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The famous Trojan Wars took place in Western Turkey, around the site where the
Trojan horse rests today.
The first church
built by man (St. Peter’s Church) is in Antioch (Antakya), Turkey.
The oldest known
human settlement is in Catalhoyuk, Turkey (7th Millenium B.C.).
The Temple of
Artemis, and Mausoleum of Halicarnassus (the place for the two of the Seven
Wonders of the ancient world) are in Turkey.
St. Nicholas, also
known as Santa Claus, was born in Demre, on Turkey’s Mediterranean Coast.
Noah’s Ark landed
on Mount Ararat (Agri Dagi) in Eastern Turkey.
Legend has it that
The Amazons originated in Turkey's northeastern region.
The last meal on
Noah’s Ark, a pudding of sweet and sour taste (asure), is still served
throughout Turkey.
Turks introduced
coffee to Europe.
Turks gave the
Dutch their famous tulips.
Istanbul is the
only city in the world built on two continents.
Tradition in
Turkey says that a stranger at one’s doorstep is considered -God’s guest- for
at least three days.
Turkey is noted
for having one of the three most famous and distinctive traditional cuisines in
the world.
The First
Ecumenical Council was held in Iznik, Turkey.
Writing was first
used by people in ancient Anatolia. The first clay tablets in the ruins of
Assyrian Karum (Merchant Colony) date back to 1950 B.C.
The oldest tin
mine was found in Goltepe, 60 miles south of Tarsus.
The first
Neolithic paintings found on man-made walls are in Catalhoyuk, Turkey.
The world's
greatest amphora and glass collection is in Bodrum Museum in Bodrum Castle.
Anatolia is the
birthplace of historic legends, such as Homer (the poet), King Midas, Herodotus
(the father of history),
and St. Paul the Apostle.
Julius Caesar
proclaimed his celebrated words, -Veni, Vid, Vici (I came, I saw, I conquered)-
in Turkey when he defeated the Pontus, a formidable kingdom in the Black Sea
region of Turkey.
Female goddesses
like Cybele dominated the Central Anatolian pantheon for thousands of years
before these supernatural powers were transformed to male gods.
The Hittites sold
Abraham the cave where he buried his wife Sarah, when the Israelites came to
Palestine.
Marc Anhtony gave
Cleopatra part of Turkey's southwestern shore as a wedding gift.
The first church
dedicated to Virgin Mary is in Ephesus.
Turkey provides
70% of the world's hazelnuts; the nut in your chocolate bar was most probably
grown in Turkey.
Cherry was first
introduced to Europe from Giresun (Northern Turkey).
The first recorded
international treaty in the world was the Treaty of Kadesh between the Hittite
and Egyptian Empires, Hattusilis III and Ramses II, in 1284 BC.
The oldest known
shipwreck on Earth was found and excavated in Uluburun near Kas, in the
Mediterranean region of Turkey.
King Midas lived
in Gordion, capital of Phrigia.
Alexander the
Great cut the Gordian knot near Ankara. The double knotting tecnique used in
Turkish rugs is also called as Gordian Knot.
The most valuable
silk carpet in the world, is in the Mevlana Museum, Konya with 144 knots per
square centimeter. In the 13th century, Marco Polo wrote "the best and
handsomest of rugs are woven here, and also silks of crimson and other rich
colors".
The Garden of Eden
in the Book of Genesis was said to be watered by a river which separated into
four streams as it left the garden; two of them the Tigris (Dicle) and
Euphrates (Firat) rise from the mountains of Eastern Turkey.
Early Christians
escaping from Roman persecutions found shelter in Cappadocia.
The Seven Churches
of Apocalypse are all situated in the Aegean region of Anatolia; Ephesus,
Smyrna (Izmir), Pergamum, Thyatira (Nazilli), Sardis, Philadelphia (Alasehir)
and Laodicea.
Istanbul's Grand
Bazaar is a 540 year old, covered shopping mall of 64 streets, 4000 shops, 22
entrances, and 25000 workers.
Sultan Beyazit II
dispatched the Ottoman Navy to bring the Jewish people who were expelled from
Spain in 1492 and they were brought safely to the Ottoman lands.
Istanbul has the
historical building of Sirkeci Train Station. This was the last stop of the
Simplon-Orient Express - kings of trains and train of kings - between Paris and
Constantinople (Istanbul) from 1883 to 1977. Agatha Christie was one of the
passengers of this famous train.
The number of
species of flowers in Turkey is approximately 9,000, of which 3,000 are
endemic. In Europe for instance there are 11,500 species. This shows the
richness of flora and fauna in Anatolia.
Turkey has many
beaches which have the -Blue Flag- (an European award for the best clean water)
on the Mediterranean and Aegean.
In 640 BC, for the
first time in history, coins made of electrum were used by the Lydian king
Croesus in Sardis, in Aegean region of Turkey.
Unveiled at the
Topkapi Palace in 1929 and drawn by the renowned Turkish sailor Piri Reis
(1457–1555), this map bewildered the world of science, since the mountain
ranges in Antarctica, northern and southern coasts of American Continents, even
the mountain chains and their summits, only discovered in 1952 with acoustical
devices, were accurately located and shown on it.
Turkey is noted
for having one of the three (together with French and Chinese) most famous and
distinctive traditional cuisines in the world. Turkish cooks are heirs to one
of the world's finest cuisines. The Turks brought a traditon of cooking with
them out of Central Asia and discovered new foods and ways to prepare them in
Asia Minor. In Turkish Cuisine, as in so many other things Turkish, East meets
West in a delightful way.
According to
Turkish tradition a stranger at one's doorstep is considered "A Guest from God"
and should be accommodated accordingly.
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