A list of the least-spoken facts about Turkey and Istanbul that you should know before coming here. I believe visiting this country aware of the insider's tips that I've shared below can only help you be more prepared and insightful with respect to Turkey.
Kumru' Ballade by the amazing Turkish pianist/composer Fazıl Say. Fazıl wrote this ballade for her daughter. He usually plays this piece on the piano himself but this orchestral version is also a pleasure to listen to.
Most Istanbul tourism guidebooks (and guides themselves) offer you a pretty generic list of what to do in Istanbul. The majority of their suggestions center on Sultanahmet and, if you didn't know better, you'd probably think that that was all that there is to this city.