It gets cold in Istanbul in December. Walking from mosque to mosque to the occasional sultan residential complex in a jacket that’s just not warm enough is a good way to catch the bug. I was in no mood to get sick on the first day of my trip, as I still had 3 days of questionable…

I arrived to Istanbul with an open mind, with no prior research on what to eat and where. Instead, I allowed myself the opportunity to be surprised by a city that I’ve heard does not cease to surprise. I knew there would be kebabs, the Turkish forefather of gyros, or meat on a spit sliced into pita. I…