Istanbul - Turkiye

We are no strangers to Istanbul, in Turkiye, after spending one month here over the last two years and travelling Turkiye for five months, so we couldn’t let this wonderful city escape us on the way to our month in Georgia.

First, we hit the jackpot with Homie Suites, our Airbnb; we opted for views, and we achieved them! We have a terrace the size of an apartment overlooking the Bosphorus, Galata Tower, Blue Mosque and Hagia Sofia, to name a few, and sunsets!

We are located in a new little neighbourhood just moments from Taksim. We have yet to explore it fully, making it perfect to continue building our familiarity with the intense but layered city of surprises.

As soon as we checked in, we were busy sourcing a local restaurant to enjoy the incredible flavours of Turkish food again. Our trusty Michelin guide app came to the rescue with Cuma, delivering a beautiful hidden gem just five minutes away, and the food definitely hit the spot.

We followed this with a nightcap at Babel Cafe & Restaurant, a local bar we had visited previously to enjoy the parade of Halloween party lovers before settling in for the evening and taking in the last of the magnificent night cityscape of Istanbul, feeling blessed and excited about the days ahead to be back in this incredible city.

We woke up on Sunday to Republic Day, which is the celebration of the Republic of Türkiye. One hundred years ago, on 29 October, Türkiye declared itself an independent republic, and in commemoration of Republic Day, ceremonies, parades and other events will occur throughout the country. We were here two years ago on the same day, and the city is painted red with flags of Türkiye becoming the decoration of each household and establishment.

We strolled the streets to join the buzz of the celebrations and loved the energy and joy we witnessed. It is a day cherished and the most celebrated and important public holiday of the year.

We finished the day by trying a new restaurant, Aheste, and it was superb. Each dish was elegant and perfectly balanced, and the flavours were delightful. When in Istanbul, you must try as much lamb as possible; it is mouthwatering and melts in your mouth.

Our dinner was full of laughs, incredible food, wine, cocktails and the warmest, infectious energy from the team, five stars all the way.

Post-dinner cocktails were at an inviting bar called Ernest’s, which also houses a fine-dining Thai restaurant. We enjoyed the evening getting to know the staff, practising our Thai and sampling some delicious cocktails. We’re super impressed with Hemingway! We will be back!

We escaped home to enjoy the fireworks display from our terrace overlooking the Bosphorus, but it was a low-key evening due to the unrest and respecting the tragic events occurring in nearby parts of the world. The views were still magical, and we appreciated them all the same whilst feeling blessed to be back in Istanbul, which is fast becoming another favourite city of ours!

Our final two days in Istanbul. Monday was the time to get blonded, and being back in Istanbul, I scheduled an appointment with my friend Kadir from Nisantasi Hair Studio, who took great care of me during our last visits in 2021/2022.

Once back to my former self, we took the opportunity to revisit a Turkish restaurant called Nişantaşı Başköşe to not miss out on our favourite pides (basically Turkish version of pizza, and delish) and shish kebabs, amongst more traditional Turkish dishes. Food in Turkey is delectable; you can’t go wrong, and you can’t get enough! We loved being back in our old neighbourhood, Macka. We spent over one month in Nisantasi previously and loved it!

Our Turkish cuisine fix was followed by getting our steps up and walking the city back to a nearby cocktail bar called Flekk, which we had on our list to farewell the evening. Super impressed with the quaint bar where you could sit by the street and watch the locals go about winding their day up; it was the perfect relaxing spot!

Our final day was spent working and savouring the incredible views from our Airbnb, whilst enjoying Gramaj, our local coffee shop and neighbourhood. Republic Day brought us front row seats to the F/A-18 celebratory flyovers in the skies of Istanbul.

Our final evening was spent at a local Thai restaurant called Az Cok Thai, the sister to the cocktail bar Ernest’s. It was buzzing with locals and visitors also wanting the same. We had a great selection of dishes, precisely as we had hoped and more. The team were incredibly warm, friendly and kind, and we all had so much fun chatting about Türkiye and their must-visit places, being Kurdish they shared their beautiful home towns which we hope to visit on future trips. It was a pleasure and great to satisfy our Thai cravings!

Istanbul, you continue to provide joyful gifts, and each time you steal more of us, we are super excited to visit again in a few months and see what you have in store for us next time.

Date visited: 29 October 2023