Republic Day of Turkey 2018 - English 29 10 2018 Section 2

95TH

ANNIVERSARY OF THE PROCLAMATION OF THE REPUBLIC OF TURKEY

45TH

ANNIVERSARY OF TURKISH-OMANI DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS

Turkish TV Series

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rtugrul, Hareem Sultan, Mohanad and Noor must be familiar with you just like your friends or one of your family. Yes, they are the heroes and heroines of Turkish Soap Operas. Turkey is proud of the fame and popularity of its Soap Operas as they are not only entertaining but also tell uniquely different stories, feeding from the

rich cultural and historical heritage of our region. What makes them so attractive and successful is therefore their compatibility with the value of our traditions.

Turkish soap operas are broadcasted in 142 countries and contribute greatly to the promotion of Turkey and our culture. Turkey is the second biggest scripted content producer in

the world, producing approximately 30% of the global scripted content material.

Turkish tv series are broadcasted on various TV stations, both on satellite TV and digital platforms in various languages and reach millions. By reaching more than 500 million people from the Balkans to Latin America, Turkey connects people all over the

world with a joyful commonality.

In 2017, Turkey’s TV shows exports reached 350 million US dollars and domestic production companies aim for 1 billion US dollars’ worth of foreign sales in 2023. In the global arena, Turkey is second only to the United States, and is rapidly moving towards closing this gap.

Today, four of the fifteen most

watched programs, even in the Latin American region, are Turkish dramas.

The “Magnificent Century” will be the first discussion topic when a Chilean wants to talk to somebody about Turkey. It is known by everyone that Nicolas Maduro, the President of Venezuela, is an avid follower of the TV series “Diriliş Ertuğrul.” And is there a country in the Middle East

in which the show “Gümüş” “Noor” is not known? The final episode of “Gümüş” alone was watched by 80 million people in the Middle East.

Some soap operas draw on historic themes, while others are set in more contemporary times. But one thing is certain, they all offer different stories to Turkish enthusiasts around the world.

CELEBRATING

95TH YEAR OF THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF TURKEY

45TH

ANNIVERSARY OF TURKISH-OMANI DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS

Turkey: New Destination for Health

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million people are reported to travel out of their countries to seek high quality medical services with more reasonable prices and shorter waiting times every year.

Turkey is one of the top three most popular destinations in terms of medical tourism according to various international reports, serving in the fields of both health tourism and thermal tourism. The country hosted a total of 700.000 healthcare tourists in 2017 and 412.724 of those received medical services.

In terms of medical tourism, Turkish state hospitals, private hospitals, and university hospitals provide premium quality and comfortable services at reasonable prices. Medical services

include organ transplantation, genetic testing, nervous system surgery, ophthalmology, cardiology, dental treatment, orthopaedics, and hair transplantation.

The Joint Commission International evaluates the quality of patient safety and the services offered to patients across all hospitals around the world offering an international service.

Turkey, with 44 hospitals providing international service, was ranked 1st in Europe and 6th in the world for having the highest accreditation. In addition, a report prepared by another international organization, Patients Beyond Borders, stated that medical services in Turkey can be accessed with up to 65% cheaper prices.

In 2017, looking at the countries of origin of the foreign patients, Germany was in the top three, while Russia and the United Kingdom were in the top ten of the list. Approximately 20,000 people travelled to Turkey from Gulf countries for medical tourism. In the same year, medical health services were provided to 261 Omani citizens in our country. This number was achieved in the first 6 months that demonstrateed the satisfaction of the Omani people from the health services they received in Turkey.

All health facilities for healthcare tourism in Turkey are provided with the upmost efficiency. Turkey’s busiest airport provides discounts for tourists travelling to the country to seek health services. On the other hand, the International Patient Support Unit Interpreting and Call Centre offers a 24/7 service from the number 0 850 288 3838 in six languages, including Arabic. In the first six months of 2018, 65% of the calls made through the call centre were conducted in Arabic.

In terms of the richness and potential of its geothermal resources, Turkey is 1st in Europe and 7th in the world. The country is also ranked 3rd in Europe for spa applications. With a bed capacity of over 50,000 in thermal facilities, the cure centres in Turkey have made significant investments.

In addition to this, the thermal water, with its high mineralization content as well as its effective therapeutic properties, combined with rich cultural, natural, and climate features, contributes to the formation of elderly wellness tourism as well as thermal health tourism. As a result, Turkish cities like Nevsehir, Afyon, Denizli, Ankara, Istanbul, Manisa, and Kutahya have excelled in thermal tourism.

95TH

ANNIVERSARY OF THE PROCLAMATION OF THE REPUBLIC OF TURKEY

Taste Flavours of Turkey

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wonderful way to understand and appreciate a culture is by casting a curious eye upon how food is prepared and served. Great civilizations create grand cuisines where every dish is a reflection of how a people and a place (a nation and its country) spawn and sustain their togetherness in the act of enjoying a meal. Turkish cuisine is one of those that is worthy of exploration.

What makes Turkish Cuisine Glorious?

The modern mind, in a moment of contemplation, has similar thoughts upon entering a modest sweets shop where “baklava” is the generic cousin of a dozen or so sophisticated sweet pastries with names like: twisted turban, sultan, saray (palace), lady’s navel, nightingale’s nest... The same experience awaits you at a “muhallebici” (pudding shop) with a dozen different types of milk puddings.

One can only conclude that the evolution of Turkish cuisine was not an accident, but rather, as with the other grand cuisines of the world, it was a result of the combination of three key elements: a nurturing environment, the imperial kitchen, and a long social tradition .

A Nurturing Environment

Turkey is one of the hot beds of genetic resources for field crops.

Moreover many familiar fruits such as the cherry, apricot and almond, all originated from Turkey, including the fig. This vast fertile geography has been home for countless civilizations for thousands of years.

Each civilization has created its own unique cuisine. After the Turks arrived in Anatolia, they blended their own culinary skills with the already established ones.

Kitchen of the Imperial Palace

The importance of culinary art to the Ottoman Sultans, who followed the sacred advice of Islam to “Feed the Hungry”, is evident to every visitor of Topkapı Palace.

The huge kitchens were housed in several buildings under ten domes. By the 17th century some thirteen hundred kitchen staff were housed in the Palace. Hundreds of cooks, specializing in different categories, such as soups, pilafs, kebabs, vegetables, fish, breads, pastries, desserts, syrups and jams,

household would open its doors to anyone who happened to stop by for dinner during the holy month of Ramadan, or during other festive occasions. This is how the traditional cuisine evolved and spread, even to the most modest corners of the country.

A Repertoire of Turkish Cuisine

and beverages, fed as many as ten thousand people a day, and, in addition, sent trays of food to others in the city as a royal favour.

It was in this environment that hundreds of the Sultans’ chefs, who dedicated their lives to their profession, developed and perfected the dishes of the Turkish cuisine, which was then adopted in the areas from the Balkans to southern Russia, and even as far as North Africa. İstanbul then had all the prestige, so its ways were imitated.

At the same time, it was supported by an enormous organization and infrastructure which enabled all the treasures of the world to flow into it. The provinces of the vast Empire were integrated by a system of trade routes with caravanserais for refreshing the weary merchants and security forces. The Spice Road, the most important factor in culinary history, was under the full control of the Sultan.

Following the example of the Palace, all of the grand Ottoman houses boasted elaborate kitchens and competed in preparing feasts for each other as well as for the general public. In fact, in each neighbourhood, at least one

A survey of the types of dishes according to their ingredients may be helpful to explain the basic structure of Turkish cuisine. Otherwise there may appear to be an overwhelming variety of dishes, each with a unique combination of ingredients and its own way of preparation and presentation. All dishes can be conveniently categorized into grainbased, grilled meats, vegetables, seafood, desserts and beverages.

Grains: From Bread to Börek

The foundation of Turkish food is, if anything, dough made of wheat flour.

Besides ekmek (ordinary white bread), “pide” (flat bread), “simit” (sesame seed rings), and “mantı” (similar to ravioli), a whole family of food made up of thin sheets of a pastry called “börek” falls into this category. Simit and çay (tea) are the best combination for a Turkish breakfast that you can find cheap and easy everwhere in the cities.

Bread is the glorious food that is enjoyed in large quantities and is loved by all, rich and poor, simple and sophisticated.

Mantı, small dumplings of dough filled with a special meat mix, are eaten with generous servings of garlic yogurt and a dash of melted butter with paprika. This is a meal in itself as a Sunday lunch affair for

the whole family, to be followed by an afternoon nap.

Börek is a dish for special occasions and requires great skill and patience, unless you have thin sheets of dough already rolled out bought from your corner grocery store. Anyone who can accomplish this delicate task using the rolling pin becomes the most sought out person in their circle of family and friends.

Grilled Meats

“Kebab” is another category of food which, like the börek, is typically Turkish dating back to the time when the nomadic Turks learned to grill and roast meat over camp fires.

Given the numerous types of kebabs, we see that they are categorized by the way the meat is cooked. Many people know “shish kebab” and “döner”.

Kebab is the traditional Turkish response to fast food and at the same time is not unhealthy for you.

Turkish Coffee as a brand

Among the national drinks, Turkish coffee, Turkish tea, ayran, şıra, şalgam, sahlep, and boza should be mentioned. Turkish coffee comes thick and dark in a small cup and may be served without sugar, with a little sugar or with a lot of sugar. It is the best if a Turkish coffee without sugar companied with Turkish delight.

Desserts

Turkish desserts are famous throughout the world and many of these have milk as basic ingredient such as sütlaç, tavuk göğsü, kazandibi, helva, aşure, but the best known are baklava and künefe.