This brightly coloured house with it's wonderful roof top terrace was the perfect place to start our trip to Turkey! We were welcomed by the very friendly Mustafa, the embodiment of Turkish friendliness! The rooftop terrace is a great spot to spend sometime watching Istanbul go by, particularly at night. It's a nice communal space so you can get to meet the other people staying in the building too!
Balat, although not a long walk or bus ride from the more touristy areas of Istanbul, feels like a small town or village with children playing on it's cobbled hills and families sitting together in the streets in the evening. There are plenty of small cafes and restaurants in the area, and a number of supermarkets and bakeries/fresh vegetable shops nearby.