A Hostel in Istanbul

Last week I watched that fabulous movie, Hostel, and thought: "Damn, wouldn't it be nice if there was a hostel packed with hot chicks (but not death gangs) in Istanbul?" Turns out, there were many of them. Take a look one of the best, the Chill Out Hostel-Cafe in Taksim.

The most striking detail at the entrance is the wanton use of the brightest, the most contrasting colors possible...

...the chromatic madness not only continues, but also intensifies as you move deeper and deeper into the bowels of the place.

"In case of a fire, just jump through the insanely-patterned pink-and-black door and the resemblance of your Eurorail trip to a bad 80's music video will be complete."

Here are what the rooms look like. Small, but with heating, beds and a private bathroom. Plus, the hostel is at the thriving heart of the City's nightlife and away from all the orientalist bazaar crap on the historic peninsula. What else can you ask for?

Here are some of the people which we discovered living in those rooms. I cannot remember any of their names, naturally, but they were a cheerful bunch.

At Chill-out, I heard of some adventurous young locals posing as Italian tourists and hanging around the hostel, trying to 'join the European Union,' or retro-actively trying to seduce Turkish girls, who of course, fall head-over-heels for anything European. The Italian disguise is probably not a co-incidence since the boisterous English accents of Turks and Italians sound remarkably alike.

All the jokes and rumors aside, if you ever want to stay at this great hostel, here are some useful links:

*A guide to Istanbul's many hostels
*Chill Out's own colorblind website