Laura Crawford talks about her first trip to Turkey, Editor revealed great spots and restaurants found in the capital city Istanbul

Laura Crawford, Lonely Planet's destination editor in Japan, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and the Philippines, discussed how different was her trip to Turkey. Not only that the editor spilled some of great spots, she also talked about good food that she discovered while exploring the capital city of Istanbul.

Crawford and her friends actually spent a week in Istanbul, hoping to make the most of the end of the European summer and to celebrate her own birthday. Since Turkey is on the top of her travel bucket list for a while, this was the very first time she visited the country.

Talking about the defining moment of their Istanbul trip, she mentioned that on their first morning, they stroll from our hotel in Beyoğlu down to Galata Bridge, where they had their first view across the water to Sultanahmet and the whole historic peninsula. According to Visiting Turkey, it is the center of ancient Istanbul and four major empires had been ruled from then up to now. There are also a lot of historic places on the Historic Peninsula, including mosques Süleymaniye, Blue Mosque and Aya Sofya, churches, palaces, and more.

And with regards to grabbing great food, the editor certainly spilled out the details of her food experience. Crawford claimed that there are tons of food and drink highlights on their travel. One of the many is the succulent döner kebab from Dönerci Şahin Usta at the Grand Bazaar. The food house's kebab was hailed by Trip Advisor as the "Best doner kebab in Istanbul".

Another is baklava at Develi Baklava and Karaköy Güllüoğlu, coffee at Fazıl Bey paired with cheese and bread shopping in the Kadıköy market. Cocktails with unbeatable views at the rooftop bar of Mikla is also a great idea. But what she found really mouth pleasuring manti, which is a ravioli-like meat-stuffed dumpling. And with food stalls everywhere you really can't go hungry in Istanbul.

The editor delightfully talked about her experience riding on the ferries. Local commuter of the ferries criss-cross the waterways around the city, up and down the Golden Horn and the Bosphorus Strait. As reported by Istanbul Trails, because the city is surrounded and divided by water, many bustling activities of floating devices are seen on the Bosphorus, the Sea of Marmara and in the Golden Horn. The ferry across to Kadıköy and the ferry up and down the Golden Horn both allows excellent views, scenic boat tours for the cost of a bus ticket.

Meanwhile, the editor also stated that many enthusiastic buyers will overwhelming array of items as sourvenirs. Crawford also warned tourists that although her getaway in Istanbul had been great, a downside would be that there were so many cats found in the city. They are all over different places like cafes, metro stations, mosque grounds, and even on motorbikes.