The most cosmopolitan country on Earth

Upon concluding my service as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Kyrgyzstan, I took a few days to travel to Istanbul before getting back to the United States. I was accompanied by Naziia, my best friend and girlfriend from Kyrgyzstan, who could arrange free accommodations for us through a friend living in Istanbul. By staying in a local home and traveling with friends who knew the local scene and language, I was able to experience the most intimate and elusive side of the world’s most cosmopolitan city.