Hi, I am Rebecca Brayton and
to watchmojo.com. Today we'll be continuing our travel series with a profile on Turkey.
Turkey, a
with a population of over 70 million
such countries as Armenia, Iran, Iraq and Syria.
is actually located across
both Asia and
. Because of this strategic location, the country has a
blend of eastern and western
. For example, Turkish
is a combination of Middle Eastern food
such as , pita bread and hummus and Mediterranean food like tomatoes garlic and grilled meat. Hot peppers, mint, cumin and yogurt are important ingredients in Turkish
.
Turkey’s climate is
with hot dry summers and
mild wet winters.
However,
conditions get
harsher
towards the interior of the
.
Turkey is
split into seven regions. Each has its own distinct climate, landscape and traditions. The first four are named
according to their adjacent seas, the Black Sea, the Marmara, the Aegean and the Mediterranean regions. The other three are named in relation to their location in the whole of Anatolia - the Central, the Eastern and Southeast Anatolia regions. Eastern
has a mountainous landscape and is home to the
of rivers such as the Euphrates and the Tigris.
Antalya is one of the Mediterranean’s most
cities and is Turkey's hottest vacation
spot, with the Konyalti
on the west and the Lara beaches to the east, lying at the
the Antalya’s massive
mountain range. The region
bathed in sunshine for three hundred days a year is the paradise of
, swimming and sporting activities like windsurfing, water skiing and
caving. Antalya in
and April
allows to ski in the mornings and in the afternoons swim in the
waters of the Mediterranean. But Turkey also has a very rich architectural
.
Among its monuments are examples of Greek, Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman
. In fact, it is the home of some of the world's most beautiful Byzantine architecture.
The main
in turkey is Muslim and
therefore the country
showcases several fantastic mosques,
including Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque.
Some of the main exports are
and
with the
silk trade being a huge
draw.
Woven rugs called kilims are also an
item shoppers might pick up at the Grand Bazaar, one of the world's largest covered market which is
in Istanbul, which is Turkey's largest city.
Istanbul is the heart of business and cultural life,
Ankara is Turkey’s capital. Istanbul recently became one of the biggest
of the European region by hosting the biggest mall in
and the fourth largest shopping center in the world.
Foreign tourist arrivals
increased substantially in Turkey between 2002 and 2005 which makes Turkey a top 10
in the world for
foreign visitors.
.