Rena Effendi is an Azerbaijani photographer who captures human interest stories across the globe for the likes of The New York Times and Monocle magazine.

Istanbul

"My favorite hammam in the city is Kılıc Ali Pasa Hamam. Its architect is an imperial architect Mimar Sinan, who is also the architect of the palace and the Süleymaniye Mosque. It's a glorious, glorious place, and I've been going even on my own without friends."

Kılıç Ali Paşa Hamamı

"One of my favorite places for a late Turkish breakfast is called Privato Cafe, near Galata Tower."

Privato Cafe

"Karaköy Lokantası is a very traditional Turkish taverna. The concept is sort of mezes — a lot of them are fish. They make an amazing grilled octopus infused with butter and spices, it's just unbelievable. It has a very consistent quality. The atmosphere is wonderful too."

Karaköy Lokantası

"For lunch, go to Çiya Sofrası. It's not really off the beaten track because there was a Chef's Table episode about it, but it's an incredible, affordable restaurant and the chef combines all these village recipes from eastern Anatolia. It's in the middle of a wonderful bazaar on the Asian side."

Çiya Sofrası

"On the European side is The Museum of Innocence. It's a physical personification of a novel of the same name, The Museum of Innocence, written by Orhan Pamuk, who is a Nobel Prize laureate and famous Turkish writer. You walk into the space and it's like walking inside the novel."

The Museum of Innocence