SPECIAL ATTRACTIONS
Nazar Bonjuk is a Turkish good-luck ‘’evil eye’’ charm. It was born of the age-old ‘’evil eye’’ superstition that one person can cast a spell on another. To prevent this, Turkish artisans created a blue glass ‘’eye’’ that ‘’looks’’ straight back at the spell-caster as if to say ‘’ I see what you’re doing, and you can’t get away with it!’’ It has no religious significance, and few people really believe in the evil eye superstition anymore. But it’s such an enjoyable tradition, and a beautiful little piece of craft-art, that you’ll see Nazar Bonjuks all over Turkey, especially on babies. Nazar Bonjuks appear in many shapes and sizes.
Nobility incarnated:
The Turkish Angora (Turkish: Ankara Kedisi) is a
breed of domestic cat. Turkish Angoras are one of the
ancient, naturally-occurring cat breeds, having originated
in central Turkey, in the Ankara religion. The habit of
calling every cat with long hair an ‘’Ankara’’ lingered for
quite a while until it became clear that the pedigree of
the purebred is in Turkey.
Sivas Kangal
Welcome to the wonderful world of the kangal dog
It is an impressive dog named after the Kangal
district of the Central Anatolian province of Sivas where
it is found as a purebred. Its Turkey’s beloved national
breed. They have been in use for centuries as guardians
of sheep and goats, and of the families who care for them.
There is probably no place else in the world a native breed
exists in such numbers, with such remarkable uniformity,
as the Kangal Dog. They are truly a historical and cultural treasure.
The swimming cat
Everybody knows cats hate water, but somebody forgot
to tell the Turkish Van Cat. The Van Cat is all
playfulness and vivacity not with standing the serene
appearance projected by a silky white fur. Its eyes are
of different colors, it is an excellent hunter and it loves
to play in water and swim unlike any other of its feline
brethren. Its tail is so long it is hard to manage especially when asleep.
Snowdrop It is a bulbous plant called snowdrop (kardelen in Turkish: breaking through the snow) and owes its name to the fact that it sometimes opens before snow has melted. The wide variation in topography and climate; the fact that Turkey is surrounded by four seas; each cost has got its own ecological constitution. A large number of ornamental flowers were cultivated from Turkish wild forms, including most famously the tulip but also the crocus, snowdrop, cyclamen and lily.
Turkey is also situated on the main migratory routes for birds between Asia, Africa and Europe, thus increasing the number of species found here.
