Ankara

Underneath a somewhat earnest façade, Ankara is full of tangible Roman history, world class restaurants, several outstanding museums, art galleries, flea markets and broad shady boulevards. Beautiful trees and lush parks grace the city. Once known as Angora, Ankara has a cat, a goat and a rabbit named after it! Mohair comes from the goat and Angora wool exclusively from the rabbit. In contrast to the more boisterous cultural capital, İstanbul, Ankara is Turkey’s political capital, a more formal, intense metropolis that prides itself on a non-pious Republican pedigree. The city hosts the country’s foreign missions and is home to all of ...

Underneath a somewhat earnest façade, Ankara is full of tangible Roman history, world class restaurants, several outstanding museums, art galleries, flea markets and broad shady boulevards. Beautiful trees and lush parks grace the city. Once known as Angora, Ankara has a cat, a goat and a rabbit named after it! Mohair comes from the goat and Angora wool exclusively from the rabbit. In contrast to the more boisterous cultural capital, İstanbul, Ankara is Turkey’s political capital, a more formal, intense metropolis that prides itself on a non-pious Republican pedigree. The city hosts the country’s foreign missions and is home to all of Turkey’s government ministries. Don’t let the bulky monument (Anıtkabir) and the adjacent museum acclaiming Turkey’s founding father, Atatürk, overshadow the city’s other delightful attractions. The Museum of Anatolian Civilizations nurtures items from a number of Palaeolithic and Neolithic cities in the vicinity and superbly accentuates the skill and ingenuity of diverse Anatolian cultures. A sassy contemporary gallery, the Cer Modern, has stimulated art-in-the-city and seriously perked up cultural potential. Ankara’s flourishing shopping ethos emerges in the many vast suburban malls, icons of urban progress that capitalize on every global brand imaginable. In contrast, Atatürk’s Forest Farm and Zoo on the urban periphery offers a tranquil alternative. Ankara is also home to one of Turkey’s most informative privately-funded museums, the Cengelhan Rahmi Koç Museum, a refurbished 16th century caravanserai showcasing an eclectic collection of industrial items from one of Turkey’s prominent cultural patrons.

About the Expert

Suzanne Swan is the main author of DK's Eyewitness Travel Guide Turkey. She updated and wrote original texts for DK's Eyewitness Travel Guide Istanbul.