10 curiosities of Turkey

Turkey is one of the most striking countries that we can find. Its particular geographical situation places it between the continents of Europe Y Asia , and this has made it throughout its ancient and recent history considered a place of passage for commerce in which different peoples and cultures have lived together. Some curiosities of Turkey They are quite famous around the world, while others are really striking and little known to most people who visit for the first time this country that has almost 80 million inhabitants.

10 curiosities of Turkey

1. The language of Turkey

Although Arabic is a language with which Turkey is very familiar, during the period of the Byzantine Empire there was talk Greek and, from the fall of Constantinople in 1453, the language used was the medieval turkish . This language was the result of a fusion of different native languages ​​of the Anatolian peninsula and, from the year 1920, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk He undertook a reform to simplify it and adapt it to western characters, resulting in modern Turkish, which is the language spoken today.

2. Customs of Turkey: hospitality in the form of tea

One of the customs of Turkey most important that you should know is your hospitality towards the traveler . This is demonstrated with a glass of mint tea in many of its stores. In this way, the merchants invite the client to feel comfortable while showing him the merchandise he has available and ensures, in a certain way, that the client corresponds to the hospitality by making at least some purchase.

3. Turkish food par excellence

The Turkish food more international is the kebab, in fact, the Turkish variant is called shish kebab and it consists of a skewer of meat or fish which is usually accompanied by vegetables grilled on the grill. This is the most common dish that can be consumed in Turkey, and is considered the food of the "Turks on foot".

curiosities of Turkey, Turkish food

Shish kebab is the most common food in Turkey.

4. Turkish food for dessert: baklava

However, the shish kebab is not the only typical food that can be found in Turkey. One of their most famous and traditional sweets are the baklava. It is about sweet cakes They can be made in many ways but, in all cases, they carry phyllo dough, nuts such as hazelnuts or pistachios, and some type of sweetener, either syrup or honey.

5. The Grand Bazaar of Istanbul

He Grand Bazaar of Istanbul It is one of the most famous bazaars that we can find in all the Muslim culture. It is located in the part of the "Old City" of Istanbul , which corresponds to the European part. The first version was built in the year 1464 and, after an earthquake that destroyed a considerable part, it was rebuilt in 1864 giving it its current form. It has more than 58 streets and more than 4,000 shops where you can find from spices to souvenirs typical of Turkish culture.

6. The capital of Turkey

One of the curiosities of Turkey is that, although Istanbul is the largest city and the economic engine of the country, is not its capital. The Turkish capital is the city of Ankara , located in the geographical center of the country. Until the First World War, the capital of the Ottoman Empire was located in Istanbul. However, from the founding of the Republic of Turkey on October 13, 1923, the capital was moved to Ankara, since it had a less vulnerable geographical position than the old Ottoman capital.

7. The Bosphorus Strait

The Bosphorus Strait is an arm of water that separates the Black Sea from the Sea of ​​Marmara, which connects with the Aegean Sea and, this, with the Mediterranean Sea. Each of the sides of the Bosphorus Strait belongs to a different continent, being the east the Asian side and the west the european side . The city of Istanbul is located on both sides of the strait, which makes it the only city in the world to be located on two different continents at the same time .

8. The ancient city of Troy

Another one of the most interesting curiosities of Turkey is that the city of Troy of which we heard speak in the myths, was located in its territory, in particular between the Strait of the Dardanelles and the Aegean Sea.

curiosities of Turkey, recreation of the Trojan horse

According to archaeologists, the mythical city of Troy was on the coasts of the current Turkish territory.

We owe this discovery to the German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann , that in century XIX was able to discover the ruins of the old city that carried out the famous poem of Homer .

9. A monumental water cistern

The cistern of the basilica is a large cistern of underground water located a few meters from the Church of Saint Sophia . It was built by the emperor Constantino I the Great, and later enlarged by the emperor Justiniano . Its objective was to provide water for the most important buildings in the city in which a siege blocked access to drinking water that reached the city by the Aqueduct of Valente . In the 80s of the 20th century it was cleaned and adapted to tourists, which makes it, today, a monument more than visitors to Istanbul come to see.

10. Atatürk: father of modern Turkish culture

Although Turkey has a history dating back to before the Romans, modern Turkey has a tradition that comes from much more contemporary times. This is mainly due to Mustafa Kemal Atatürk , better known as Atatürk to dry. This name literally means "Father of the Turks" , and it refers to a Turkish army officer who was the First President of the Republic of Turkey , founded in 1923. Atatürk was the main architect of contemporary modern Turkey, which allowed to leave behind the Ottoman past with the aim of becoming an officially non-denominational and open to the West.

What do you think of these curiosities of Turkey ? Do they respond to the idea you had of this country or, on the contrary, have you discovered a nation much more modern and different from the idea that many people have in their heads? Have you been to this country before? Which regions do you know and which ones would you like to visit the most?


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