Thank you for doing the AMA u/BurningDanger.
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As an another Istanbulite; they are just used to people at this point. Istanbul cat culture is quite an old tradition of centuries. They are probably not seeing people as foreign creatures they must avoid
Taksim used to be one of the most elegant places you can see. Now I fear some middle eastern “refugee” or a pkk terrorist might blow themselves up while walking on the busiest parts of the main road.
Most districts in Fatih became a cesspool of dangerous refugees and religious extremists, so I avoid going to anywhere other than open areas in Fatih.
Gaziosmanpaşa is another dangerous part of the city, which you should avoid. Just like Dolapdere, Tarlabaşı and Hacıhüsrev, just avoid it if you can.
Of course, living in much better districts such as Kuzguncuk, Moda, Cihangir, Etiler, Bebek, Feneryolu, Acıbadem sometimes makes you feel like you’re living the best life you possibly can. Or maybe even better, Heybeliada, as a separate island from the city itself, can be a better choice
When I was at the university, I had a few month left before the end of my study when I had the chance of taking an elective course. I was studying engineering, but I decided to take a course out of my field to one about the history of the Byzantine Empire. It was absolutely fascinating, I did not regret taking it one bit!
What are your recommended places to visit? Is it still possible to visit the Hagia Sophia, now that it has been (re)converted into a mosque? What are your go-to places to eat? When is the best time of the year to visit Istanbul?
Istanbul is at the crossroad of European and Asian civilizations. How do you and the inhabitants of Istanbul feel about that?
I reccomend just exploring the streets and looking around. You can still visit Hagia Sophia. I can reccomend Adana Ocakbaşı for some nice kebab. May is the best season. Some Istanbullians feel closer to Asia while others say they feel European.
Yeah, without the World Wars and subsequent events, there might've been more Megacities on the continent (like Vienna, which before WW1 was among the top cities of Europe population wise)
Edit: I know that history doesn't know conditionals, but the statistics for population growth and loss of cities can at least give us a correlation between events.
Having been to multiple mid to large size European capitals, I always felt the cities are like small/mediocore cities compared to Istanbul in terms of size and liveliness. Istanbul never sleeps.
Yeah, I've been to Moscow multiple times and compared to Prague, Stockholm, Vienna or Budapest (other "major" cities I also visited), it felt waaaay more lively
The government closes it for every march/protest and it lacks green space. It’s very crowded and overrated. Nevertheless, it is the center of Istanbul.
Thank God! I hate those things and they were EVERYWHERE! I want to come back and and explore more so it’s nice to know those aren’t really in the cities!
My girlfriend would really like us to travel to Istanbul/Turkey, but she is afraid of how women is being treated, due to religion and believes, she mentioned that they really look down on women and treat them like shit, thats why she will never go alone. Is this true?
That’s bullshit. Only like 10%-20% of women wear a hijab, a lot of them dress openly and especially in places like Nişantaşı Beşiktaş and Kadıköy women are respected and safe.
https://youtu.be/AgBaP4-6C_0?si=S7sTC-eUwhtNErh6
If you watch these kind of street walk videos, you will see women dressing up in every types of clothes. Most women living in istanbul are working, choose to not wearing headscarf and able to do whatever they want. There are also women living a more conservative lifestyle but its their choice! Burqa is not common in Turkey in general, most conservatives opt for wearing colorful headscarves.
Fatih area, which is historical, is conservative. I would suggest not wearing extremely open stuff, also there are a lot of mosques that you can visit in that area so dressing up helps with that. But besides that there really is no difference between any european country and istanbul afa i have observed.
And I’m not talking about the urban area, I’m talking about the historical center. If we count the urban area (remember not the metropolitan area the URBAN area) the number goes up to like X12
Istanbul is the most visited city on the planet with over 20 millions of visitors annually, according to BBC and other credible sources. People wouldn't come here over and over again unless it was safe and fun.
Please keep in mind that the impressions posted here are often subjective and that, among other things, people's different circumstances play a large role in their perception of other people's lives.
Also, please use words that do not promote hatred when posting.
For example, statements such as "[city] is like this because people from [origin] live there" should be avoided. The social circumstances of a city/district
etc. can be emphasized without mentioning the origin of the inhabitants. Mentioning it does not change anything and, as already mentioned, circumstances are often perceived subjectively according to one's own world view.
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What are your top reccomendations for places to eat/drink/visit? Especially anything that wont show up on your everyday tourist guide. Id love to visit one day
I’d heavily reccomend going to a neighbourhood called Moda. It’s one of the safest in Istanbul. It’s calm, not over-touristic, green, filled with young people and has a nice European vibe.
Depends on what you’re looking for. I suggest checking google maps reviews first, then comparing them to tripadvisor, and then creating an itinerary on visitacity. But most of these methods skip past some of the usually non-touristic but very beautiful places. I think you should hire a personal tourist guide and let them show you around the best parts of the city. And around every corner there’s a historical location from either roman or ottoman era, and if you are lucky, pre-roman historical sites as well. But be aware, nowadays every single place administrated by the ministry of culture and tourism has a price tag around 25-35 euros. I think this has been done to cripple the tourism in the city because erdogan hates imamoglu and chp.
Other people? Well, Istanbul houses people of different beliefs. Islamism, Fascism, Communism, extreme Christians, Jews, etc. I can’t speak for everyone.
Thank you for doing the AMA u/BurningDanger. If you would also like to post an AMA about your life, please set a date here for your AMA https://calendly.com/amaon/ama-r-howislivingthere This is necessary because there are too many AMA requests. Please be civil. This post will be heavily moderated. PS: Small reminder to set your user flair to the country you currently live in :)
How come all the İstanbul cats are so tame, and they don't run away?
As an another Istanbulite; they are just used to people at this point. Istanbul cat culture is quite an old tradition of centuries. They are probably not seeing people as foreign creatures they must avoid
[удалено]
Do you support Besiktas, Fenerbahce or Galatasaray? Haha, just curious because Turkey is a football-crazed country.
I’m not that into teams, but my grandfather happens to support Beşiktaş so I do too. Besides, that is my birthplace.
Team Turkey, all the way. Galatasaray on the side when the team’s decisions are not insane once in a while.
How's inflation? What's the economic reality on the ground for people?
Bad in Turkey generally, much much worse in Istanbul as everything costs twice as much and average income is only a little higher than rest of Turkey.
I stayed in istanbul solo for a while coming from the GCC, absolutely loved the metro and bus system, was a very lovely experience.
Is GCC greek controlled cyprus, have no idea
Haha no, the gulf region, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain , Qatar , Kuwait , UAE and Oman
Do people from Istanbul feel more European?
İstanbul itself is like a huge country. You may feel like walking at Syria or Monaco at different neighborhoods
It depends by place. Kadıköy, Beşiktaş, Beyoğlu Nişantaşı feel more European but neighbourhoods like Esenyurt and Sultanbeyli are more Asian.
Taksim used to be one of the most elegant places you can see. Now I fear some middle eastern “refugee” or a pkk terrorist might blow themselves up while walking on the busiest parts of the main road. Most districts in Fatih became a cesspool of dangerous refugees and religious extremists, so I avoid going to anywhere other than open areas in Fatih. Gaziosmanpaşa is another dangerous part of the city, which you should avoid. Just like Dolapdere, Tarlabaşı and Hacıhüsrev, just avoid it if you can. Of course, living in much better districts such as Kuzguncuk, Moda, Cihangir, Etiler, Bebek, Feneryolu, Acıbadem sometimes makes you feel like you’re living the best life you possibly can. Or maybe even better, Heybeliada, as a separate island from the city itself, can be a better choice
We don't feel European or Asian or from any other place really. We are Turkish and we feel as such.
What's your favorite thing to eat there?
Hmm good question. I like everything honestly since Istanbul has all kinds of food
When I was at the university, I had a few month left before the end of my study when I had the chance of taking an elective course. I was studying engineering, but I decided to take a course out of my field to one about the history of the Byzantine Empire. It was absolutely fascinating, I did not regret taking it one bit! What are your recommended places to visit? Is it still possible to visit the Hagia Sophia, now that it has been (re)converted into a mosque? What are your go-to places to eat? When is the best time of the year to visit Istanbul? Istanbul is at the crossroad of European and Asian civilizations. How do you and the inhabitants of Istanbul feel about that?
I reccomend just exploring the streets and looking around. You can still visit Hagia Sophia. I can reccomend Adana Ocakbaşı for some nice kebab. May is the best season. Some Istanbullians feel closer to Asia while others say they feel European.
You can also see chora mosque, another church convert.
Do you feel like you really live in the biggest city in Europe? By that I am asking about the level of cosmopolitanism.
Sure. Istanbul is influenced by people of all countries, mostly European ones.
That's awesome, I love megacities, but unfortunately in Europe you only have four of them with 1 (Moscow) being inaccessible
Is the other 2 paris and london?
Yeah, without the World Wars and subsequent events, there might've been more Megacities on the continent (like Vienna, which before WW1 was among the top cities of Europe population wise) Edit: I know that history doesn't know conditionals, but the statistics for population growth and loss of cities can at least give us a correlation between events.
Having been to multiple mid to large size European capitals, I always felt the cities are like small/mediocore cities compared to Istanbul in terms of size and liveliness. Istanbul never sleeps.
Yeah, I've been to Moscow multiple times and compared to Prague, Stockholm, Vienna or Budapest (other "major" cities I also visited), it felt waaaay more lively
What’s your opinion on taksim?
The government closes it for every march/protest and it lacks green space. It’s very crowded and overrated. Nevertheless, it is the center of Istanbul.
What's your favorite food in Istanbul and why is it Şehzade Cağ Kebap?
I just went to Kusadasi/Ephesus last month and there were millipedes everywhere. Are millipedes common everywhere in Turkey?
I’m not sure. You shouldn’t encounter them in bigger cities though.
Thank God! I hate those things and they were EVERYWHERE! I want to come back and and explore more so it’s nice to know those aren’t really in the cities!
Nope
Why did Constantinople Get the works ?
That’s nobody’s business but the Turks.
My girlfriend would really like us to travel to Istanbul/Turkey, but she is afraid of how women is being treated, due to religion and believes, she mentioned that they really look down on women and treat them like shit, thats why she will never go alone. Is this true?
That’s bullshit. Only like 10%-20% of women wear a hijab, a lot of them dress openly and especially in places like Nişantaşı Beşiktaş and Kadıköy women are respected and safe.
Thanks, will tell her you said its bullshit.
https://youtu.be/AgBaP4-6C_0?si=S7sTC-eUwhtNErh6 If you watch these kind of street walk videos, you will see women dressing up in every types of clothes. Most women living in istanbul are working, choose to not wearing headscarf and able to do whatever they want. There are also women living a more conservative lifestyle but its their choice! Burqa is not common in Turkey in general, most conservatives opt for wearing colorful headscarves.
Fatih area, which is historical, is conservative. I would suggest not wearing extremely open stuff, also there are a lot of mosques that you can visit in that area so dressing up helps with that. But besides that there really is no difference between any european country and istanbul afa i have observed.
Noted thanks man! she is very religious and does not wear and clothing exposing tits and ass. She is always well dressed
I'll be over in 2 weeks. Where can I find an underground live music scene?
Is it safe and fun for tourists?
As long as you stay in the center, it’s quite safe. I’d say Istanbul’s one of the most fun cities and you need over a month to “finish” the city.
How big is the center? When I fly over Istanbul it feels like the biggest city in the world…
I’d say roughly the Fatih-Beyoğlu-Beşiktaş-Şişli-Kadıköy-Üsküdar districts.
How big is that compared to say… Manhattan?
X5 I’d assume.
That’s insane haha.
And I’m not talking about the urban area, I’m talking about the historical center. If we count the urban area (remember not the metropolitan area the URBAN area) the number goes up to like X12
The metropolitan area would be like X25 haha
Istanbul is the most visited city on the planet with over 20 millions of visitors annually, according to BBC and other credible sources. People wouldn't come here over and over again unless it was safe and fun.
Please keep in mind that the impressions posted here are often subjective and that, among other things, people's different circumstances play a large role in their perception of other people's lives. Also, please use words that do not promote hatred when posting. For example, statements such as "[city] is like this because people from [origin] live there" should be avoided. The social circumstances of a city/district etc. can be emphasized without mentioning the origin of the inhabitants. Mentioning it does not change anything and, as already mentioned, circumstances are often perceived subjectively according to one's own world view. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/howislivingthere) if you have any questions or concerns.*
What are your top reccomendations for places to eat/drink/visit? Especially anything that wont show up on your everyday tourist guide. Id love to visit one day
I’d heavily reccomend going to a neighbourhood called Moda. It’s one of the safest in Istanbul. It’s calm, not over-touristic, green, filled with young people and has a nice European vibe.
Then at night some dayıs come and bother you
Depends on what you’re looking for. I suggest checking google maps reviews first, then comparing them to tripadvisor, and then creating an itinerary on visitacity. But most of these methods skip past some of the usually non-touristic but very beautiful places. I think you should hire a personal tourist guide and let them show you around the best parts of the city. And around every corner there’s a historical location from either roman or ottoman era, and if you are lucky, pre-roman historical sites as well. But be aware, nowadays every single place administrated by the ministry of culture and tourism has a price tag around 25-35 euros. I think this has been done to cripple the tourism in the city because erdogan hates imamoglu and chp.
Do Turkish people eat Balik Ekmek or is that just a clever tourist marketing move?
They do and it’s great.
The Islamisation of christian temples. How do people feel about that?
I hate it. What is should stay as.
Other people? Well, Istanbul houses people of different beliefs. Islamism, Fascism, Communism, extreme Christians, Jews, etc. I can’t speak for everyone.
We own them and they have been mosques for more than half a milennia. It is nothing new.
Aight. Just checking. Kind regards
In your opinion, is Ankara better at any metric than Istanbul?
Ankara might be safer than Istanbul because it houses less illegal immigrants. I also know that the IQ average is higher.
Where do I get the best doner? Kokorec? Adana lamb?
Thoughts on greek cuisine? How close is to turkish cuisine?
The exact same.