Business in Turkey: good news
Three Turkish mobile phone companies bid for frequencies to roll out a new high-tech service known in Turkey as 4.5G. Billions of euro change hands, and the companies walk away with a variety of...
View ArticleSt Andrew’s Day: how Scottish was my great-grandmother?
30 November is St Andrew’s Day, named after the Patron Saint of Scotland. St Andrew offers continuity across cultures: he was crucified at Patras, in modern-day Greece, and his body was taken to...
View Article#MastersofSocialMedia
The voice is clear and strong with a hint of pain. “Love,” she sings, “is a losing game”. I’m not at a concert or watching a movie. I’m at Sentez College, a school in the Turkish city of Sakarya, to...
View ArticleMy Festive 50 favourite songs: From “Suzanne” to “Bra Timing”
As 2015 comes to an end, it’s time to get personal again. Let’s talk about… music. My 2014 blog, “Festive 50: From “Every Little Bit Hurts” to “Stay with Me” told how a friend said “you like music –...
View ArticlePress Freedom in Turkey
I was proud to be one of a number of Consuls General, who visited the offices of Cumhuriyet on 6 January. We made the following statement, and handed over a signed text: “As representatives of EU...
View Article77 million reasons to like Turkish
Let’s be frank: my Turkish isn’t much good. I’ve been learning regularly for over three years; I wish I spoke it better. Thanks to my excellent teachers, however, I’ve made some progress: you can...
View ArticleConspiracy theories: “Of, ya!”
It may be time for me to shut up about conspiracy theories. I’ve written often on this subject, including: James Bond, conspiracies and the Welsh Secret Service (how, on conspiracy theory logic, the...
View Article#AdiosIstanbul
How many reasons are there to like Istanbul? Since I arrived in Istanbul in August 2012 I have featured over 500 #reasonstolikeistanbul on my @leighturnerFCO twitter account. The response has been...
View Article#RegisterToVote
A guest blog by HM Consul Timothy Fisher, British Consulate-General Istanbul 100 years ago my great grandmother was protesting on the streets of London with other Suffragettes campaigning for the right...
View ArticleHow Turkish whizz-kids can scale-up fast
A young Turkish entrepreneur enters a hotel meeting room. She comes face-to-face with some of Turkey’s top business gurus. ‘OK,’ says the chair, ‘you have five minutes to convince us.’ Five minutes...
View ArticleYeni Şafak and Yeni Akit: freedom of expression matters
I was pleased on 16 February to visit the editorial offices of Yeni Şafak with a number of EU Consuls-General. We went to Yeni Şafak on a “geçmiş olsun” visit after last week’s attacks on Yeni...
View Article#AdiosIstanbul 2: my favourite walk (and pictures)
I wrote recently that as my departure from the fabulous city of Istanbul loomed, I would be writing blogs about my favourite places and activities under the heading #AdiosIstanbul. One of my favourite...
View ArticleMy Welsh Great-Grandfather
1 March is St David’s Day, named after the patron saint of Wales who died in 589. The Consulate in Istanbul and the Embassy in Ankara are flying the terrific Welsh flag: I’m part-Welsh: my...
View ArticleGay Pride in Istanbul: what next?
A group of colourfully-dressed people gathers in an Istanbul public square to form a Gay Pride march down a busy public street. Year after year, the procession grows, from 5,000, to 10,000, and...
View ArticleCongratulations Beşiktaş!
The new “Vodafone Arena” is magnificent. The location is world class. How did it happen? Since 2013 I have often walked past the site of magnificent new Beşiktaş stadium. I watched with fascination...
View Article#AdiosIstanbul 3: favourite longer walks – and happiness
How to be happy? Someone wrote that it’s all about (i) nature; (ii) other people; and (iii) exercise. That sounds about right to me. So what could make you happier than nature walking in a group? My...
View Article#Adiosistanbul 4: the Lycian Way
Ok. The Lycian Way is not in Istanbul. But having written a blog recently about longer walks outside Istanbul; and another about my favourite shorter walk, I thought I should record the fact that,...
View Article#Adiosistanbul 5: brilliant museums
A sometimes overlooked #reasonstolikeistanbul is the profusion of quirky museums. Some famous Istanbul museums reflect the city’s ancient history, such as the Archaeology Museum (housing exhibits from...
View Article#Adiosistanbul 6: the Bosphorus
The Bosphorus stands out amongst #reasonstolikeistanbul. It’s central; spectacular; and every Istanbullu craves a “Boğaz manzarası” (Bosphorus view). This matters for the Turkish economy. Not only...
View Article#Adiosistanbul 7: street food
Let’s be honest. In four years in this great city I have experienced too many #reasonstolikeistanbul to sum them up in a few farewell blogs. Sorry. Your city is too extraordinary. Maybe that’s not a...
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