Education
Education in Turkey is controlled nationally by the Ministry of Education whose website in English can be found at www.meb.gov.tr
Climate
The Mediterranean region, to the joy of the millions of sunworshipers who visit it annually, experiences hot, dry summers typical of southern Greece and Italy, and mild winters which last only from December to March. The climate of the Aegean is similar though with slightly lower temperatures.
Turkish Calender
Below is a list of Turkish National holidays for 2008. On these days or half days most banks, all schools and government offices will be closed.
1 January - New Year.
23 April - Children’s Byram
19 May - Sport Byram.
30 August – Victory (Zafer) Byram.
29 September (afternoon) - 2 October - Ramazan / Seker Byram
29 October – Republic Day (Cumhuriyet Byram).
7 (afternoon) – 11 December – Festival of the Sacrifice (Kurban Byram).
Ramazan will begin on 1 September 2008.
Banks
There are three types of banks in Turkey, 100% Private Owned, 100% Government owned and 50%/50% Government / Private. In Touristic areas you can find banks with English speaking staff. Most of the banks also have websites with English sections. To open a bank account all you will need is your passport and a tax number but most banks can sort this out for you.
Health
In Turkey there are both state and private hospitals. Private hospitals in Touristic areas are now recognising the needs of the 'foreign patient' market, and have English staff, English-speaking doctors, and literature.Private health care is cheaper than in other European countries.
Time
Local timeall over the country is equal to GMT + 2 hours
Electricity
Electricity in Turkey is 230V, with 50 Hz frequency. The system uses alternating current (AC).
