First of all, Elif was very helpful in setting up transport to/from the airport which I highly recommend taking advantage of if you are not familiar with the area. My friend and I picked out this place for its location and views, it wasn't until a few days later that we really realized how good of a location this place was, it is very central and you can walk anywhere to just about anything if you have the energy to do so. My friend and I put in about 40 miles of walking/111,275 steps each in our 4 days of exploring both sides of Istanbul (European/Asian) and barely scratched the surface, if at all, of what there is to see and do here. If you plan on doing the same kind of exploring on foot, I highly recommend loading funds onto an Istanbulkart, which is the size of a credit card and is RFID (tap and go payment), to take advantage of the discounted rates and ease of access to the public transit system which was extremely convenient (trains, buses, ferries, bathrooms, etc., find more info online). Although we barely spent any time in the apartment, we found it more than sufficient for our needs and the beds were comfy. My favorite part was being able to open the window and balcony door, letting in all of the cool night air and sounds from the surrounding environment. The call to prayer was also a first time experience for me which I found to add to the magic of this place. The trek up the stairs to the fifth floor is worth the effort. By the end of our stay, we found ourselves in love with the area and did not want to leave. A special thanks to Elif and the many people of Istanbul that we encountered, at no point did we ever feel like we were unwelcome or outsiders, we ended up feeling at home, we look forward to returning Turkey.