Turkey Information

[The March Hare]

Manufactures Uniforms for 2006 World Cup

Turkey, failing to qualify for the 2006 World Cup in Germany, will join the organization by manufacturing uniforms specific for the event.

The International Federation of Football Associations (FIFA) requested Tuncay Bender's company, former Trabzonspor board member, manufacture the 36,000 uniforms bearing the World Cup emblem, for the spectators exclusively.



Bender, originally a children's clothing manufacturer, expanded its business after continued demands from the football circles.



The company currently produces non-sponsored sporting clothing items for four football teams.



Aside from textiles, the company takes a huge interest in the game of football.



Bender, a financial supporter of amateur teams in his hometown Trabzon, and a one time director of Trabzonspor, began manufacturing sporting items upon the request of friends.



Bender also produces non-sponsored clothing items including shawls, scarves and children’s clothing for Hertha Berlin, Stuttgart and Werder Bremen.



Bender’s success in both ready-to-wear and football created an important opportunity for them.



FIFA asked Bender to manufacture the uniforms of the teams for spectators bearing the emblems of the teams they support during the 2006 World Cup, set to take place in several German cities.



Thirty six thousand souvenir uniforms will be manufactured and sent to Germany.



The company manufacturing the uniforms in Turkey received the biggest demand for German and Brazilian uniforms.



Geographical closeness and the lack of problems in quality and shipping assured Turkey was chosen to manufacture these special souvenirs.



Bender, targeting expansion in the manufacture of sports clothing in Europe, does not plan to work with Turkish teams because of high costs.

[The March Hare]

Fethiye

At last, concrete steps are being taken in connection with the Cable Car project which has been the dream of the residents in Fethiye. The project, covering the entrance to Babadað on the basis of construct-operate-turn over, allocated by the Ministry of Environment and Forestry to Cengiz Construction of 29 years, has been put up for sale. It is ascertained that some British and Russian firms have indicated their interest but the authorities of the company prefer to negotiate with a Turkish firm first of all.


Thereupon the Fethiye Chamber of Commerce formed a consortium to undertake the Cable Car project. A few days ago a meeting was held at the Fethiye Chamber of Commerce, attended by the members of the Chamber of Commerce, representatives from various non-governmental organizations, Mehmet Emin Erkan of the Cengiz Construction , and architect Metin Turgut who had prepared the project. M.. Emin Erkan stated that they wished to turn this project over to another concern and that they were willing to enter into a partnership provided they were not held responsible. Architect Metin Turgut pointed out that Cengiz Construction had leased an area of 380 thousand square kilometres at Babadað for an annual rent of 1 million 200 thousand YTL for 29 years. The work on the project had been continuing for the last two years, which includes 4.000 meters of Cable Car line, landing stations, bungalows, golf area, trekking lanes and cafe-disco. It was stated that the project was approved by the Ministry of Environment and Forestry and other approvals would be given by the Ölüdeniz Municipality.



After the meeting, Akif Arýcan, the Chairman of the Fethiye Chamber of Commerce, made the following comments: “I believe that this consortium will be beneficial for Fethiye. We are still working on it. We are benefiting from the views of people who have been involved in such an organizations. We met with the vice-president of the TOOB, who will be coming to Fethiye. At the same time the Chairman of the Izmir Chamber of Commerce will also be here. We shall get their views and resolve this matter. I hope that it will be the best way for Fethiye.”

[The March Hare]

Contest for Mediterranean Cup of Rowing held in Fethiye

The 2nd Contest for the Mediterranean Cup of Rowing, which is becoming traditional, was held in Fethiye and followed with great interest.

The International Mediterranean Cup for Rowing, organized jointly by the Turkish Federation of Rowing and the Fethiye Municipality, took place in 2nd Karagözler, participated by 200 rowers from18 Turkish teams and the National Olympic Team of Romania.



At the races held along the municipal facilities in Karagözler, the following rowers competed with each other: Beykoz Municipality:7; Monopoly Sports: 11, Skin Divers: 17, Middle East Technical University (METU) 11, Anatolian University: 5, Hereke Municipality : 21, Glassworks: 19, Naval Academy: 4, Fethiye Municipality: 26, Anatolian Fort 10, Sakarya Sports: 8, Kýrkpýnar Municipality: 3, Sakarya Specialists Rowing Club: 5, and Galatasaray Rowing Team: 23.



The President of the Turkish Federation of Rowing, Remzi Tan, stated that Fethiye was the most suitable location for water sports due to the temperature of the sea water during winter, its climate, natural surroundings and infrastructure. He added that they will endeavour to make the Gulf of Fethiye a centre of attraction for water sports by promotions at the tourism fairs in and out of the country.



The Romanian National Rowing Team, training for the Balkan Cup Rowing Contests, displayed a special demonstration at the races.



The Rowing Team of the Fethiye Municipality came 7th among the 17 teams in the contest. The municipal sports team participated in the races with 18 teams and 13 teams won the right to row in the finals. In the final evaluation of the teams, the Galatasaray Rowing Team; which had won 6 races, was first; Çayýrova Glassworks, which had won 5 races, was second, and METU, which had won 3 races, was declared as third. The Fethiye Municipality Sports Rowing team came first in 1, second in 2, third in 4, fourth in 3 and sixth in 2 races and was the seventh among the teams. The Municipal Sports team won one gold, two silver and four bronze medals at the race event.

[jj]

Turkish News March 25th 2006

Recently, we, a group of journalists, were talking to the CEO of an international company at a luncheon in Istanbul. He asked us, 'What is the most promoted sector in Turkey?' At first we couldn’t answer; then we suggested textiles and eventually agreed on tourism.

Gila Benmayor
Recently, we, a group of journalists, were talking to the CEO of an international company at a luncheon in Istanbul.
He asked us, “What is the most promoted sector in Turkey?” At first we couldn't answer; then we suggested textiles and eventually agreed on tourism.
In 2005 Turkey's revenue from tourism increased to more than $18 billion, with the number of tourists increasing by 20.4 percent compared to the year before, to 21 million.
So what is the prediction for this year?
According to Economy Minister Ali Babacan, tourism revenues are expected to surpass $20 billion in 2006.
Unfortunately, as we reach the end of March, things are not looking that rosy.
There is a mood of pessimism dominating our tourism sector.
According to Turkish Statistics Institute (TUÝK) figures, the number of tourists arriving in the country this February was 10.1 percent less than in February of last year.
It seems this trend will be the dominant characteristic of this year, with some saying that the number of tourists coming from Germany in 2006 may be a million less than it was last year.
This prediction is from Essen, Germany-based Center for Turkish Studies (TAM) Director Faruk Þen.
Þen, who held meetings on Turkey's tourism potential at the Essen Tourism Fair, said the number of German tourists visiting Turkey in 2005 was 4.9 million, adding that he expected the figure to reach at most 4 million this year.
The World Cup in Germany early this summer definitely has something to do with this expected decrease.
The bird flu and Prophet Mohammed cartoon crises are also clouding Turkey's tourism sector.
A good promotion campaign may have removed these clouds, but there are some who say the public relations company in charge of promoting tourism to Turkey did not do a good job this year.
There are also some who argue that the Culture and Tourism Ministry missed a golden opportunity to promote at the Berlin Fair, which is seen as the center of world tourism.
Tourism sector businessmen who met with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoðan the other day told him about the dangers ahead and presented him with their assessments.
Their studies show that if a 30 percent shrinkage occurs in Turkey's tourism, or in other worlds 6 million people decide to go somewhere else, Turkey will lose $4.6 billion in revenue.
Can Turkey, with a $23 billion current account deficit, afford to ignore such a huge loss?
There are other issues involved, too.
A shrinkage of 30 percent means 360,000 people will lose their jobs.
What will Turkey, which already has a high unemployment rate, do when confronted with such a huge increase in unemployment?
As these questions dominated our minds, the Association of Tourism Journalists and Writers (TUYED) came up with a very serious claim. According to them, the Culture and Tourism Ministry had “censored” any release of figures on tourist arrivals at a time when tourism is on the decline.
TUYED, which publicized this claim at a press conference, alleged that the ministry sent a directive to its departments banning the release of the figures.
TUYED said in its statement, “We condemn this censorship mentality and call on Culture and Tourism Minister Atilla Koç to be more transparent.” It says in order to mobilize Turkey's resources in time to prevent 2006 from becoming a lost year, the true figures needed to be released instead of being hidden.
TUYED's call needs to be taken into account by all, especially the ministry.
Measures need to be taken before it's too late.

[jj]

The latest tax figures show most managers pay less tax than the minimum wage earners they employ

ANKARA - Turkish Daily News


Statistics released by the Ankara Tax Department show that managers in six out of 10 sectors pay less tax than their workers who receive minimum wages.
According to figures provided, leather producers pay on average one-third the tax paid by minimum wage earners; flour factory owners and fur-makers pay two-thirds; and textile producers pay half of what their employees pay.
Tax department chief Cemal Boyalý said they had studied the figures and compared the monthly tax paid with tax paid by minimum wage earners.
According to the study, which assessed 44 sectors, managers in 26 sectors declared less income than minimum wage earners. In 19 sectors, the tax paid was less than the YTL 748 paid by minimum wage earners in a year.
Jewelers, contractors, bakers and dentists paid a little more than minimum wage earners paid due to a set minimum.
Singers who earn 20 or 30 times the minimum wage in a night paid taxes on only 2.8 times the minimum earnings, on average.
Boyalý said the present state of affairs was in violation of a constitutional article that stipulates everyone must pay taxes in accordance with what they earn. He said the present system based on declared income was perceived by some as a way to pay less tax, adding, “In the past, there were some auto-control mechanisms. All these were annulled and not replaced with anything effective. Some taxpayers saw the lifting of the standard of life clause as a way to pay little or no tax. We conducted a study on 2003 and 2004 incomes and incomes declared in 2004 and 2005. We realized that 20,000 taxpayers declared no income or losses in the past two years.”
He said those who declared no income or losses in the past two years would be classified as possible audits even if they declared an income this year, adding, “We will tell them that if there are any discrepancies, they will be inspected starting from May and ask them to declare their income truthfully this year.”

[The March Hare]

25% of Turkish Airlines Shares Opens to Public

The Turkish Privatization Board is planning to sell a 25 percent share in Turkish Airlines to public shareholders at the Istanbul Stock Exchange Market (ISE).


A statement from the Privatization Board said, 25 percent of shares of Turkish Airlines would be privatized through a public offering at ISE.



The public offering process is expected to be completed within a year.



In 2004, 20 percent of shares of the company had already been sold at the Istanbul stock exchange market.

[The March Hare]

Sunday is Mevlid Kandil

The five holy evenings on the Muslim calendar are called Kandil (Candle). The holy night Mevlid - the birth of Prophet Mohammad - is on Sunday April 9, 2006.


It is necessary to add that Turks have a personal way of following Islam. A great number of Muslim Turks will enjoy a nice alcoholic beverage, smoke cigarettes and make the most of the "good things in life", though taking care not to do these during religious occasions such as Ramazan (Ramadan) or the Kandil. This is, of course, an unofficial declaration on your researchers part. Ramazan is the holy month when for thirty days a good Muslim lets nothing pass his/her lips during daylight hours; no eating, drinking, smoking or even licking a postage stamp. Some restaurants and nightclubs are closed during the month of Ramazan.
Mosque festivals are called Kandil, which means Candle. It is so called because all the mosques are illuminated and those are the nights on which Muslims pray for forgiveness and wish to see the right way of things to be done according to their religion.



The story of Kandil
The five holy evenings on the Muslim calendar are called Kandil. During the Ottoman Empire Sultan Selim II of 16th century lit candles on the minarets of the mosques in order to announce these holy nights to the public. Since this calendar is calculated with the revolution of the moon around the earth the dates of the Kandils differ every year.
Mevlid Kandili - The birth of Prophet Mohammad (April 9, 2006)
Regaip Kandili – The beginning of the pregnancy of Prophet Mohammad’s mother (July 27, 2006)
Miraç Kandili – Prophet Mohammad’s rising to sky (August 20, 2006)
Berat Kandili – The forgiveness of the sins (September 7, 2006)
Kadir Gecesi – The Koran’s first appearance to Prophet Mohammad (October 19, 2006)



These nights Muslims usually worship and sing Mevlit, a poem written for the birth of Prophet Mohammad. Kandils were holy days when young members visited the older members of the family, however today the Kandil greetings are made with phone calls. Some restaurants serving alcoholic beverages may be closed at Kandils. Most of the pastry shops and bakery sell Kandil Simidi (special small crispy bread ring strewn with or without sesame seeds). In some apartments the neighbors hand out helva (a special Turkish dessert made of semolina or flour) or lokma tatlýsý (again a special Turkish dessert made of fried dough with syrup).


6 April 2006 - 20:46:34 - 1 day(s)

[The March Hare]

Airline axes flights to Dalaman
Thursday, 12 October 2006
Humberside Airport has suffered a setback after Excel Airways announced it was withdrawing 10 services from next summer.

The low-cost charter airline flew passengers from Humberside to Dalaman on Turkey’s Mediterranean coast, Malaga in Spain, the Canary Islands, Paphos in Cyprus and had also launched flights to Egypt’s Sharm-el-Sheikh resort and the island of Corfu. A spokesman for Humberside airport said: “Due to some fleet rationalisation plans, Excel Airways will not be basing aircraft at Humberside Airport next summer. The Airport is now working closely with other tour operators and airlines to replace the flying programme and take up routes which Excel had on sale. We are aware that Excel is currently undergoing a period of evaluation and change on a national level and its decision to withdraw from Humberside is part of a much wider picture for the company.”

The airport said it was now looking for other tour operators to replace the Excel flights.

Excel Airways is one of the UK's major charter passenger airlines and provides mainly short-haul services to European and Middle Eastern leisure destinations, from its three main bases of London Gatwick, Manchester and Glasgow. The airline operates 30 Boeing aircraft in its fleet. In 2005, approximately 2.5 million seats were sold to tour operators. Approximately 65 per cent of these were supplied by Excel Airways with the balance being supplied by third party airlines. The company also operates XL.com which is one of the UK's leading travel websites and features 50 destinations from 12 UK airports. It sells flights, holidays, hotels, car hire, travel insurance and holiday extras.

In September Excel Airways were presented with the ‘Travel Bulletin Award’ for being ‘Best Charter Airline 2006.’

[The March Hare]

Local Events for November
Tuesday, 31 October 2006
Events Diary - November

28th October - 3rd NovemberMarmaris International Race WeekMarmaris M.I.Y.C.Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone]www.miyc.org
2nd - 5th November
Maytid Exhibition
Building & Decoration Fair
Turban Exhibiton Center
Marmaris
www.maytid.com

1st - 4th weeks November
Autumn Gocek Regatta Sailing Races
Fethiye
Gocek Yacht Club/Scoria Marina
Tel: [phone]
Fax: [phone]

1st - 4th weeks November
Painting Teams
Competition
Datca
National Board of Education
Tel: [phone]
Fax: [phone]

[The March Hare]

Armada hosts record bid for puzzlers
Sunday, 29 October 2006
An unusual event to commemorate the 83rd anniversary of the founding of the Turkish Republic on October 29th will take place at the Armada shopping centre in Ankara when a team of 30 volunteers will put together a huge 30,000-piece jigsaw puzzle.

According to the Guinness Book of Records the largest commercially available jigsaw puzzle is a German manufactured puzzle containing 18,000 pieces, measuring 2.76 x 1.92 m (9.05 x 6.29 ft) and depicting four ancient world maps. The Ankara puzzle should be completed in 16 days and will carry the image of a painting currently on display at Anitkabir depicting Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of Turkish Republic, leaving the Grand National Assembly during the War of Independence. Ulku Adatepe, Ataturk's adopted daughter, will assemble the first piece of the puzzle on October 13th, the anniversary of Ankara's declaration as the capital of Turkey. Once it is completed the Turkish Education Foundation, who will benefit from any funds raised, will put up the puzzle for sale.

A giant screen at the Armada shopping centre will show stages of the assembly process and an exhibition featuring photos of Ataturk will open on October 29th at the same venue.

[The March Hare]

Grand entrance at Kanyon
Wednesday, 25 October 2006
In terms of sheer spectacle, Istanbul’s recently opened Kanyon mall may never match the city’s 500-year-old, 4,000-shop Grand Bazaar, but it’s hardly a modest affair. Kanyon is a mixed-use project built in downtown Istanbul that brings together 179 residential apartments, a 26-storey office block and 37,500 square meters of retail space. In addition to playing host to big name tenants such as Lacoste, Thomas Pink, and Calvin Klein, the outdoor complex, which is indeed shaped like a canyon, creates its own weather.

Earlier this month the mall welcomed its most stylish tenant yet; legendary British retailer Harvey Nichols. The new three-story, 8,600-square-foot megastore - the company’s first in Turkey - will showcase hundreds of labels from Armani to Zegna, as well as a few local lines.

Kanyon will also soon be home to not only a new Harvey Nichols store but to the first outpost of the celebrated London restaurant Hakkasan as well. For more information visit www.kanyon.com.tr.

[The March Hare]

Take A Look At Turkey – Elmali
Wednesday, 01 November 2006
Elmali is a traditional Turkish town high in the mountains between Seki and Kas. Its backdrop is the impressive snow capped Taurus Mountains. As its name suggests apples are the main crop produced by the many farmers who live in or around this wonderful town, and when we recently visited, the air was filled with the sweet smell of the recently harvested crop.

We set off from Fethiye and took the main road towards Antalya passing through Kemer and on to the Kizabel Pass before descending onto the plain below. We followed the signs to Seki. After 50 minutes we arrived in Seki and stopped for tea in the tea house in the centre of town. It was a nice surprise to find the tea was only 25 kurus – compare that to the coastal resort prices!

Feeling refreshed we rejoined the road out of town and followed signs for Elmali. The road is surfaced and wide enough for two cars but take care as the bends are sharp and there are no crash barriers! The road snakes through the outskirts of Seki before climbing to the Gugu summit some 1,830 metres (6,000 ft) above sea level. The views in this section of the journey are breathtaking and you’ll want to stop from time to time to take them in. The snow poles at the side of the road indicate that this may not be a road to take in the Winter though and later, when talking to the locals, we found out that the road is often impassable during the winter months. The road then snakes down the other side of the summit before reaching the valley where the river Gugu flows and on through a village until it arrives in Elmali.

Our first call was to the Ketenci Omer Pasha Cami (mosque). It was built in 1610 (muslim calendar 1019) and is a spectacular example of a single domed mosque. It was built under the orders of Ketenci Omer, a prominent Ottoman commander from Manavgat who had fought in the Vienna War. He financed the build from the spoils he had taken from Sarajevo. It was designed by the Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan. The mosque was restored twice in 1870 and 1938 with interim repairs in 1929 following damaged caused by a bolt of lightening that struck the minaret causing extensive damage not only to the minaret but also to the rear part of the prayer hall from the falling masonry. The restoration in 1938 saw some of the traditional Iznik tiles being replaced by Kutahya tiles but by all accounts the new tiles are sympathetic in style and quality to those they replaced.

It’s a spectacular building both inside and out. The interior of the mosque is spacious and split on two levels. It has a capacity to hold 800 people although we guess it would be a bit of a squeeze when full. The centre of the dome is graced by a huge glass ball light. Within the grounds of the mosque there is a tomb, a theological school (now a childrens library) a fountain and bath.


We left the mosque and headed up into the narrow side streets where we saw traditional mud brick houses that were, apart from the white and black paint, Tudor in style. Some of the houses were empty meaning we could take a quick peek in the windows and see the interior rooms. As we headed up the hill the houses became bigger and better. But, we wondered why such grand houses had been built in such an out of the way and agricultural area. We found the reason later when talking to locals, it was because the town was a popular Yaylar for the then rich Turks who would spend the summer months in the town to avoid the searing heat of the summer down on the coast.

We wandered around for some time before emerging from one of the streets into the market area. The market wasn’t openn the day we visited but we were able to explore the many small shops selling goods ranging from textiles through to hand made metal work and copper goods.

After all that walking around we needed cooling down so we headed for the local ice cream shop. Elmali, like many Turkish towns, has a unique food. In their case the unique food is a burnt milk ice cream. OK, so that doesn’t sound very appetising, but the subtle flavour is actually very nice.

We had read in a guide book about some traditional wooden grain stores in a village around 5 miles outside the town so we jumped back in the car and headed on the road towards Kas, We arrived to find the wooden stores in a farmer’s back yard! We headed in slightly hesitantly as we didn’t want to trespass but the farmers wife, who was tethering a goat in the vicinity, didn’t seem concerned at all. The grain stores are impressive and unique. Their design is similar to the Lycian tombs dotted around Fethiye and the Aegean coast. The stores aren’t used any more but, apart from a bit of weathering, were in great shape.

With the day drawing to a close we headed back toward Fethiye on the road we came in on. We could have headed on the road to Kas around 55 miles on and followed the coast road back, but time didn’t allow for that.

All in all a wonderful day out!

[The March Hare]

Ancient Pamukkale

This is a good month for wine. And, the best way to taste, select favourites and purchase wines is to visit a winery. This is exactly what 23 of "us" did. With appreciation to Pamukkale winery, we 23 boarded more than one minibus and were treated to an exceptional luncheon with Pamukkale wines, of course. Afterwards, we continued on to the winery and given a tour, the guide explaining at each step of the way, how wine is produced. I knew that once the tour was over, we'd be led to their tasting and then to the showroom to make our desired purchases. What was delightfully surprising to us all was the handsome discount Pamukkale granted on all kinds of wine - even champagne. On boarding our minibuses the winery rep presented us with designer canvas bags complete with gifts inside them and lo and behold another two bottles of their fine wine!

Our excursion was two days. We headed first for Pamukkale winery, Hieropolis spa with dinner and breakfast, and the next morning a stroll among the striking ruins of Hieropolis city. To top off our second day many of us enjoyed splashing about in Pamukkale mineral cascades and Cleopatra's pool.

Our onward journey took us to Hieropolis. As we drove along, the clinking of bottles in overhead compartments and in luggage in the "boot," made music to our ears. After checking into the spa hotel, we spent the afternoon enjoying hydrotherapy - swimming and paddling about in warm mineral springs pools, being pampered in the Turkish bath and, after an exhaustive morning at the winery, a massage before a wonderful buffet variety of foods at dinner in the hotel. (If you ever meet Clive, don't remind him that he made 6 return trips to the buffet.) Although this was October, even with open windows, my room was warm. I turned on the air conditioner. At breakfast the next morning, Grace and Mike said they, too, found their room too warm and had used their air conditioner. We then learned that hot mineral springs run under the hotel buildings. It was this heat we felt.

Hieropolis is Greek for "Holy city." The Romans extensively developed the city about 190 B.C. The Romans knew a good thing when they discovered the area held a myriad of hot mineral springs that cured so many of their ailments. Romans resided, retired, and as John and Mary commented during our visit there, "if they weren't cured, they died there." The site of Hieropolis is indeed a necropolis with huge sarcophagi and tombs strewn about the landscape. As we strolled the still evident Roman roadway, Joan kept popping up in doorways to have her photo taken. When she insisted on posing atop a sarcophagus, we all backed off!Hieropolis city ends at the Pamukkale we know from travel posters. In ancient times, Pamukkale was a part of the city but today this area holds a museum, Cleopatra's dazzling pool, and the "cotton" cascades.

As the miles sped by on our return home, we brought with us these thoughts of our visit to Pamukkale and Hieropolis: Turkey makes some of the best wines . . .

The hospitality of the people at Pamukkale winery is warm and generous. They have every right to be proud of the products they offer. Sometimes the Romans accomplish something beautiful and eternal-like Hieropolis and Pamukkale. These old Romans really did know how to live well.

So many areas of Turkey, including Hieropolis and Pamukkale, are riddled with history and culture that's actually interesting. Although we were 23 persons and perhaps a large group, we didn't squabble, become annoyed with each other, were quite comfortable with the hotel and excursion arrangements. Bring with you: An apple (for you or the goats), a bathing costume and beach towel, a personal water bottle, sensible walking shoes, a charged digital or ready-to-use camera, an open attitude to easy adventure, a book to read, a sense of humour, and money. Travel light. If you've forgotten to pack something you can probably buy or borrow the item (except for a toothbrush!).

[The March Hare]

Be prepared - Our winter storm checklist
Friday, 03 November 2006
Unsettled weather has returned to the Southwest region of Turkey today with thunder storms and rain passing over. The heaviest rain is expected to be in the South of the region.

We have put together a checklist to help you survive the worst that the Mugla weather has to throw at you this winter…

- Look after yourself when out and about - get a good set of waterproofs and boots to keep out the rain.

- Watch out for slippery surfaces - marble steps and shop floors can be very slippery when wet.

- Check that you have torches available with working batteries.

- Check you have candles and matches as backup lighting.

- Check your roof tiles - replace missing or broken tiles and fix leaks before they ruin walls and floors.

- Check outside storm drains in and around your property - are they blocked?

- Check windows and doors are secure and weatherproof.

- Ensure you have enough fuel to provide heating just in case you aren't able to get out to buy more.

- Check you have the phone numbers for emergency services in case you are flooded or suffer damage in or around your home e.g. Fallen trees or downed power lines.

- Check that trees in your vicinity do not have branches overhanging or touching power lines - ask the local council to cut back branches that could bring down power lines in a storm.

- If you have a generator check that you have spare supplies of fuel and power-up the machine from time to time to check that it’s ready to use.

- During a severe storm don't travel unless your journey is absolutely necessary.

- Finally give a thought to elderly or infirm neighbours during severe stormy weather - call in and see if they are ok.

[The March Hare]

New bus terminal to start serving in April.

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For the last few years, a new Intercity Bus Terminal for Fethiye was on the agenda but there were certain problems in connection with its location. It will now be constructed in three floors at the present location. The Fethiye Municipality will evaluate the bids for the contract on the 7th of November. The new terminal building will be on 3 floors on a total sheltered area of 7500 square meters where there will be aprons and sales offices for bus companies, shops and WC. The bidders will submit their projects for this undertaking and the commercial units will be leased for 10 years for an annual rental of 150 thousand YTL (excluding VAT): Work will start as soon as the contract is awarded. It is planned to have the construction completed in April and the new terminal building will be ready for the 2007 season

[The March Hare]

Esnaf Hospital Expanding

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The Lokman Hekim Esnaf Hastahanesi (Artisans Hospital) ,which one of the two private hospitals in Fethiye, will have an additional building constructed in the empty lot next to the hospital. The construction is already under way and is planned to be completed on the 1st of April, 2007. In addition to this new building, the staff and medical instruments at the hospital will be increased to enhance the services offered to the people.







Ahmet Mimaroğlu, the Chief of Staff of the Lokman Hekim Esnaf Hastanesi, furnished the following information in this regard: “The construction of the building is started at the car park next to the Artisans Hospital which will be completed by the 1st of April. We intend to create a more contemporary and pleasant atmosphere at our hospital. With the completion of the new building, our bed capacity and the quality of our services will be enhanced. Although people tend to feel reluctant to come to hospitals, they all wish to receive proper treatment and feel comfortable once they are there. Consequently we wish to increase our bedding capacity as well as the number of our staff and the medical equipment. As soon as our new building is ready, we shall have a more extensive and contemporary hospital.” ..
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[The March Hare]

Seki – fall season in a village of natural beauty

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Seki is a beautiful, traditional mountain village surrounded by green pastures, forests and the scenery range of the Taurian mountain chain. Located at the bottom of Mount Eren at an altitude of 1250 metres Seki welcomes its visitors with an overwhelming richness of nature. Identifying the village with the symbol of the apple. Since it is surrounded by an all green landscape it is also called as Yesil Seki ( Green Seki ) which is well known for its fruit gardens and apple plantations.



Everybody who came to Fethiye from Antalya during the winter has passed along the snow covered slopes of Seki plateau, before the road winds down into the Fethiye plain.
At a distance of 42 miles from Fethiye you can reach Seki village in one hour drive, just 5 miles off the main Antalya road.
The pastures of Seki are highly preferred by residents of Fethiye who choose the area to escape the hot summer period. Local residents living around the coastline of Fethiye and Antalya used to leave their homes during excessive hot summer days for the benefit of a healthy life in natural environment. It is proven that the pleasant remediate climate of Seki is revitalizing energy flow, due to increased oxygen of fresh mountain air. The number of days with humidity affecting badly our organism is four times less than in the Fethiye. Some of the expatriates who settled around Fethiye have started to follow this migration trend by seeking a secondary home for a better life in nature. A new study presented by a group of famous doctors reveals that the climate of Seki is ideal especially for patients suffering from asthma, heart and circulation problems. Pleasant daily temperatures during the summer month records at an average of 28 C while a refreshing breeze cools down to 18 C during the night.



Expecting a significant increase of summer residents in the near future in line with the plan of Mugla Governorship attracting the area both for alternative summer and winter tourism, the housing department is hardly working on a new planning to meet the future demands. Nowadays Fethiye’s residents become aware of the fact that Fethiye’s urbanization is rapidly on progress and formerly green fields have been changed into major construction sites. With becoming the status of a city most likely in 2007, Fethiye continues to grow which will strongly stimulate more housing developments.

The concept of establishing winter tourism in Seki at Mount Eren ( 2670 metres) is right under way and most of the infrastructure has been completed during this year. The main facilities of 6 miles road from the village centre, a ground station on 1850 metres including a cafeteria and ticket office are now completed at the first stage of the project. In the following season the construction of the ski station, and the preparations of the slopes for down hill skiing shall be completed. Mount Eren has already become popular for Alpine Tour Skiing just like Paragliding at Öludeniz. It will be no surprise when this activity along with trekking is identified with Mount Eren in the near future. In April when the spring starts to revive the nature, you can enjoy skiing while in the afternoon you take a swim in the blue waters at Ölideniz beach. Other activities like climbing, horse riding or fishing in the clear lake of Girdev are welcomed alternatives enhancing Yayla- Alpine Tourism. Seki becomes a place sought after both in summer and winter.


Besides the Governorship of Mugla will attract the area for investments to the private sector and local and foreign investors already inspected Seki and its environs. According to latest information of planning department in Mugla, major parts of agriculture land will be evaluated to Tourism land around the village of Temel, just 2 miles away from Seki. Foreign demand will contribute to the development of infrastructure as already a few companies have their focus on building mountain residences, attracting foreigners to purchase their secondary summer home. Foreign residents can purchase any kind of property without any restriction within the boundaries of Seki municipality. Thus the wish for 12 month tourism in Fethiye throughout the year will be realised on the white slopes around Seki.

[The March Hare]

Limit on Mobile Phones Brought in as Gifts

The Government has announced that it will reimpose a limit on the number of mobile phones that can be brought into Turkey as gifts. The law used to allow one phone can be brought in by a person landing in Turkey at a border, port or airport r.egardless of how many times they came in. However, government figures show that over 60,000 phones were brought in as gifts in the past year. According to the Government this is distorting the Turkish market and undermining home sales of phones.

In September a limit of 4 phones brought in as gifts per year was imposed, but this has now been changed again. The new limit will allow only 1 phone to be brought in under personal belongings per visit. This will be exempt from duty.

Of course, once the phone is in the country it won’t work until it’s been registered with the telecommunication authorities. And, as some of you may have experienced with your own UK phone, this is hit and miss affair.

Best to just buy a phone here!

[The March Hare]

Cut Price Bus Tickets
Saturday, 25 November 2006
The amazing success of domestic Turkish airlines has been impacting passenger numbers on the Turkish intercity bus companies. It’s not surprising when promotional airline tickets start at 1 YTL plus taxes.

However, up until now, the Transport Ministry rules wouldn’t allow the discounting of bus tickets. But the bus companies have now successfully lobbied for the law to change and will now go head to head with the cut price airlines. They will be able to offer up to 10% of their seats at discount prices. Kamil Koc, one of the key operators, is offering seats on selected journeys at only 1YTL. Other companies will no doubt follow but expect these prices only to be available on selected services outside of peak times.

In any case this is a welcome development in Turkey’s ever improving competitive market.

[The March Hare]

Kismet Grand Opening Tonight
Saturday, 11 November 2006
Fethiye’s newest bar, Kismet will officially open tonight Saturday 11 November. Owners Ian and Nigel, who are already minor celebrities in the area, promise it will be a great night. As well as live music from the roving buskers there will also be a female belly dancer, who by all accounts is worth seeing! So why no drop in tonight and have some fun.

The bar is located on the strip running down from the cultural centre next to Val’s Bar. The event starts around 6:00pm and will continue throughout the evening.