We stayed at Linda's place for our 5 days in Istanbul and it was great. Our flight landed at Istanbul at some crazy hours, and Linda was so kind and tried to accommodate the check-in time for us, so we could rest up and explore the city. She provided a whole bunch of local restaurant recommendations so we didn't run out of amazing food to try when we were there. Linda's flat equipped with everything we needed during the trip and it certainly felt like a home away from home. It's also worth mentioning that the flat's in a really friendly neighbourhood, with plenty of eateries and shops nearby and they're all very reasonably priced.