Sinanation

Currency: Yeni Turk Lirasi (YTL) / The New Turkish Lira; 1 USD = 1.50 YTL (as of 20 November 2009)

Weather: Spring (April to June), Summer (June to September), Autumn (September to November), Winter (November to the end of March)

Religion: Majority follows Islam with a contemporary/urban approach where veils are not custom among women and alcohol consumption and entertainment are part of daily life.

National & Religious Holidays/Events:

• January 1st: New Year’s Day
• April 23rd: National Sovereignty & Children’s Day
• May 1st: Labor &  Solidarity Day
• May 19th: Commemoration for Ataturk & Youth & Sports’ Day
• August 30th: Victory Day (victory of the Turks over foreign forces in 1922)
• October 29th: Republic Day (anniversary of the declaration of the Turkish Republic in 1923)
• Ramadan: One month during the year when the Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset to be equalized in terms of nutrition, remember their creator, the importance of basic needs and the troubles of the poor. The nightclubs will be less crowded during Ramadan. Alcohol consumption will be minimal as religious people will abstain from it. The timing of Ramadan changes every year based on the Islamic Calendar, but usually takes place during the second half.
• Seker Bayrami: Three-day festival when sweets are eaten to celebrate the end of Ramadan. Around August, September or October depending on the Islamic Calendar.
• Kurban Bayrami: Four-day festival when sacrificial sheep are slaughtered for their meat to be distributed among the poor. Around October, November or December depending on the Islamic Calendar.

Cab ride from Ataturk Airport to Downtown: 45 minutes to 1 hour, approx. USD 35

Getting around: Istanbul is extremely dispersed. Driving, thus using cabs, is essential as it takes approx. 15-20 minutes at least to get from one neighborhood to the other.

Best Areas to Stay:

• Nisantasi
• Ortakoy
• Kuruscesme

Tipping:

• Cabs: Not common. Left at the discretion of the traveler.
• Waiters: 10% common, 15% if extremely happy with service

Movie Theaters: You can request specific seats when getting tickets. Unlike the U.S. every ticket holder is assigned a seat number.

Snacks after Clubbing: Burgers of the U.S. become Durum (wrap) or Manti (meat ravioli) in Istanbul. Most common Durum comes with grilled meatballs, melted cheese, tomatoes, onions and chopped lettuce. Manti is served hot with yogurt, melted butter and mint on top. Most Popular Places to Go: Bodrum Manti in Kuruscesme, Ali Baba in Kurucesme.

Popular Attractions:

• Boat Tour on the Bosphorus
• Topkapi Palace
• Dolmabahce Palace
• Hagia Sophia
• The Blue Mosque
• The Grand Bazaar
• The Spice Market
• Istanbul Modern

Visiting Mosques: Everyone is required to take the shoes off before entering the premises. This is the custom as the carpets you will be walking on is the ground where Muslims pray to Allah. Women are asked to cover their hair with a scarf and men are asked to wear shorts below the knee or pants.

Popular Dishes:

• Iskender Kebab with Yogurt: Made from the Döner kebab (a dish made of lamb meat cooked on a vertical, rotating spit and sliced off to order), Iskender is served with tiny squares of bread tucked below the slices of meat with tomato sauce, hot melted butter and yogurt on top. The dish is named after Iskender Efendi, the inventor of the dish from Bursa, Turkey.
• Hunkar Begendi: Eggplant purée prepared with cheese and traditionally served with lamb stew
• Karniyarik: Oven baked eggplant stuffed with meat.
• Manti: Turkish ravioli stuffed with meat and served hot with yogurt, melted butter and spices on top.
• Dolma: Dolma is a family of stuffed (usually with a mixture of cooked ground meat and rice) vegetable dishes. Common vegetables include grape leaves, tomatoes, peppers and cabbage. Usually served with a side of yogurt.
• Lahmacun: A pizza-shaped, thin-crusted, wood-fried piece of dough topped with minced meat. Lahmacun is often enjoyed sprinkled with lemon, parsley, onions and spices.
• Gozleme: Hand made and hand rolled pastry that is rolled out, filled, sealed and then cooked over a griddle. You can choose the ingredient inside which varies from cheese to potatoes.
• Levrek & Kalkan: (Sea Bass & Turbot). Get the Sea Bass grilled and the Turbot fried.

Popular Drinks:

• Ayran: Drink prepared by mixing yogurt with water and salt.
• Raki: An anise-flavored alcoholic beverage served cold with water and ice.
  
• Turkish Coffee: A dark strong coffee prepared by boiling grated coffee in water. Comes in three varieties: No sugar, mild sugar, with sugar. The residual of finished Turkish Coffee is used to read the drinker’s fortune. It is extremely popular among Turkish people.
• Salgam Suyu: Turnip juice mostly served in Kebab restaurants. It originated in city of Adana, in the Southern Turkey.
• Turkish Tea

Popular Desserts:

• Turkish Delight: (Refer to the article titled “Divan’s Chocolate Covered Turkish Delights” for details)
• Irmik Helvasi: Semolina dessert made by blighting semolina flour with butter, water, milk, sugar and pine nuts. Served warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
• Baklava: Pastry made of layers of phyllo dough filled with chopped nuts and sweetened with syrup or honey
• Sekerpare
• Firin Sutlac: Rice pudding baked in the oven. Served cold.
• Ayva Tatlisi: Dessert made from quince. Served with nuts on top.
  
• Kabak Tatlisi: Dessert made from squash. Served with nuts on top.
  

Most Popular Shopping Malls:

• Istinye Park
• Kanyon
• Akmerkez
• The Grand Bazaar

Recommended Souvenir Shopping:

• “Istanbul T-Shirts” from the Mavi Jeans Stores Web: www.mavi.com
• Chocolate covered Turkish Delights from the Divan Bakery Web: www.divan.com.tr
• Glasses from the Pasabahce Stores Web: www.pasabahce.com
• “Ottoman Empire T-Shirts” from the Ottoman Empire Store at Kanyon Web: www.ottomanempiretshirts.com
• Carpets from the Hali Sarayi Address: At the Grand Bazaar; Nuruosmaniye Cad. No: 66-68 Cagaloglu, Istanbul Web: www.halisarayi.com
• Baklava & other Turkish desserts from the Gulluoglu Bakery Web: www.gulluoglubaklava.com

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 25th, 2009 at 10:27 and is filed under CITY GUIDE, Istanbul. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.