domingo, 13 de novembro de 2011

Türkiye---S2---Turkey


I am here today to talk about love, what makes us move. Specifically about my love for Turkey and besides, sharing some useful and interesting information about this wonderful country.

Language

Well, I can say Turkish is not an easy language to learn, but for those who are also interested about languages like I am, confidence and some free time plus the right learning strategy can help you to succeed and learn not only turkish but any other language in an autonomous way! It is following a self-study book: (Teach Yourself Turkish) and here it goes some useful expressions. 

 Hello                                      Merhaba!
Good evening                        Iyi aksamlar!
Good-bye                               Hosçakal!
How are you?                        Nasilsin?
I am fine, and you?                Iyiyim, sen nasilsin?
Not very well.                         Çok iyi degil.
So so                                      Eh iste.
Thank you                             Tesekkür ederim.
You’re welcome                     Birsey degil / Rica ederim.
Please                                   Lütfen.
Do you speak English?          Ingilizce konusuyor musunuz?
I don’t speak Turkish             Türkçe bilmiyorum!
I don’t understand                  Sizi anlamiyorum.
Could you please repeat        Sunu tekrar edebilir misiniz?
Pleased to meet you              Memnum oldum
How much does it cost?         Ne kadar?
Excuse me                             Afedersiniz.
Can you help me?                 Yardim edebilir misiniz?
Yes                                         Evet.
No                                          Hayir.
I don’t know                            Bilmiyorum.
Okay/Alright                           Tamam
 Welcome                               Hosgeldiniz   
 We came well                        Hosbulduk (response to hos geldiniz) 

There are also some sites that provide Free Turkish Course, such as www.livemocha.com and www.busuu.com, where you can also practice what you learned with native speakers.

Literature

On prose, Orhan Pamuk won in 2006 the nobel prize in literature. Some of his main books are "The white castle" and "The black book". In poetry, the main modern icon was Nazim Hikmet (1902-1963), whose poem "Five Lines" figures bellow.

Five Lines
To overcome lies in the heart, in the streets, in the books
from the lullabies of the mothers
to the news report that the speaker reads,
understanding, my love, what a great joy it is,
to understand what is gone and what is on the way.

(For more information about Turkish literature, see Jornal Pontes para Istambul - Bridges to Istanbul Newspaper)
Culture

I can say that is the main reason why I still search and learn about Turkey. Altough because of (maybe) an opened economy and globalization many ocidental values are spreading over Turkey, People are inconsciously "allowing" that the best part of their culture, such as the respect over family and wedding values, get lost along a wave of popular culture, what makes me particularly sad about it.These values were supposed to be conserved and protected above of any foreign influence.

Turkish Cuisine

Turkey is ranked among the top five countries in the world for cuisine and no holiday is complete without a taste of some of Turkey's famous specialities.

Lahmacun
Sutlac
Baklava

Kurufasulye

 Cigkofte
Bulgur pilavi
Pirinc pilavi


Muhallebi




































Cities and curiosities.

Antalya, Izmir and Bursa are good options to tourists who are looking for beaches.
Kahramanmaras is famous for its ice-cream.
Turkish cities are such attractions for all the tastes. They have history, tradition, nature, music and wonders that surely make people proud to be turkish. 
Istanbul is in my opinion, the european capital of tourism and the most beautiful city of the world. 
Blue mosque
Hagia Sophia
Galata kulesi (Galata tower)


Kiz kulesi (Girl tower)
















 
And here it goes an extra link in portuguese for those who want to know more about music, news, foods, and other stuffs about Turkey.