General

A country where people form different cultures, religions and ethnic backgrounds come together! A geography, as ancient as the human culture, where the ancient continents of Asia and Europe meet. Turkey is a paradise of sea, sun and mountains, at the same time offering the visitors the pleasure of historical treasures of magnificent ancient cities. From April to October, most parts of Turkey have an ideal climate providing perfect conditions which a visitor can enjoy the comfort of sandy beaches and also the unique atmosphere of Ancient Cities. It is doubtless that just one visit will not be enough, one will want to come back time after time as the extraordinary places and tastes are discovered.
Turkey, exotic, colorful, many-faceted, romantic, ever-old and ever-new, is the gateway and the key to the fabled East. Turkey has a magnificent past and is a land full of historic treasures.

Cuisine

The Turkish Cuisine is one of the best in the world. It has a wide variety of dishes many prepared with fresh vegetables and olive oil. Turkish food is very healthy as well as delicious. The fresh fruits are plentiful and very tasty.

Pupulation

The current population of Turkey is over 65 million people, of whom 60% live in the cities. Then ten most populous cities in order are Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir Adana, Bursa, Gaziantep, Eskisehir, Kayseri and Diyarbakir. More than half the population is under the age of 20.


Language

The Turkish Language belongs to the Ural Altaic group and has an affinity to the Finno Hungarian languages. Since 1928 Turkish has been written in a phonetic, Latin alphabet of 29 letters and is spoken by some 150 million people around the world.

Geograpy

Modern Turkey is a country of 780,576 square kilometers, somewhat larger than the state of Texas or France and Great Britain combined. It is bordered by the Mediterranean, Aegean and Black Seas. In clockwise order, Turkey shares borders with Greece, Bulgaria, Georgia, Armenia, Iran, Iraq and Syria. About three percent of the country is in Europe. South and east of the Dardanelles, the Sea of Marmara and the Bosphorus stretches the peninsula known as Asia Minor or Anatolia. Fertile plains fringe the coast; mountain ranges separate them from the high central plateau. Nineteen mountains are over 4,100 meters (13,800 feet) high; of them Mt. Ararat (Agri Dag) is the highest at 5,073 meters (16,910 feet). Both the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers (Dicle and Firat) rise in Anatolia.

History

Turkey has been called "the cradle of civilization " and by traveling through this historic land the tourists will discover exactly what is meant by its phrase. The world's first town, a Neolithic city at Catalhoyuk ( by Konya ), dates back to 6,500 BC. From the days of Catalhoyuk up to the present time Turkey boasts of a rich culture that trough the centuries has made a lasting impression on modern civilization. The heir many centuries of cultures makes Turkey a paradise of information and cultural wealth. Hattis, Hittites, Phrygians, Urartians, Lycians, Lydians, Ionians, Persians, Macedonians, Romans, Byzantines, Seljuks, and Ottomans have all held important places in Turkey's history, and ancient sites and ruins scattered throughout the country give proof to each civilization's unique distinction.
Turkey also has a very fascinating recent history. Upon the decline of the Ottoman Empire, a young man named Mustafa Kemal, who was a soldier by occupation but a great visionary in character, took the defeat of World War I and turned it into a shining victory by liberating Turkey of all foreign invaders. Mustafa Kemal Ataturk founded the Republic of Turkey on the 29th of October, 1923. He led his country into peace and stability, with tremendous economic growth and complete modernization. Through decades of change and growth Turkey still boasts of this success by effectively living by their adopted motto of Peace at Home, Peace in the World.