LOCATION
National/City : Turkey has started the process for joining the EU and eventually I believe it will get in. The Muslim religion here is of a very moderate variety and so Turkish people drink but not to the same extent as the Irish English or Scandinavians. But a statistic that should excite investors is that 80% of the population of 70 Million Turks are under 25. The city of Istanbul once the centre of a massive empire for over 500 years is very beautiful and is a great attraction to tourism as a historical city but also as the gateway to the orient, the meeting point of East and West. Istanbul has a population of approx 15 Million. In 2010 Istanbul will be the
Istanbul 2010 European Capital Of Culture
Local
The Irish Centre is in the area called Beyoglu (the g is silent) This is traditionally the night life area of Istanbul . Before bars came along in the 70's and 80's various kinds of nightclubs and restaurants would have been popular here. The area also has many of the big hotels in the city, The Hilton, Intercontinental, Marmara etc. The main street called Istiklal Cadde (Avenue) is a pedestrian street with a tram line running down the middle. It is the Istanbul equivalent of Oxford St in London or Grafton St in Dublin . It is always very busy. The use of the word 'Pub' is very new but a number of pubs have sprung up in the last ten years. The Turks like eating out and like drinking Raki with their food which is a Turkish aniseed alcoholic drink (a bit like Pernod)
Street:
The Irish Centre is on Balo Sok. Ball Street in English which refers to the social occasion as apposed to the football. The Centre is approx 100 yards from the main Avenue Istiklal Cad (see the map). Balo Street is just around the corner from a historically popular eating street called Nevezade Sok where the street is full of restaurants which specialise in sea food and most have tables on the street. Balo Street has been re paved along with all of Beyoglu during 2005. There are approx 38 cafes, bars, clubs and pubs in Balo Sokak. People do come to this street for entertainment.
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