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Now that I’ve been living in Istanbul for a few months, I’ve had some time to explore the city and experience a little Turkish culture. Istanbul is a unique city that sits on two continents. It has a long history of being ruled by various different empires including the Romans, Greeks, Persians, Ottoman, and finally back to the Turks. It is known as a melting pot of cultures and religions. You will often find churches next to mosques next to synagogues.

But, let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves. Moving to a new city also comes with its challenges especially when you don’t speak the language. Along with some first impressions, these are some interesting facts about Istanbul.

Cats Are Everywhere

If there’s one resident that Istanbul is famous for, it’s the cats. You can’t walk down one block without seeing at least one cat. They are definitely one thing that you can’t ignore while in Istanbul. The locals will often feed them cat food and leave water bowls out for them on the streets.

Every neighborhood is equipped with a pet shop where you can buy all sorts of treats and food to spoil the street cats.

Let’s just say if I were a stray cat I’d want to live in Istanbul too.

And, don’t forget about the stray dogs. While there aren’t as many dogs as cats, the dogs like to travel in packs and roam the streets. They aren’t aggressive, but some can be a bit territorial towards other dog packs or dogs that have owners and live inside. So you might experience occasional loud barking in the middle night.

Old and New Side-by-Side

Istanbul is a city that has had many different names, but the land itself has been inhabited by people for the past 3,000 years. While wandering through the city’s narrow and hilly streets, you’ll come across Byzantine, Roman, and more modern European architecture.

The banks of the Bosphorus are also littered with the remains of grand palaces that used to belong to the royal family. If you look beyond the palaces, you’ll find modern shopping malls, cafes, and boutique shops.

Public Transportation

Another interesting fact about Istanbul is the extensive public transportation in a city of 16 million people. There are plenty of bus routes to get you where ever you need to go. As well as trams, ferries, a metro system, and the Marmaray, which is the train that goes under the Bosphorus.

Note that the public transportation starts at 6am and stops at midnight.

All you need to get around using public transportation is the IstanbulKart which can be purchased at kiosks at ferry stations or metro stations. The card costs 10TL and can be reloaded as many times as you need.

• Metro and bus cost 3.50 TL for the full fare, then it will decrease if you transfer to another line within 2 hours. The first transfer is 2.50 TL, the second transfer 1.90 TL, third transfer 1.20 TL
• Ferry depends on the route but tends to be no more than 5 TL

International Cuisine

Surprisingly it can be slightly challenging to find international cuisine in Istanbul. Granted there are more than enough kebab and döner shops, but there lacks a variety of choices. In nearly every major city in the world, there is a Chinatown, but in Istanbul it’s nonexistent.

I find it a little disappointing as Istanbul is known as two continents coming together. Of course, in tourist areas you can find a few other options like hamburgers, pasta, sandwiches, and pizza. But finding something like sushi or Asian food is very hard and it’s often not very good.

The Turks are very proud of their culture and they like to display their love for their country prominently.

Lack of English but Amazing Turkish Hospitality

Usually, in big cities that don’t have English as a first or second language, there will be a translation on street signs or even on menus at a restaurant. Here in Istanbul, everything is only in Turkish. So using a translator app is a must. It’s definitely the thing that I struggle with most on a daily basis. It is one of the interesting facts about Istanbul and Turkey that you have to take into consideration if you want to live here.

I constantly have to translate menus whenever I go to a restaurant. Servers may occasionally speak English, but chances aren’t very high. They may have to go fetch another colleague that can speak English to help you. Of course, everyone is friendly even if we have trouble communicating with each other.

In my apartment building, a few other residents have come to introduce themselves to me in Turkish. They were quite excited to have a young foreigner living in the building. They have helped me get internet, pay bills, and just make sure that I’m doing ok.

Cappadocia was the only place in Turkey that I’ve been to where a lot of Turkish people can English. And it makes sense since it is the number place to go to in the country.

All in all, it’s still a learning experience and Istanbul will probably grow on me after some time. But for now, it’s still a daily struggle.