A Deep Dive into the Evil Eye (Nazar) Symbol
Few symbols on earth can match the nazar for longevity and reach.

Few symbols on earth can match the nazar for longevity and reach.

As a visitor to Turkey, you will meet the nazar, the blue glass evil eye bead, within your first hour in the country. It hangs from rearview mirrors, dangles in shop windows, and sits pinned to babies.

If you travel anywhere in Turkey, you will notice a small blue glass charm shaped like an eye hanging in shops, homes, taxis, and even on newborn babies.

Turkish coffee fortune telling, fal, is a tradition that travelers encounter with delight and scholars approach with curiosity.

You are sitting at the end of a Turkish meal, and the coffee arrives in a small cup, strong and dark. Then comes the surprise: turn the cup over, and the grounds will tell your fortune.

At the end of a meal in Turkey, a small cup of strong coffee may arrive with an offer that surprises many visitors: turn the cup upside down, and the grounds will tell your fortune.

Turkish weddings are among the most elaborate and meaningful social rituals in the world, and they reward close attention.

If you spend any time in Turkey, you will probably be invited to a wedding. Turkish weddings are the great celebrations of social life, and foreigners are welcomed into them with open arms.

Turkish weddings are among the most memorable experiences a visitor can have.

Misafirperverlik is the Turkish word for hospitality, but it is also a key to the whole culture.

You will meet the Turkish word misafirperverlik early in your visit, and you will meet its practice even earlier.

You will hear the word misafirperverlik within days of arriving in Turkey, usually from a Turkish person explaining their own culture.
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