This park us next to Taksim Square. It is not the nicest Park. Kids and dome young-at-heart teens…read morecompete for playtime in the playground.

Gezi Park is a beautiful, small park in Taksim; an oasis in the middle of one of the most crowded…read morecities of the world. Being born & raised in Istanbul, Gezi Park is full of memories for me. Nowadays for Turkish people the park has a new meaning. It's a symbol of freedom, the center of the uprise against the ongoing oppression from the government and police violence in Turkey. Now, I live abroad but I visited the park on my last visit to Istanbul. I was there on June, 15th just half an hour ago police forces brutally attacked peaceful protestors with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's order. This time to end the resistance for good, no matter what... I digress. You should read the news (well, foreign news as Turkish media is being censored and auto-censored you won't get much from them), follow #direngezi hastag or just read the wiki page at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2013_protests_in_Turkey I'd suggest anyone visiting the area add Gezi Park to their list. Go there, stand in the middle of the park for a short break and also to praise the peaceful protestors who resisted for people's freedom.

Park for children, small basketball/soccer court, and a dog park - this place has it all…read more This is a popular neighborhood park. Great for families with small children to visit who live in Cihangir. There are two small playgrounds, a work out station for adults and even a fenced in basketball court that is also used as a small football playing area (I mean soccer :) ). I had a great time visiting it with my friends who have small kids. No tourists here. There is such a nice mix of international folks and locals. A great place to get your neighbors. This is probably not the place you want to visit as a tourist. There are so many larger parks nearby tourist destinations that are amazing! I found that the city municipalities do a great job in having parks scattered throughout urban areas. So popular with local Turkish families!

This hotel is hiding behind an abandoned building at the end of Cihangar. From the outside it…read morelooks like a dump but inside it's beautiful. The rooms are small heck the elevator only holds up to 3 ppl. You have to put ur card key in the reader in order for your electricity to work. Everything is so energy efficient. Beds are comfortable. I would definitely recommend this hotel and the hospitality is great!! The breakfast in the morning is like a feast!!

We were walking the Moda area of Istanbul and stumbled upon this little urban park…read more It was a perfect bit of green space in the oasis of buildings had a nice meandering path with trees and grass. Not to mention play areas for kids in the like. There also were a few mini basketball courts basically the paint and maybe up to the three point line. There also appear to be tennis courts but it's unclear if they were a separate entity from the park. Aside from that there was very little services and parking appeared to be Manhattan level bad , but other than that the park with also immaculately, clean and well-maintained

When in Istanbul the taksim square is definitely a place you can not miss. Filled with restaurants,…read moreshops,cafes, bakeries, ice cream shops, spas, nail salons, hair salons, barbers, you name it they have it. Also near the entrance of Taksim square you can find many historical statues buildings and sites. Also near the entrance It will remind you of San Francisco with the little red trolley that goes all around the Square not only does it kind of reminds you of San Francisco by the trolley the streets are a bit hilly so flat shoes are always considered the way to go. When I went to Taksim square I was amazed of all the many bakeries and patisserie's and shops around especially the bakery section you can see through the window many Turkish delight displays and many delicious patisserie cream cakes and even traditional Arabic sweets such as Kunefah and baklava. There are so many shops to see and everything is very cheap with very good quality. We were able to shop around and get some unique clothing fashion brands that originate from turkey such as kotton. They also have the usual American brands like Nike and of course Starbucks. The only thing about taksim square is that it gets extremely crowded. There are pick picketers around so you should always have everything in front of you. Other than that so much fun!

Enjoyed visiting so much. The vibe, the lovely people, our hotel Sofitel was great. Loved the…read morecats in the streets, the shops and restaurants are fantastic. I would visit again for sure.