15 Things You Didn't Know About Turkey
Hello Guys:
Welcome back to another amazing Article today we're exploring the beautiful Turkey one of the few transcontinental countries Turkey spans both Asia and Europe inhabited since the Paleolithic era Turkey has been taken over by various civilizations including Assyrians Greeks and the Armenians from the 14th century to the early 20th experienced war after war its current political station is turbulent - what can we learn about this diverse country that's forever in the headlines because Alex calm is dedicated to becoming the world's best resource on the most interesting destinations in the world we wanted to show you 15 things you didn't know about Turkey.
1 Turkey is home to two of the seven wonders of the ancient world we often assume that the ancient wonders will mainly be in Egypt in Greece but Turkey has its fair share the Temple of Artemis is dedicated to the Greek goddess of hunting and childbirth also known as Diana in ancient Rome the temple is located near the ancient city of Ephesus which is now on the edge of Selkirk and understandably in ruins the mausoleum of Halicarnassus was a burial chamber built in 353 BC and was carved by four Greek sculptors its ruins can be seen in a modern-day bhadram.
2 A soup before a meal is very common even before breakfast no matter what time of day it is turks love soup breakfast is a very important meal often consisting of meats cheeses and breads but it's always begun with soup during winter months soup will begin all meals and is served with rice bulgur wheat or yogurt summer time generally involves cold vegetables with olive oil as starter other Turkish customs include finishing the food on your plate the host not leaving the table until their guest has finished and it's absolutely fine to belch in rural areas.
3 Santa Claus was technically born in Turkey Saint Nicholas a Christian Saint and the origin of Santa Claus was born in modern-day dem Rey Turkey at the time this was a part of the Roman Empire and Saint Nick was a bishop of great significance he has suggested to have brought three murdered boys back from the dead with his prayers magically doubled a ship's cargo of wheat and became known for gift-giving in the modern world.
4 Turkey has the highest number of Facebook users in the world when compared to their online population turkey has just under 300 million Facebook users which is especially impressive when you consider that just 58 percent of the population is online the nation has embraced social media and is one of the most engaged online audiences in the world partly because the population is especially youthful with over fifty percent of people under 30 years old.
5 You might be served chicken breast pudding when traveling in Turkey a popular Turkish dessert is the bizarre sounding chicken breast pudding made from boiled chicken sugar milk and cinnamon it was commonly served to Sultan's when Turkey was a part of the Ottoman Empire which would have been a great honour if you find it on your plate it would be a good idea to try it smile and nod so you don't offend anyone.
6 Leonardo da Vinci planned a bridge that ran over the Bosphorus but it was never built plans for da Vinci's bridge were discovered in the 1950s showing that the famous artist and inventor submitted plans for a bridge which linked Asia and Europe in 1503 the bridge was going to be built between Peres and what was then Constantinople and it's unknown why the plans were never put into action however we do know that the sultan at the time was offered a windmill and a water pumped by DaVinci and he gladly accepted.
7 Turkey is home to thirteen UNESCO World Heritage Sites Turkey's beaches are some of the most beautiful in the world but it's not just the beaches that are protected sites Turkey's home to stunning hot springs some of the most remarkable mosques and religious sites and national parks full of history the country's significance in the ancient world means that there are many Greek and Roman ruins to see too with some dating back to 129 BC find out about some of the most expensive man-made.
8 Many Turkish people didn't have surnames until 1934 a surname law was introduced in 1934 requiring all Turkish citizens to have a surname before that people would take their father's name and add son of or oglu since 1934 citizens have used a similar system to many other countries where children take their father's surname as of 2013 the most common surname in the country was Yilmaz.
9 Journalists are imprisoned in Turkey than anywhere else in the world Syria and Russia are notoriously dangerous for journalists with many being killed for their careers but Turkey has the highest number of imprisoned journalists in the world the majority have been jailed for their support of the Kurdistan Workers Party charged with an anti-terror law the government puts a lot of pressure on the media to dismiss journalists who are critical of them so many journalists have chosen to self-censor in order to avoid prosecution.
10 Part of turkeys coastline was given to Cleopatra as a gift when Mark Antony and Cleopatra got married he gave her what is now Alanya in the south of Turkey in a bid to impress her Cleopatra Beach is one of the most stunning in Turkey and Cleopatra island off its coast is a true gem the queen of Egypt herself thought it was her paradise and now you can travel there by boat.
11 The fifth most expensive house in the world is on the coast of Istanbul decorated in a classic style was an appropriately east-meets-west decor this 115 million dollar estate has its own 200 foot quay measuring 30,000 square feet in total this waterfront estate has 64 rooms and is kitted out with gold sinks and crystal chandeliers the mansion was designed by Alexandre Valeri in the mid 19th century for one of Sultan Abdulhamid the second Minister's and now it's on the market.
12 One of his temples most expensive restaurants only accepts cash cannot restaurant is a 360 degree restaurant in Istanbul that offers a stunning view of the surrounding areas they serve traditional Turkish and Ottoman food in a modern minimalist setting but there's no point in bringing your American Express as they only accept cash this is common in Turkish restaurants no matter how luxurious so all tourists should remember to carry it.
13 Turks are very patriotic the Turkish flag has religious and national significance so it's displayed everywhere with pride sales of Turkish flags actually soared after the failed military coup in July 2016 with a 1.5 million sold on day one as the show of loyalty to the country and the government Turkey has a high turnout for elections with 85% voting in the last election showing that the population is particularly invested in the country and how it moves forward.
14 The women of Turkey won the right to vote before most European countries it's easy for us to assume that a predominantly Muslim country would be slow on the uptake when it comes to equal rights for women but that's not necessarily the case women in Turkey won the right to vote in 1930 before friends Portugal Belgium Greece and Switzerland the most recent country to introduce equal voting rights was Saudi Arabia 85 years after Turkey.
15 Troy wasn't in Greece it was actually in Turkey the famous ancient city of Troy where Helen was taken after her kidnapping and the big wooden horse was created is believed to have existed in Turkey located in what is known as Asia Minor the European parts of Turkey some of the walls of the city's Acropolis can still be seen for many years people thought Troy was entirely fictional but these ruins seemed to prove exactly where it stood we are all used to reading about Turkey but it's mainly shrouded in negative news stories what's actually evident to anyone who's visited the country is that it's a stunning diverse place with a really rich history it has as much ancient significance as Greece and Egypt and it's scenery makes it one of the jewels of the world there's so much we don't know about it so maybe it's time to explore if you could take a trip to this amazing country what would be your first stop would you take a tour of every monument and site and explore the ancient world or would you look around the country's modern streets and meet the patriotic people of Turkey oh you're still here here's another bizarre and incredible fact about Turkey according to legend Noah's Ark first landed in eastern Turkey on Mount Ararat a group of evangelical Christian explorers claimed to have found the debris underneath debris of the volcano however there are two conflicting views on this with many disputing any site exists.
Thank you for spending some time with us we will see you soon Goodbye.
