Dundar is a top host! He was very helpful before the arrival with tips on how to get to his place from the airport, the taxi fare we should be charged. As soon as he opened the door, it was like we were home. The atmosphere was very relaxed, he and his girlfriend were chatting with other guests and soon my boyfriend and I were included in the conversations.
Dundar was also very helpful with suggestions of what to see and how to get to places. We walked from his flat to the historical centre and could see many things on our first day. If it weren't for him we'd have taken public transport and missed quite a lot on our way to touristic sights.
We had plenty of interesting conversations in the evenings or during the day.
One of the mornings, his girlfriend invited us to Iranian breakfast as they were having it with another guest.
The appartment was exactly as showing on the pictures. Nicely and freshly painted, comfortable and modern furniture.
You can definitely see that Dundar is taking care of his place as towels were often replaced in the communal spaces along our stay. Everything is always tidy and clean. Dundar also did some painting to freshen up the kitchen and took great care of ventilating the space not to leave any bad odours.
I had not really read about the actual neighborhood appart that it was close to Taksim square. Istambul being so big, yes, the flat is close to Taksim, however you'd need 15 min walking to get to the square since you have to go down a hill and go up another one. The actual neighborhood surrounding the flat is typical of a normal residential area with bakeries, convenience stores, take-aways, supermarkets, fruit and veg corner shops, pharmacies, all very welcoming. It made us experience one of the real sides of Istanbul (as opposed to the historical centre).