Architecture

During the 1930s to 1950s, Turkey’s capital was under the influence of the Modernism movement in architecture, as well as the work of foreign architects.Between 1924 and 1942, around 40 architects and urban planners planned and designed projects in Ankara. Prime examples from this era include the Ankara Central Station, the Faculty of Languages, History, and Geography within Ankara University, and the Grand National Assembly of Turkey. With a location in the Ulus neighborhood across from Gençlik Park, the Ankara Central Station used to be one of the country’s busiest stations with around 181 trains taking off daily until 2009. Even though it’s no longer as busy with travelers as in its heyday, the station continues to be a landmark both in terms of history as well as architecture. Abiding to an art deco style, the structure was completed in 1937 by German architects with six long platforms,
During the 1940s the second national architectural movement in Turkey was influenced by the fascist architecture of Italy and Germany and Ankara’s government buildings were imbued with large proportions, including high ceilings and windows. Aiming to express strength in the state’s authority, some of the prime examples of this stylistic movement are the Ankara Opera House and Anıtkabır. The capital’s opera house (the country’s largest venue for opera and ballet) was initially built as an exhibition center by Turkish architect Şevki Balmumcu, but was later converted into its current use by German architect Paul Bonatz, opening its doors in 1948.One of Ankara’s most important structures, Anıtkabır (the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk) was designed by Emin Halid Onat and Ahmet Orhan Arda and is considered one of the ultimate monuments of the second national architectural movement. During construction, which took around nine years beginning in 1944, archeological artifacts from the Phrygian civilization were unearthed and continue to de displayed at the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations.

Museums

Anatolian Civilizations Museum
statuette of Cybelle at the museumClose to the Citadel gate, a 15th century Ottoman bedesten has been beautifully restored and since 1921 it houses a marvelous and unique collection including Paleolithic, Neolithic, Chalcolithic, Hatti, Hittite, Phrygian, Lydian, Urartian and Roman works. Ethnographical Museum, Ankara Citadel The foundations of the citadel were laid by the Galatians on a prominent lava outcrop, and completed by the Romans; Then the Byzantines and Seljuks made restorations and additions. Roman Bath The bath, situated on Cankiri Avenue in Ulus,

Cuisine

Grilled fish at Yelken Balık
One of Ankara’s best seafood restaurants, Yelken Balık is the most popular representative of Aegean and Mediterranean cuisine in Ankara. Their hot and cold meze varieties are just a harbinger for the fresh seasonal fish, best served grilled and with a glass of rakı.

İskender at Uludağ Kebabçısı
Uludağ Kebabçısı is famous in Ankara for its delicious İskender Kebap, made of pide bread topped with thin slices of döner kebab, tomato sauce, and melted butter. Even though the menu also has many other kebab varieties, it’s the iskender that has become the legendary trademark.
The spectrum of Turkish desserts is wide and varied, and at Zeynel, you’ll definitely get the best of the milk dessert varieties. Try the kazandibi (thick pudding with a slightly burned caramelized top), muhallebi (pudding with mastic), or tavuk göğsü (thick pudding with thin slices of chicken breast).