Staying here for about 5 days was lovely! When I first arrived, it was a bit hot (but then again Istanbul was an oven in general!), but Merve coordinated it so that I had a fan in the room the very next night, and then I was golden. It's about a 20min walk down Istiklal from Taksim Sq (transportation hub), which is longer than I expected, though again, the heat sort of made everything a little harder-- and yet STILL I would definitely stay with Merve again. The room (and bathroom!) was simple and clean and it was nice to stay in a more residential part of town, while still being relatively close to the action!