donate blood. Back in Barcelona I was a regular blood donor, donating...

If I knew then what I know now: Which neighborhood has the best, cheapest or most fashionable dresses? How much should I pay? Should I...

When I first moved to Istanbul in 2016, I too experienced loneliness. After all, I was a foreigner in a new country, who did...

When my family and I moved to Istanbul back in 2001, I had to convince others that Turkey was one of the most underrated...

So, you’ve been in Turkey for a while and decided that it might make sense to buy a house or maybe you have your...

“Metrobüs” is a word whispered in dark corners of the yabangee community in İstanbul. So what is this so called Metrobüs? How does it...

When I first came to Turkey six years ago for a vacation, one of the first things that enamored me was the food. The...

In the first part of this series, I spent the day browsing through Beyoğlu’s record shops. A few days later, once the gloomy weather had...

One of the great things about living in Istanbul (and Turkey more generally) is the incredible produce. Turkey benefits from more than a million...

As a vegetarian or vegan, by now you may have realized that Turkish people love their meat! Walking through the city you’ll see families...

Unpredictable Spring showers can put a real dampener (pun intended) on one's social calendar. But even if you have exhausted the city’s museums and...

Istanbul has developed in so many ways over the years, including shops of all kinds which have seen shifts in terms of services, logistics,...

For many commentators, the digital music revolution catalysed by iTunes over a decade ago signaled the end of all physical formats of music. With...

Rent increases are an unpleasant but inevitable part of adult life. However, as rent prices have spiked by an unprecedented degree over the past...

So, you’ve been in Turkey for a while and decided that it might make sense to buy a home or maybe you have your...

To be a true yabancı, there are certain skills you have to master... 1. Become a teaholic. Drinking copious amounts of black tea is an...