Turkey is often thought of as a Middle Eastern nation by many people, but
it’s actually located in Southeastern Europe at the crossroads to Asia. However,
it’s bordered by a total of eight countries that have influenced it over the
years. To understand the nation it’s helpful to realize where it’s located and
who its neighbours are. These countries are Bulgaria, Greece, Georgia,
Azerbaijan, Armenia, Iran, Syria, and Iraq.
There’s also plenty of water around as the Mediterranean, Aegean, and Black
Seas, are all close by as is the Sea of Marmara. Turkey has a population of
about 73 million, with Ankara being its capital city and Istanbul being the
largest. Turkish is the official language, but you should be able to find some
help in English in the popular tourist areas.
People began settling the area in modern times in the 11th century and the
Ottoman Empire became famous around the world starting in the 13th century. This
empire encompassed Southeastern Europe, North Africa, and Western Asia and
didn’t collapse until World War I.
Turkey possesses a historical and ancient cultural heritage
as the area is one of the oldest inhabited regions on the
planet. The country is now separated into many provinces with
some of the major cities being Adana, Antalya, Bursa, Gaziantep,
Mersin, Izmir, and Konya. However, Istanbul is regarded as the
economic, financial, and cultural heart of the nation.
The land offers some wonderful scenery, terrain, and
landscapes as it consists of narrow coastal plains, mountain
ranges, lakes, and is the source to the Euphrates, Aras, and
Tigris Rivers. There are also some excellent beaches to be
found.
The Aegean Sea and Mediterranean Sea coastal areas have a
temperate Mediterranean climate. This means the summers are hot
and dry while the winters are cool and wet. It sometimes snows
around the coastal regions of the Sea of Marmara and the Black
Sea. However, other areas suffer harsh winters and it’s best to
check the weather conditions in the regions you plan on
exploring before you go.
Turkey’s culture consists of a wide mix of Western culture
and traditions as it’s the home to many museums, opera houses,
theatres, and Western architecture, while it also hangs on to
its many traditional historical and religious values. You can
really notice the mix of influences in the country’s music,
food, and literature. Turkish architecture has been increasingly
influenced by the West since the 18th century and can especially
be seen in Istanbul where historic buildings and palaces share
the streets with modern skyscrapers.
If you’d like to check out some sports action in Turkey, the
most popular one is soccer, with some of Europe’s top clubs
being located here. Other popular activities include basketball,
weightlifting, and volleyball. However, the country’s
traditional national sport is called yaglı gureş, which means
oiled wrestling. Motorsports are quickly becoming popular with
various auto, boat, and air races attracting thousands of fans.
Extreme sports such as snowboarding, surfing, skateboarding, and
paragliding are also becoming more popular.
When it comes time to eat, Turkey is a haven for food lovers
as it offers some of the best dishes anywhere on the globe. Much
of it is a combination of Persian, Central Asian, Middle
Eastern, Mediterranean, and Balkan cuisine. Some of the
favourites are kebabs, salads, flatbread, seafood, vegetables,
pasta, eggs, fruits, cheese, meats, soups, pastries, rice,
hummus, and bread, etc. The smell of it cooking on the streets
is enough to get your mouth watering.
Turkey is a fascinating country to explore as it offers such
diversity in all areas of life. You never have to do the same
thing twice while visiting as there’s always something else
cooking around the corner, figuratively and literally.
