First, the good. Zehra and her team were extremely warm and very quick to address issues that came up. They delivered drinking water and the household supplies that one needs for a long term stay. We felt taken care of.
The apartment is in a central location for visiting the sights one usually sees on a first or second visit to Istanbul. Because you are staying right in the middle of the hardware store district, it’s immediately very authentic versus staying in the more touristy streets near the Galata Tower at the top of the hill. It is also a short walk to access trams and the ferries. Karakoy has many fantastic restaurants - including the Mahkeme Lokstansi just at the next intersection of our street. The M Gallery Sofitel hotel at the end of the block has an beautiful Turkish bath. We made friends with the baklava shop owner on Tersane Cd.
The pictures do a good job of showing the layout of the apartment and the furnishings. But it’s more “hipster shabby-chic” than “contemporary”. The stairwell entrance smells like an ashtray and it seeps into the apartment sometimes. “The shops shut in late afternoon, so nights are quiet allowing for restful sleep” was just not true for us. You will hear all the street noise, including the garbage truck and street cleaning action that are inexplicably scheduled for the middle of the night. Starting Friday night and through the weekend, there is a club nearby and you will be sleeping to the nonstop thump of the bass from 11 pm to literally 7 am. I’m not sure Zehra has much control over this environment, but these are things I wish I had known prior to booking a two week stay.