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TurkeyThe Inside StoryWhere do you start in a country like Turkey, where thepast meets the present and modern blends with thetraditional? Choose between bustling cities, religiouscentres, Black Sea and Mediterranean coast, naturalphenomena and ancient sites.Throw yourself into the hustle and bustle of Istanbul,straddling the Bosphorus with its Grand Bazaar andskyline of minarets. Witness the Whirling Dervishes inthe caravanserai town of Konya, visit one of the SevenWonders of the World in Bodrum and stroll along thepalm-lined promenade by the clear waters of theAegean in Izmir. The Anzac memorials to the fallen ofthe World War I battlefields at Gallipoli are soberingbut the Roman city of Ephesus and the site of the siegeof Troy are true wonders.Numerous other treasures await; underground cities,churches carved from rock, travertine pools, Romanruins and convivial locals who may invite you to join themin the hamam!Storyto tell -PeterWybrowWhy I loveTurkeyThere couldn’t be morecontrast betweencosmopolitan Istanbuland laid-back Goreme.After the splendourand grand scale of thecapital’s iconic religiousbuildings, head to theCappadocia regionwhere the simplerock-cut churchesand their colourfulfrescoes will impressin an entirelydifferent way.7500 BCEarliest known human communityexists at Çatal Höyük330Emperor Constantine transfersRoman capital to Byzantium,renaming it Constantinople1000s-1200sBattling Crusaderarmies cross Anatolia1520-1566Reign of Sultan Süleymanthe Magnificent; the greatage of the Ottoman Empire1250 BCTrojan War foughtbetween the armiesof Troy and Achaea527-565Byzantine emperor Justinianbuilds the Hagia Sophia1288Warrior chieftain Osmanfounds the Ottoman Empire1909Abdul Hamid, the last of theOttoman sultans, is deposed