The rain started at 6 a.m. in Milas and poured down for three hours. One of the flooded workplaces was a textile workshop in the Aydınlık Evler neighborhood, which belongs to Hüseyin Aydın.

Aydın said the water level in the workshop reached the machinery. “We tried to take the machines out,” he said. “We will try to reestablish the workshop once we can clean the flood water.”

Aysel Ilbıra, whose house on the first floor was flooded, complained that it was the second time her house was flooded. “It is not even just rain water, it smells like sewerage,” she said. “The last time my house was flooded, I used kilograms of detergents to clean it up. Now I don’t have any money. How will I get rid of this smell, how can I ventilate the house on a winter day?”

Milas Mayor Muhammet Tokat, a member of the main opposition Republican People’s Party, or CHP, said the rains especially hit the area around the bus station and Akkent housing complex. “There are holes that are 1.5-meters wide in the area,” said Tokat. “We have received flood complaints from 15 houses and workplaces and have tried to help them all. The only comfort is that no lives have been lost.”

The heavy rains also hit the popular resort town of Marmaris and flooded 10 houses and many workplaces.

Some homeowners on Turunç’s 60 Evler Street claimed that the river flooded because of the rubble dumped in the river bed by a hotel. The river would not have flooded if the flow had not been blocked by the rubble that was dumped during the construction of the hotel,” said Fatma Özdemir, whose house was flooded. “All our furniture is ruined. I collected some of my furniture from the sea.”

Hüseyin Özdemir, another house owner, said many houses were damaged and the owners of the houses, most of who live outside the district, were informed about the flood by telephone.

Another Turunç resident, Dursen Öztürk, said the floods washed away her 24-year investment. “I have been buying gold with my money, and all of my golden jewelry, which was worth 50,000 Turkish Liras, were taken by the water,” she said. “My husband kept the jewelry outside the house, fearing that thieves could steal them. Not the thieves, but the floods have taken them away.”

Hurriyet Daily News

The company owned by Qatar’s Amir Sheikh Ahmad Ali al-Thani bought Munamar Hotel in Icmeler hamlet in Marmaris, officials said. Al-Maselah Construction and Industry Co. paid 22 million Turkish lira for the hotel. (One dollar equals 1.48 TL)

Munamar Hotel has totally 180 rooms including 13 suites and 2 king suites.

Kenan Evren, who led the Sept. 12, 1980 coup and later became Turkey’s seventh president, wants to sell his villa located in Marmaris’ Artmutalan neighborhood.

The three-story house has six rooms, with separate bathrooms in all the rooms, and is priced at 975,000 euros.

The price is very high compared to similar houses in the region, according to Yusuf Kenan Akkuş, president of the Marmaris Real Estate Dealers Association.

Activists gathered on Tuesday in the Sınırsızlık Square of the resort city with their dogs and banners expressing that animals at the shelter are abused and half of them were left to die outside of Marmaris.

Speaking on behalf of the protestors, Türkan Dağdelen, chairwoman of the Friends of Animals Association’s, or HAYDOST, Ortaca branch argued that 140 animals have been abandoned outside the city in the last three years.”

Earlier this week, the council in the Aegean town changed the name of Kenan Evren Boulevard to Cumhuriyet (Republic) Boulevard on the strength of the majority votes from Republican People’s Party, or CHP, council members.

The opposition Justice and Development Party, or AKP, did not support the name change.

Kenan Evren was the leader of the Sept. 12, 1980 military coup and later became the seventh president of Turkey. He settled in Marmaris when he left office in 1989.

Sahir Ökten, a municipal council member from the AKP, told the Doğan news agency that Evren had contributed to the town and it was wrong to change the name of the boulevard.

“Evren solved the infrastructure problems here and built two schools with his own money. If you ask the residents of Marmaris, the majority support Evren living here.”

Ökten said a referendum should have been held before changing the name of the street.

Ahmet Hür, a lawyer, said he did not approve of what Evren did in the 1980s, but questioned the council’s decision. “The name can be changed, but I believe the timing is wrong,” he said.

Local CHP head Yamaç Kaya stood by the decision. “First of all, a major street should be named after a concept, not a person. We have named the boulevard Cumhuriyet at a time when we have to defend the Republic,” he said.

“Besides, Evren has been honored enough in Marmaris. Many more streets and schools have been named after him,” Kaya said

The figures are backed by holiday home rental companies with one company posting a 70 percent increase in interest. Among airlines announcing new routes to Turkey is Pegasus Airlines. The company is set to run seventeen routes between the UK and Turkey. According to Q3 Travel Money Report the Turkish lira is now the third most popular currency exchange after the euro and U.S. dollar.

We can ask more questions, giving examples from Nevşehir, in central Anatolia, to Siirt in the southeast.

But BoraJet is now turning a new page in Turkish aviation as the regional dimension of airline travel becomes a fact.

In the near future, BoraJet’s 66-seat, double-PWC127F engine ATR72-500 planes will take us to different cities, to airports we have not yet seen.

These planes can even land at or take off from half-ready runways, if necessary. With them, town airports will be linked, in effect challenging cities.

The man in charge hails from Boston, an entrepreneur with a modest life. Yalçın Ayaşlı, whose name is known at institutions such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is a wealthy businessman who has been striving to promote Turkey for years.

Captain Kadir Peker, who was appointed as one of the chiefs of the company, is excited about the project.

The firm first bought a hangar at Istanbul’s Atatürk Airport. Then it purchased three ATR72-500 planes and sent them for maintenance in Cologne. The seats of the planes are beige, their carpets brown and their cabins shiny. The space between the seats is 32 inches, or 81.3 centimeters, close to the business space in regular jets. You can even cross your legs!

The first plane will land at Atatürk Airport sometime between Dec. 15 and 18. The second will land Dec. 25 and the third will be in Istanbul in early January.

After airline procedures are completed, flights to different destinations in Turkey will be planned. Zonguldak will be linked to Istanbul. As the old airport in Bursa becomes operational again, flights there will start too. Thus, the flight lines of Turkey will become much more complicated, pointing toward the development of the country.

A 1,200-meter-long runway is enough for landings and takeoffs of the ATR72-500, which can even land on dirt runways, so pouring concrete everywhere is not necessary. Idle airports such as the one in Alaçatı, Çeşme, will again see planes. Marmaris and Fethiye may also be added to the list.

This has been my dream for a long time. With turboprops, planes will be able to fly to difficult airports under difficult conditions. BoraJet is preparing to take off with affordable prices and decent service.

I hope that hydroplanes that link coastal towns and cities to each other will be next on the list.

It is a great pleasure to see a Turkish businessman living in Boston taking a risk and sharing his enthusiasm with local professionals.

Hurriyet Daily News

As the British weather continues to disappoint, beach destinations across the country are seeing thousands of Brits touchdown into the countries major airports. On the Beach reports a massive increase in bookings compared to August 2008 with Dalaman and Bodrum up 31% and 27% respectively.

With 3* hotels offering all-inclusive deals from £3 per night, Marmaris has seen a huge increases in bookings over the last seven days.

Other non-Euro destinations selling well this month includes the popular resort of Sharm El Sheikh in Egypt. On the Beach reports an increase of 21% of bookings compared to August 2008.

Whilst it is clear that more and more holidaymakers are heading to non-Euro destinations, latest figures also show that Spain and its islands are making steady progress. Whilst Majorca and Tenerife remain flat year on year, the party island of Ibiza is enjoying a busy period, up 7% year on year.

Early indications show that holidaymakers looking to travel outside of the traditional peak period, opting for a departure in September will also be heading to Turkey and Spain.

Holidays to Turkey are overtaking holidays to Spain in the latest statistics for the ‘number one’ destination for UK travellers.

Customer service representatives have received many requests for Turkey holidays to resorts such as; Antalya, Bodrum and Marmaris. With Turkey surrounded by Aegean and Black Seas and enjoying vast amounts of coastline appealing to families, couples and beach lovers alike, many UK holidaymakers are heading to more exotic non-euro resorts where there is greater value for money.

Jon Pearce, Web Marketing Manager of www.holidays-direct.co.uk says: “We have seen a sharp increase in bookings of holidays to Turkey over the last couple of months. Holidaymakers want to make the most of their summer getaways, especially in today’s climate and are choosing destinations which are slightly different to Euro-zone resorts. Holidays which have a more mysterious appeal are proving popular with those who normally travel to Spain, Greece or Italy for example.”

The top 10 summer holiday destinations are:-

1. Turkey
2. Spain
3. Cyprus
4. Tunisia
5. Greece
6. Bulgaria
7. Canaries
8. Portugal
9. Italy
10. Croatia

Jon continues: “Holidaymakers want more for their money and travelling to countries where they have their own currency will not break the bank. With the strength of the pound being far greater than the Euro, better exchange rates are far more attractive.”

Turkey has much to offer its visitors as east meets west in with a mix of modern and traditional architecture, retail establishments and resorts. While western influences create modern amenities, giving a more homely vibe, the eastern diversity gives more depth to the tourist regions and visitor excursions.

Day tripping to Turkey’s capital Istanbul is perfect for couples and explorers, checking out ancient ruins, suburban cafes and bars. Turkey’s many beaches are the main attraction for many families, couples and singles. Culture-rich, family-friendly Turkey is rapidly becoming Britain’s number one summer holiday destination of 2009.

Muğla dolls take it to global stage Hand-made porcelain dolls produced by an artist in the popular resort town of Marmaris, featuring characteristics of the local traditional dress, have made their way onto shortlists of collectors from around the world.

The dolls are adorned with shoes, socks and duplicate jewels, making them a collector’s favorite. Şiir Dürüst, the producer of the dolls, now gets orders on the Internet. “More than 160 dolls, each one uniquely produced, are now in 140 different collections in various countries,” Dürüst said.

Dürüst started making hand-made dolls three years ago with the support of Temel Koçaklar, the Muğla governor at the time. “Doll collecting is the third most popular collection in the world after coin collections and stamp collections,” Dürüst said. “Sunay Akın, Turkey’s top doll collector, has also included Muğla dolls in his collection.”