Turkey is a vast and varied country boasting incredible landscapes and natural wonders bordered by four different seas. Well known as a great destination for relaxing beach holidays, it also offers many sporting activities, some of the world’s most important ancient monuments, welcoming Turkish hospitality and varied national cuisine. Istanbul is also gearing up to be European Capital of Culture 2010 .so; it has never been a better time to visit this magical city!

Dakkak Holiday as a dominant out going tour operator in and a division of the tourism comprehensive destination management company Dakkak Group; witnesses a distinguished traffic of Jordanians who make tracks to this beautiful destination in summer mostly and the rest seasons of the year generally.

Various suggested packages and lots of tailor made plans are designed every season to Istanbul, , , and else.

Turkish coffee or Turk kahvesi is the perfect way to finish off a good meal. When ordering you specify whether you want it sade (plain), orta (with some sugar) or sekerli (very sweet) and it is brewed with the specified amount of sugar mixed in with the coffee granules. It is served in small cups. It is quite an art to know-when to stop drinking as one sip too many and you will end up with a mouthful of the sludgy residue which falls to the bottom of the cup. Even this has its uses, however, as you may find a local willing to tell your fortune from it - cover your cup with the saucer, wait until it becomes cold when you will be asked to turn it upside down, turn it around several times and then your destiny will be divined from the shapes which are formed. It is said that it was the Ottomans who introduced coffee to Europe when their retreating army left bags full of it at the gates of Vienna.

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Tel:+962 6 560 1076 - Fax: +962 6 5687972 E-mail: [email protected] It has never been a better time to visit this magical city!

Activities to Do

A highlight of any trip to the Cappadocia region is a breathtaking balloon flight in the calm still air over the fairy chimneys at dawn followed by a champagne breakfast. Dakkak Holidays recommends their clients to choose such trips and for the good value of time and money.

Climbing & Trekking Turkey is ideal for those who like to walk and at the same time take in spectacular scenery. Marked pathways include, on the Mediterranean coast, the between , Antalya and the St Paul Trail between Perge and Yalvac. There are many short trails in the Cappadocian landscape and for serious trekkers the Kackar Mountains in the northeast of the country can be recommended.

There are also many mountain ranges in Turkey suitable for climbing, including its highest Mount Ararat at 5137 metres ,Cilo-Sat mountain and the Kackar Mountains in the east of the country. The west also offers opportunities with the Taurus Mountain range that stretches from the east along the south of the country and includes the Beydaglari and Aladaglari Mountains of the . Golf Turkey has risen to become a world class player in golf, with the region near Antalya on the leading this revolution with 14 of its own courses. The region was also awarded Europe’s 2008 Golf Destination of the year at the golf industry’s prestigious annual IAGTO Awards, the golf industry equivalent of the Oscars With 19 world class courses across Belek, Istanbul, Ankara, Cappadocia and the Mugla region, a fantastic climate and high quality yet affordable hotels situated close to some very impressive courses, Turkey is ideal for year round golfing holidays. Horseback Riding Horseback Riding holidays and short day treks are available in various resorts around Turkey, including Antalya, Marmaris and Fethiye, and there are even horseback riding clubs in Istanbul and Ankara. The Cappadocian valleys are ideal for trekking by horses and there are many companies offering rides and tours around the region. Paragliding & parachuting is possible to paraglide, parachute and even fly single engine flights in many resorts around Turkey, including Bodrum, Fethiye, Pamukkale, Eskisehir and Istanbul. Oludeniz in Fethiye is particularly well-known for paragliding for its fantastic views of the lagoon. Winter Sports Skiing and snowboarding are popular winter sports in Turkey; Uludag in Bursa is Turkey’s oldest established ski resort and conveniently close to Istanbul. Kartalkaya in Bolu close to Ankara and Palandoken in Erzurum with Turkey’s longest run at 12km are also popular. Other resorts include Erciyes, Sarikamis, Zigana, Davraz and Saklikent near Antalya, where you can swim and ski in the same day in certain seasons. Heli-skiing is also gaining in popularity, particularly in the Kackars.

A highlight of any trip to the Cappadocia region is a breathtaking balloon flight in the calm still air over the fairy chimneys at dawn followed by a champagne breakfast. There are many companies that offer such trips and these can be booked easily locally. GEOGRAPHY Food: Turkey’s land mass is 714,815 sq km with 97 % in Asia and 3 % in The Foundation of Turkish Food is, if anything, dough is made Europe. The Asian and European sides are divided by the Istanbul of wheat flour. Boazi (Bosphorus), the Sea of Marmara and the Çanakkale Boazi Besides “ekmek” (ordinary white bread), “pide” (flat bread), “simit” (Dardanelles). Turkey shares borders with Bulgaria, Greece, Iran, (sesame seed rings), and “manti” (similar to ravioli), a whole family Iraq, Syria and Russia. It is also surrounded by three seas. The of food made up of thin sheets of a pastry called “borek” falls into to the South, the Black Sea to the North and this category. the to the west. Its coastline totals almost 8400 km. HISTORY “Kebab” is another category of food which, like the borek is Turkey boasts a fascinating history. Almost 10,000 years. 7500 BC typically Turkish dating back to the time when the nomadic the earliest known inhabitants were found at Çatalhöyük. Hattis, Turks learned to grill and roast meat over camp fires. Hittites, Phrygians, Urartians, Lycians, Lydians, Ionians, Persians, Given the numerous types of Kebabs, it helps to realize that they Macedonians, Romans, Byzantines, Seljuks and Ottomans have all held very important places in Turkish history. are categorized by the way the meat is cooked. The Western World knows the “sis kebab” and the “doner” introduced to them POPULATION mostly by Greek entrepreneurs, who has a good senses for what Turkey has 65 million inhabitants of whom 47% live in the will smell! Sis kebab is grilled cubes of skewered meat. “doner” countryside. The Major cities are Istanbul, Ankara (the Capital), kebab is made by stacking alternating layers of ground meat Izmir, Adana, Bursa and Antalya. and sliced leg of lamb on a large upright skewer, which is slowly rotated in front of a vertical grill. LANGUAGE Turkish is the national language, which is neither Indo-European nor Semitic but belongs to the Ural-Altaic group. Turkish is written Along with Grains, Vegetables are also consumed in large with Roman characters. quantities in the Turkish Diet. The simplest and most basic type of vegetable dish is prepared by RELIGION slicing a main vegetable such as zucchini or eggplant, combining 99 % of the Turkish population is Muslim. However, Turkey is a it with tomatoes, green peppers and onions, cooking it slowly in secular state and all religions can practice their beliefs freely. butter and its own juices. POLITICAL STRUCTURE The Turkish Republic is a democratic, pluralist and parliamentary “Dolma” is the generic term for stuffed vegetables, being system. Turkey belongs to NATO, OECD, and THE COUNCIL OF a derivative of the verb “doldurmak” (to fill). There are two EUROPE and is an Associate Member of the EEC. categories of Dolmas: those filled with a meat mix and those with a rice mix. INDUSTRY Industry is developing rapidly and directed mainly towards the In Turkey, despite the Islamic prohibition against wine processing of agricultural products, metallurgy, textiles and the manufacture of automobiles and agricultural machinery. and anything alcoholic beverages, there is a rich tradition associated with liquor. NATURAL RESOURCES Drinking alcoholic beverages with the company of family and The principal minerals extracted are coal, chrome (an important friends, at home as well as in taverns and restaurants, is a part of export), iron, copper, bauxite, marble and sulphur. special occasions. SOUTHEAST PROJECT (GAP) Volumes have been written about Turkish coffee; its history, its GAP is a multi-purpose, integrated, development project significance in social life, and the ambiance of the ubiquitous comprising of dams, hydroelectric power plants and irrigation coffee houses. facilities to be built on the Firat and Dicle rivers. It will affect Without some understanding of this background, it is easy to agriculture, transportation, education, tourism, health and other sectors. Included in the project ATATÜRK DAM is ranked amongst be disappointed by the tiny brew with the annoying grounds, the 10th largest in the World. which an uninitiated traveler (like Mark Twain) may accidentally end up chewing. A few words of caution will have to suffice TOURISM for the purposes of this brief primer. The grounds are not to be In recent years Turkey has become a major tourist attraction in swallowed, so sip the coffee gingerly, remember that it is the Europe with the development of both summer and winter resorts, setting and the company that matter; the coffee is just an excuse more and more people from all over the world are enjoying the for the occasion. history, natural beauty and culture of Turkey. CLIMATE Tea, on the other hand, is the main source of caffeine for the Turks. Turkey has both Mediterranean and Steppe climates, with huge It is prepared in a special way, Drinking tea is such an essential variations in rainfall and temperature between areas. part of a working day. Land Boundaries Princess Islands Total: 2,648 km The Princess Islands are composed of nine islands off the Asian Border countries: Armenia 268 km, Azerbaijan 9 km, Bulgaria 240 coast of Istanbul, in the Sea of Marmara. There are regular km, Georgia 252 km, Greece 206 km, Iran 499 km, Iraq 352 km, passenger and fast passenger ferries (sea bus) to the four of the Syria 822 km. islands from different piers of the city; from Sirkeci, Kabatas, and Coastline: 7,200 km from Bostanci districts. Motor vehicles are not permitted on the Currency islands except the ones belonging to local municipality for public Turkish Lira - TL (formerly New Turkish lira - YTL) works, so people walk or rent a bicycle or horse-drawn carriage, Exchange rates: USD 1 = 1.52 TL, Euro 1 = 1.93 TL (as of 12 May even a donkey. These are nice little islands where local people 2010). have their summer homes go there for small beaches and for picnics, or just to wonder around at the weekends.

These four islands are known as Adalar (Islands) in general in Turkish and their names are Buyukada, Heybeliada, Burgazada, and Kinaliada. There is also Sedefadasi which is not very popular as the other ones and very small settlement on it. There are no settlements on Hayirsizada, Sivriada and Yassiada, and Kasikada is a private island. Ancient

Jerash is known for the ruins of the Greco-Roman city of Gerasa, also referred to as Antioch on the Golden River. It is sometimes misleadingly referred to “Pompeii of the Middle East or Asia”, referring to its size, extent of excavation and level of preservation (though Jerash was never buried by a volcano). Jerash is considered one of the most important and best preserved Roman cities in the Near East. It was a city of the Decapolis.

Jerash was the home for Nicomachus of Gerasa (Greek: Νικόμαχος) (c. 60 – c. 120) who is known for his works Introduction to Arithmetic (Arithmetike eisagoge), The Manual of Harmonics and the Theology of Numbers. In Boethius Latin translation, this book remained the standard mathematics textbook for the Latin European Middle Ages. Modern Jerash Jerash has developed dramatically in the last century due to its strategic location in the heart of Jordan and the growing importance of the tourism industry to the City. Jerash is now the second-most popular tourist attraction in Jordan, closely behind the splendid ruins of Petra. The ruins have been carefully preserved and spared from encroachment with the modern city sprawling to the west of ancient Jerash’s City walls.

Souf was the seed for Modern Jerash. For many centuries was the center of the Al-Meradh area during the . The Al-Meradh region was called this because it was the only region in the North of Jordan which resisted the Southern Bedouin looting attacks that used to be launched by Bani Sakher tribes. They led a resistance alliance which finally succeeded in defeating the Bedouin.

Jerash actually re-inhabited by the local people of Souf and the surrounding villages who are now the vast majority of the city population. It became a destination for many successive waves of foreign migrants. The first wave started during the second half of the nineteenth century when the Syrians (Shwam) and the Circassians camped nearby the old ruins. The new immigrants have been welcomed by the local people and settled down in the city. Later, Jerash also witnessed waves of Palestinian refugees who flow to the city in 1948 and 1967.

However, recently the City of Jerash has been expanded to include many of the surrounding villages including Souf, Dairelliat, Thougretasfour, Jaba, Aljbarat and Majar. Other important villages in the governate include: Sakèb, Kitteh, Nahlé, Burma, Mustabah, Jubba, Raimoun, Kufr Khall, and Qafqafa.

Since 1981, the old city of Jerash has hosted the Jerash Festival [3], a three week long summer program of dance, music, and theatrical performances. The festival is frequently attended by members of the Royal Family of Jordan and is hailed as one of the largest cultural activities in the region.

In addition performances of the Roman Army and Chariot Experience (RACE) were started at the hippodrome in Jerash. The show runs twice daily, at 11am and at 2pm, and at 10am on Fridays, except Tuesdays. It features forty-five legionaries in full armor in a display of Roman Army drill and battle tactics, ten gladiators fighting “to the death” and several Roman chariots competing in a classical seven lap race around the ancient hippodrome. Economy Jerash economy depends largely on the tourists who visit the Ancient City. It is also an agricultural city with more than 1.25 million olive trees in . However, the location of Jerash; just half an hour ride from two of the largest cities in Jordan, and , contributed to slowing down its development, as investments tend to go to the larger cities. The Section is sponsored by:

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