Turkey is a country with a multiple identity, although being poised uneasily between East and West – Turkey is still a bridge between the two. Turkey is now keen to be accepted on equal terms by the West: it has aspirations for EU membership and is the only NATO ally in the Middle East Region. But it is no stretch of the imagination a western nation, and the contradictions - and fascinations persist. Mosques coexist with Orthodox churches; remnants of the Roman Empire crumble alongside the Hittite sites and despite the fact that Turkey is a secular state, there are some Muslim fundamentalist currents drawing the country in a more southeasterly direction.
Politically the modern Turkey was a bold experiment, founded on the remaining Anatolian kernel of the Ottoman Empire – once among the world’s largest and longest lasting, imperial states. The country arose out of the defeat of World War I, almost entirely the creation of a single man of an incredible energy and vision – Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. The Turkish War of Independence, fought against those victorious Allies intending to pursue imperialistic designs on Ottoman territory, was the prototype for all Third World “wars of liberation” in this century; it led to an explicitly secular republic.
Turks, except for a small minority in the southeast, are not Arabs and loathe being mistaken for them, despite a heavy lacing of Persian and Arabic words, the Turkish language alone, unrelated to any neighboring one, is sufficient to set its speakers apart. The population is, however, despite official efforts to bring about uniformity, ethnically remarkably heterogeneous. When the Ottoman Empire ended in early 20th century, large numbers of Muslim Slavs, Kurds, Greeks, Albanians and Caucasians – to name only the largest non-Turkic groups - streamed into the modern territory, the safest refuge in an age of anti-Ottoman nationalism. This process has continued in recent years, so that the diversity of the people endures, constituting one of the surprises of travel in Turkey.
Turkey is a vast country, nearly as large as Texas – France would fit with room to spare within its boundaries-incorporating the characteristics of Middle Eastern and Aegean, even Balkan and trans-Caucasian countries. There are equally large disparities in levels of development. Istanbul boasts clubs as expensive and exclusive as any New York or London, yet in the chronically backward eastern interior you’ll encounter standards and modes of living scarcely changed from a century ago-an intolerable gap in a society aspiring to EU membership and other accoutrements of westernization.
But one of the things that make Turkey such a great place to travel is the Turkish people, whose reputation for friendliness and hospitality is richly deserved. In Turkey the warmth and generosity is genuine in spite of the recent Turkish history having demonstrated that outsiders usually bring trouble in their wake.
Western Turkey is not only the more economically developed but also by far the more visited half of the country. Istanbul, straddling the straits linking the Black and Marmara seas, is touted as Turkish mystique par excellence serving as the imperial capital for two empires for over a thousand years and being the cultural and commercial center of the modern Turkey. Flanking it on the opposite sides of the Marmara Sea are the two prior seats of the Ottoman Empire, Bursa and Edirne, each with their complement of attractions and regal atmosphere.
As you move south, the classical character of the Nortwest Aegean comes to the fore in the olive-swathed country around Bergama (Pergamum antic city) and Ayvalik. Just outside Izmir, third biggest city of Turkey, the old Ottoman princely training ground of Manisa and the originally Lydian city of Sardis, lost in vineyards, make a fine pair. Being the most modern city of Turkey, Izmir is also very close to various holiday attractions. Resorts such as Cesme, Ayvalik, Kusadasi and historical sites like Ephesus, House of Virgin Mary are all one hour driving distance from Izmir.
Further south you will come to South Turkey, main cities being Mugla and Antalya. In this region, you can visit Bodrum, St. Tropez of Turkey, Marmaris, an attraction for most tourists, Antalya, Kas, Kemer, Kalkan, Fethiye, Alanya and many more smaller holiday resorts. Nowadays this regions i also called the Turkish Riviera, a coastline stretching from Bodrum to Alanya. The region is also called Lycia, the ancient settlers even before the Byzantine Empire. The Lycian Union was consisting of many ancient cities like Myra, Patara, Olympos, Termessos, Hieropolis, Ephesus, Simena, Perge, Halikarnassos and Aspendos. Most of these ancient cities are in good condition today with traditionally an amphitheater, baths, aqueducts, temples, gates stadiums... Be sure to visit the natural beauties like Pamukkale and Saklikent near Antalya.
Another worth to visit region in Central Anatolia is the Cappadocia where you’re confronted with the famous rock churches, the Ihlara Canyon, Goreme Open Air Museum, subterranean cities and tufa-pinnacle landscapes. The magnificent natural formation of the rocks resulting in a chimney looking hills (called Fairy Chimneys) and many ancient churches and monasteries carved into rocks during the first centuries after Jesus are the main attractions of Cappadocia in Turkey.
Ankara, capital of Turkey and hub of North Central Anatolia, is a planned city whose contrived western feel gives some concrete indication of the priorities of the Turkish Republic. The Black Sea shore in North Turkey is surprisingly devoid of architectural interest other than a chain of Byzantine-Genoese castles.
South of here, the Euphrates and Tigris Basin represent Turkey at its most Middle Eastern. Gaziantep, approached from points west, is the functional gateway to some centers of genuine interest. Urfa and nearby Harran are biblical in both appearance and history; Mardin, with its surrounding monasteries, is the homeland of Turkey’s Syrian Orthodox minority. The colossal heads of Nemrut Mountain are the real attraction here and still mightily impressive. Diyarbakir, a swarming, vivid metropolis on the Tigris, is the city of the great wall built during the Byzantine Empire.
Turkey has a wide variety of climates from the mediterranean climate with hot and humid summers and warm winters to the Coastal climate with cold and rainy winters and hot summers.
Politically the modern Turkey was a bold experiment, founded on the remaining Anatolian kernel of the Ottoman Empire – once among the world’s largest and longest lasting, imperial states. The country arose out of the defeat of World War I, almost entirely the creation of a single man of an incredible energy and vision – Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. The Turkish War of Independence, fought against those victorious Allies intending to pursue imperialistic designs on Ottoman territory, was the prototype for all Third World “wars of liberation” in this century; it led to an explicitly secular republic.
Turks, except for a small minority in the southeast, are not Arabs and loathe being mistaken for them, despite a heavy lacing of Persian and Arabic words, the Turkish language alone, unrelated to any neighboring one, is sufficient to set its speakers apart. The population is, however, despite official efforts to bring about uniformity, ethnically remarkably heterogeneous. When the Ottoman Empire ended in early 20th century, large numbers of Muslim Slavs, Kurds, Greeks, Albanians and Caucasians – to name only the largest non-Turkic groups - streamed into the modern territory, the safest refuge in an age of anti-Ottoman nationalism. This process has continued in recent years, so that the diversity of the people endures, constituting one of the surprises of travel in Turkey.
Turkey is a vast country, nearly as large as Texas – France would fit with room to spare within its boundaries-incorporating the characteristics of Middle Eastern and Aegean, even Balkan and trans-Caucasian countries. There are equally large disparities in levels of development. Istanbul boasts clubs as expensive and exclusive as any New York or London, yet in the chronically backward eastern interior you’ll encounter standards and modes of living scarcely changed from a century ago-an intolerable gap in a society aspiring to EU membership and other accoutrements of westernization.
But one of the things that make Turkey such a great place to travel is the Turkish people, whose reputation for friendliness and hospitality is richly deserved. In Turkey the warmth and generosity is genuine in spite of the recent Turkish history having demonstrated that outsiders usually bring trouble in their wake.
Western Turkey is not only the more economically developed but also by far the more visited half of the country. Istanbul, straddling the straits linking the Black and Marmara seas, is touted as Turkish mystique par excellence serving as the imperial capital for two empires for over a thousand years and being the cultural and commercial center of the modern Turkey. Flanking it on the opposite sides of the Marmara Sea are the two prior seats of the Ottoman Empire, Bursa and Edirne, each with their complement of attractions and regal atmosphere.
As you move south, the classical character of the Nortwest Aegean comes to the fore in the olive-swathed country around Bergama (Pergamum antic city) and Ayvalik. Just outside Izmir, third biggest city of Turkey, the old Ottoman princely training ground of Manisa and the originally Lydian city of Sardis, lost in vineyards, make a fine pair. Being the most modern city of Turkey, Izmir is also very close to various holiday attractions. Resorts such as Cesme, Ayvalik, Kusadasi and historical sites like Ephesus, House of Virgin Mary are all one hour driving distance from Izmir.
Further south you will come to South Turkey, main cities being Mugla and Antalya. In this region, you can visit Bodrum, St. Tropez of Turkey, Marmaris, an attraction for most tourists, Antalya, Kas, Kemer, Kalkan, Fethiye, Alanya and many more smaller holiday resorts. Nowadays this regions i also called the Turkish Riviera, a coastline stretching from Bodrum to Alanya. The region is also called Lycia, the ancient settlers even before the Byzantine Empire. The Lycian Union was consisting of many ancient cities like Myra, Patara, Olympos, Termessos, Hieropolis, Ephesus, Simena, Perge, Halikarnassos and Aspendos. Most of these ancient cities are in good condition today with traditionally an amphitheater, baths, aqueducts, temples, gates stadiums... Be sure to visit the natural beauties like Pamukkale and Saklikent near Antalya.
Another worth to visit region in Central Anatolia is the Cappadocia where you’re confronted with the famous rock churches, the Ihlara Canyon, Goreme Open Air Museum, subterranean cities and tufa-pinnacle landscapes. The magnificent natural formation of the rocks resulting in a chimney looking hills (called Fairy Chimneys) and many ancient churches and monasteries carved into rocks during the first centuries after Jesus are the main attractions of Cappadocia in Turkey.
Ankara, capital of Turkey and hub of North Central Anatolia, is a planned city whose contrived western feel gives some concrete indication of the priorities of the Turkish Republic. The Black Sea shore in North Turkey is surprisingly devoid of architectural interest other than a chain of Byzantine-Genoese castles.
South of here, the Euphrates and Tigris Basin represent Turkey at its most Middle Eastern. Gaziantep, approached from points west, is the functional gateway to some centers of genuine interest. Urfa and nearby Harran are biblical in both appearance and history; Mardin, with its surrounding monasteries, is the homeland of Turkey’s Syrian Orthodox minority. The colossal heads of Nemrut Mountain are the real attraction here and still mightily impressive. Diyarbakir, a swarming, vivid metropolis on the Tigris, is the city of the great wall built during the Byzantine Empire.
Turkey has a wide variety of climates from the mediterranean climate with hot and humid summers and warm winters to the Coastal climate with cold and rainy winters and hot summers.
