Islamic Finance: Structure and Instruments 26 – 30 September Ankara, Turkey GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT ANKARA LANGUAGE Turkish is the official language in Turkey. But most of the people speak English, also French, Italian and Spanish are the languages that are known and spoken. CLIMATE In September we live in the last days of summer with mild weather of approximately 24-270 C during daytime. It is recommended to bring along raincoat and umbrella for possible rain showers. BANKING, MONEY and CREDIT CARDS Turkish monetary unit is Turkish Lira. Foreign currency maybe changed at banks on weekdays between normal banking hours 09.00-16.00 and also hotels, airports and Exchange offices. All major credit cards are acceptable in most hotels, restaurants and shops. TL Banknotes are 5, 10,20, 50, 100 and 200 TL. TL coins are 1, 5, 10, 25, 50 Kuruş and 1 Lira. TIME Local time is equal to GMT +2 HOURS. Same time zone is used all over the country. ELECTRICITY 220 Voltage is the Standard voltage throughout the country. 110 Voltage is also found in 5 star hotels. WEIGHTS and MEASURES The kilograms and the metric system are using in Turkey as weight and measuring system. MAIL SERVICES and TELECOMMUNICATION Turkeys’ postal services are comparatively organized and efficient. Centrally located offices are open between 08.00-24.00. - Telephone; All cities are linked by an efficient direct dialing system. Public telephones work with cards which are sell at Telecom offices. All over Turkey, phone numbers consists of two sections; area code (3 digits) and the number itself (7 digits). Inner city calls just digit 7- digit number National calls 0 + area code+ number International calls 0+0+ country code+ area code + number NEWPAPERS Foreign newspapers are available one day after publication. Turkish Daily News is a goodpaper to keep up with daily events in Turkey. PHARMACIES Pharmacies (Eczane) are open from 09.00-19.00 on weekdays and Saturdays. They are closed on Sundays but there is always one, open 24 hours in each neighborhood. Each pharmacy supplies the name of the closest open one, called the Nöbetçi Eczane (on duty pharmacy) for that Sunday, evening, statutory and religious holidays by placing a display at their Windows. Y. Hayat Eczanesi Tel 310 69 06 Adress Cumhuriyet Cad. 100. Yıl Çar. 2b/53 Şenesen Eczanesi Tel 324 40 90 Adress 100. Yıl Çarşısı Giriş Kat. No:3 Bora Eczanesi Tel 311 46 69 Adress Rüzgarlı Sok. 18/55 Hızır Eczanesi Tel 311 08 88 Adress Rüzgarlı Sok. No:18 Rüzgarlı Eczanesi Tel 312 49 50 Adress Rüzgarlı Plevne Sok. 4/d Y. Uğur Eczanesi Tel 311 38 22 Adress Atatürk Bulvarı İşhanı E Blok 6/1 SHOPPING Shops are usually open between 09.00-19.00 and closed on Sundays under normal circumstances. Turkey is well known with its hand made products. Such as carpets, kilims, gold, silverware, ceramics, leather, goods, ornaments, fashioned from alabaster, onyx and copper. Carpets A carpet is more a work of art than an article which people step on for everyday use. 70 % of the of the tourists coming to Turkey return to their homes with carpets because Turkey is a treasure house of carpets. Turkish carpets are made of silk, wool or cotton and they carry a wide range of symbols. For many centuries, Anatolian women have been expressing their wishes, fears, interests, fidelity and love through the artistic medium of carpets. Even so, there are typical repeated motifs changing from region to region; geometric designs, tree of life, the central medallion design etc. Shopping Alternatives There really is no shortage of bustling shopping centers within Ankara, offering a variety of familiar brands and designer names. Large department stores tend to offer a reliable choice of gifts and clothing, although for a little more character while you shop, do check out the local markets (pazars), particularly around the Ulus and along the Cikrikcilar Yokusu (the Weaver's Road). The Kizilay area of Ankara also features more than its share of shopping opportunities, which tend to be grouped around the Ataturk Bulvari and the Gazi Kemal Bulvari Nearby, a further selection of shops line much of the Gazi Mustafa Kemal Bulvari, while on the end of the Tunali Hilmi Avenue, the Karum shopping centre is well worth a look, as is the Atakule Tower in the Cankaya quarter. The Castle (Kale) in Ankara has served as a trade centre for the city for literally centuries and offers a unique shopping experience, with local traders selling hand-woven Turkish carpets and rugs, leather good and a range of antiques. On the outskirts of Ankara and along the highway, the Ankamall (which is near Radisson Blu Hotel), the Armada, the CEPA shopping malls are all excellent. FOOD Turkish cuisine is considered to be among the best in the world. So many civilizations, so many styles and abundant food supply contribute to today’s cuisine. Kindly find below some restaurant types that is present in Turkey. • Lokanta: This kind of retaurant is typally Turkish and offers home-cooking style food. In these restaurants, you can eat Güveç which is any kind of meat prepared in a casserole, Bulgur Pilavı which is cooked with crushed wheat, Sarma which is prepared with grape leaves, peppers, egg plants, cabbage leaves or mussels filled with rice, minced meat and raisins which are traditional Turkish meals. • Kebapçı: This is the place where kebabs are sold. Kebab is a roast, broiled and grilled meat prepared in many different ways each of them called by adding a word to kebab, döner kebab, şiş kebab, patlıcan kebab etc. The most popular is Döner Kebab, which is lamb meat, roasted on revolving spit. • Farinaceous Food Restaurants: These differ from Italian pizza to Turkish farinaceous foods such as börekçi, pideci, lahmacuncu, mantıcı etc. • Börek is flaky pastry filled with cheese, eggs, vegetables or minced meat then fried and baked. • Gözleme is a thin dough filled with cheese, and parsley and baked on thin iron plate placed in wood charcoal fire. Pide is a thick dough base filled or covered with any combination of meat, cheese, egg etc. It is quite similar to pizza. Lahmacun is a thin round dough base covered with as spicy mixture of minced lamb meat, onions, tomatoes and parsley. Mantı is a kind of pasta filled with minced lamb meat and served with yoghurt and garlic. • Tatlıcı: This is a place where they sell different kinds of sweets. There are many of them like baklavacı, muhallebici, dondurmacı, helvacı etc. Kindly find below some Turkish dessert and how they are produced. • Baklava is thin layers of flaky pastry stuffed with almond paste, walnuts or pistachio nuts in syrup. Its name comes from the shape in which it is cut; lozenge-shapes. • Kaymak is thick clotted cream eaten with most sweets as well as on its own with honey or jam. • Asure (Noah’s pudding)is made from numerous types of dried fruit and pulses. Sütlaç is rice puding. Kadayıf is shredded wheat in syrup. • Kestane şekeri is glace chestnuts. They are generally canned or kept in glass jars in syrup. • Lokum (Turkish Delight)is cubes of jelly like or gummy confection flavored with flower or fruit essences and dusted with powdered sugar. BEVERAGE • Turkish coffee is a ritual rather than a drink. Although coffee is not grown in Turkey, it is called Turkish coffee because it was introduced to the western world by Turks during the Siege of Vienna in the 16C. It is made by mixing an extremely finely ground coffee with water and sugar. According to your taste you should let the waiter know in advance how much sugar you want in it. Turkish coffee is drunk in small sips after have rinsed your mouth with a little water. • Çay is much more common. Especially at breakfast, but is also drunk anytime from small glasses and stirred with tiny spoons. • Boza is a fermented and sweetened drink made from corn or wheat. • Salep is boiled milk flavored with orchid plant. • Ayran is a refreshing tangy drink of yoghurt, water and salt whipped together. Inner City Transportation Apart from public buses and trains the most common means of transportation are taxis and dolmuş. Dolmuş; It is a kind of shared taxi, which sometimes takes the form of a large car, a station wagon, a regular taxi or a minibus. It follows a specific fixed route. Passengers pay according to the distance traveled and can get in and out wherever and whenever they want to by informing the driver. It is a very practical means of transport and much cheaper than a taxi. The dolmuş fares are determined by municipalities according to distances. Taxis; Taxis are numerous all over Turkey and are recognizable by their yellow color and lighted “taxi” signs on top. Each taxi is metered and there are two different rates. After midnight (24.00) till morning (06.00) it will cost %50 more than the daytime fare. Metro; It is used for short distances. There are 2 routes of underground in Ankara. Ankaray (Light metro) and Metro. They are both very comfortable and speedy. Connections between Metro and Ankaray are in Kızılay. The fare for 1 unit is the same as the bus and your electronic bus tickets are also valid here. Route map and electronic cards can be obtained from any underground station. Working hours are 06.00-00.00The first line of the Ankara Metro runs from Batıkent, north of the city to Kızılay in other words the Centrum.Ankaray (Light metro) runs from ASTI (Ankara Intercity Bus Station), west of the town, passing through Kızılay and ending in Dikimevi.