Turkey | With a land area of more than three quarters of a million square kilometers, Turkey is a huge country.

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With a land area of more than three quarters of a million square kilometers, Turkey is a huge country. It is situate at the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea and is effectively a bridge between Europe and Asia. To the north, Turkey has a 1500 kilometer-long Black Sea coastline, whilst to the south lies the Mediterranean. The country has land borders with Greece, Bulgaria, Syria, Iran, Iraq, Armenia and Georgia. Quite naturally, a country of this size is comprised of a great variety of landscape.

The history and cultural make-up of Turkey is extremely complex. The Turks who have given their name to the country originated in the Altai Mountains of Central Asia and Mongolia. This group of people (also known as Turkmen and Turcoman) were also the ancestors of the Mongols who went on to conquer much of Central Asia, including Anatolia in the 13th Century. By this time, another branch of the Turkmen people, called the Oguz Turks, well established in the area, which is now Turkey.

The climate varies according to region and altitude. In Istanbul, it can be hot and humid during the summer months with temperatures regularly approaching 30 degrees centigrade. In the mountainous areas to the east of the country, the air is drier and the temperature range much greater. Although situated some 1700 meters higher than Istanbul, temperatures in Van can be quite similar around the high 20’s centigrade/ 80s Fahrenheit.

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