“With age, comes wisdom. With travel, comes understanding.”
Turkey is a country in the Mediterranean region of Eurasia. It was founded in 1923 from a scrap of the Ottoman Empire. It is a fact that Turkey is often described as a part of Western Asia and culturally sometimes considered European although its small portion in Southeastern Europe is separated by Turkish straits. There is the Black Sea to the North, the Aegean Sea in the west, and the Mediterranean Sea in the Southwest. It is surrounded by Bulgaria and Greece to the west, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia to the Northeast, and Syria, Iraq, and Iran to the Southwest. In 1945, it became a part of the United Nations, and then in 1952, it became a member of NATO.
A WEALTH OF DESTINATIONS
Turkey acts as a wealth of destinations to its travelers. There is a dome-and-minaret filled skyline in Istanbul, heavily overwhelmed coastline running against a mountainous Lycia, wide and sunny beaches of Pamphylia, cold and snowy mountains of the East, foam parties of Bodrum, cities of Southeastern Anatolia, wide magnificent landscapes of Central Anatolia, and many more. There is something or the other according to everyone’s taste in Turkey while exploring the country regardless of whether they are travelling on an extreme budget by hitchhiking or via multi-million yacht.
CULTURE
Turkey is a mixture of the west and east culture. One travelling to Turkey would feel as if he is in a Balkan country or Greece. It is convenient to say that it is the most oriental of western nations or the most occidental of eastern nations. The faith of the majority of the population of Turkey is in Islam, but its interpretation varies with people. Many people residing on northwestern and western coasts are somewhere fairly liberal about the religion. The largest religious minority in the country is the Alevites, and they constitute 20% of the population.
REGIONS OF TURKEY
- Aegean Turkey: Numerous Greek and other Balkanites have been inhabiting this area.
- Black Sea Turkey: It is a densely forested mountainous area providing opportunities for outdoor activities like trekking and rafting. The northeastern part of this region was traditionally inhabited by Georgians.
- Central Anatolia: It is described as tree-poor central steppes.
- Eastern Anatolia: It is the high and mountainous eastern part of the country with harsh winters.
- Marmara Region: It is the most urbanized region of the country with Byzantine and Ottoman monuments.
- Mediterranean Turkey: It has mountains with pinewood trees arranged in ascending order.
- Southeastern Anatolia: It is the semi-desert region of the country.
INFERENCES
Ankara is the second-largest city and the capital of Turkey. Istanbul is the largest city of Turkey, the former capital of the Ottoman and Byzantine Empires, and the only important city in the world to straddle two continents. The main language of Turkey is Turkish, and it is a Latin-based alphabet. Kurdish is another language spoken by approximately 7-10% of the population. Also, English is the rising foreign language among the younger population. One can enjoy seeing ancient ruins and architectural heritage. While exploring Turkey, one can enjoy winter sports like skiing.
Checkout more such content at: https://gogomagazine.in/category/magazine/travelogue-volume-7/
4