Ankara is the capital city of Turkey and the second largest city in the country after Istanbul. It's located at the heart of both Turkey and Central Anatolia. The population is around 3.5 million.
People: People are generally helpful to tourists. Many young people can communicate in English. Although most people will try to speak English with you, it's a good idea to bring a Turkish phrasebook or dictionary. Ankara is administrative center of Turkey and a huge university town so that, most of its inhabitants consist of civil servants, students and academics. Don't forget to bring your pullover.
PLACE TO VISIT
Anıtkabir, open daily, museum open daily except Mondays - situated on an imposing hill in the Anittepe quarter of the city is the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of the Republic of Turkey, completed in 1953. A museum nearby displays a large collection of Atatürk memorabilia and paraphernalia
Atakule Tower
Citadel
Roman Theatre
Temple of Augustus
Roman Bath
Museum of Anatolian Civilizations (Anadolu Medeniyetleri Müzesi)
Ethnography Museum (Etnoğrafya Müzesi)
Painting and Sculpture Museum (Resim-Heykel Müzesi)
War of Independence Museum (Kurtuluş Savaşı Müzesi)
WHAT TO DO
Ankara offers a good selection of cinemas both in Kavaklidere and Cankaya (including Atakule) and several concert halls for classical music and opera. Many Universities promote concerts and spring festivals but these are sometimes open to their students only. Folk and traditional music is very alive, from small bars and restaurants to big concert halls where you can find local stars like Musa Eroglu. Depending on your interests, you can find trekking in local parks and in the surroundings, visiting the museums or hunting for the Ottoman or Selçuk remains walking in the ancient castle. Upscale shopping centers like Armada on the Eskisehir road offer also cinemas and quality restaurants.
BUY
Ankara's Castle (Kale) has been a trade center for centuries, and its sellers of carpets, leather and antiquities are slowly moving upwards hoping to attract the tourist trade. It's still a delicious place for walking and browsing, and there are family firms where you can buy, for a price, excellent carpets and kilims. Walking down from the Castle you can walk through the covered market, an iron structure reminiscent of places like Les Halles in Paris, where you can buy very cheap and excellent produce.
HOW TO REACH
By Plane - Ankara Esenboğa International Airport (ESB) is located some 28 km northeast of the city. International flights are rather low in frequency and scope - apart from Turkish Airlines (THY), only Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines and British Airways offer direct flights to their respective European hubs. Iran Air also has two weekly flights to Tehran. For other carriers flying into Turkey, a flight into Istanbul is necessary, followed by an air transfer to Ankara by means of Turkish Airlines.
EasyJet also offers discount flights to and from Istanbul and Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg in the summer months (until October 25th) and to and from Istanbul and London Luton airport all year round for fares as low as £22
By Train - Being in a central location in Turkey, Ankara can be reached from almost all trains departing from Istanbul to the eastern part of Turkey. The train trip from Istanbul to Ankara takes around 6-7 hours depending on the type of the train (fastest is Baskent for now, however, there will be faster trains in the near future to shorten the trip to 3 hours).
The overnight train to and from Istanbul is surprisingly affordable and saves the cost of a night's lodging. Reserve a cabin in advance if you prefer sleeping in a bed to sleeping in a seat.
If you are traveling from places other than Istanbul, you will find busses fast, very inexpensive, and modern. Watch out for the drivers spraying your hands with lemon cologne, unless you like that sort of thing.
By Bus - The buses reach AŞTİ (Ankara Şehirlerarası Terminal İşletmeleri) standing for Ankara Intercity Terminal. Most of the cities in Turkey have direct buses to the capital of Turkey, and buses are much faster than trains in Turkey. From Istanbul to Ankara, the bus trip takes around 5 hours.
