About Istanbul

LOCATION
Istanbul is located in the north-west Marmara Region of Turkey. It encloses the southern Bosphorus which places the city on two continents; the western portion of Istanbul is in Europe, while the eastern portion is in Asia. The city boundaries cover a surface area of 1,539 square kilometres (594 sq mi), while the metropolitan region, or the Province of Istanbul, covers 6,220 square kilometres (2,402 sq mi). CLIMATEThe city has a temperate climate with hot and humid summers; and cold, wet winters. Humidity is generally rather high which can make temperatures feel much warmer or colder than they actually are. The summer months between June and September bring average daytime temperatures of 28°C (82°F). The warmest month is July with an average temperature of 23.3°C (74°F), the coldest is January with 5.6°C (42°F). The weather becomes slightly cooler as one moves toward eastern Istanbul. Summer is by far the driest season, although there is no real summer drought such as occurs further west, and so the climate cannot be considered truly Mediterranean. The city is quite windy, having an average wind speed of 17 km/h (11 mph).

DEMOGRAPHICS
The population of the metropolis more than tripled during the 25 years between 1980 and 2005. Roughly 70% of all Istanbulites live in the European section and around 30% in the Asian section. Due to high unemployment in the southeast of Turkey, many people from that region migrated to Istanbul, where they established themselves in the outskirts of the city. Migrants, predominantly from eastern Anatolia arrive in Istanbul expecting improved living conditions and employment, which usually end with little success.
The city has a population of 11,372,613 residents according to the latest count as of 2007, and is one of the largest cities in the world today.
 
RELIGION
The urban landscape of Istanbul is shaped by many communities. The religion with the largest community of followers is Islam . Religious minorities include Greek Orthodox Christians , Armenian Christians , Catholic Levantines and Sephardic Jews . According to the 2000 census, there were 2691 active mosques , 123 active churches and 26 active synagogues in Istanbul; as well as 109 Muslim cemeteries and 57 non-Muslim cemeteries.
 
ECONOMY
Istanbul has always been the center of the country's economic life because of its location as an international junction of land and sea trade routes. The opening of specific markets in the city during the 1980s further strengthened the city's economic status. Inaugurated at the beginning of 1986, the Istanbul Stock Exchange (ISE) is the sole securities market of Turkey. TOURISMIstanbul is one of the most important tourism spots of Turkey. There are thousands of hotels and other tourist oriented industries in the city, catering to both vacationers and visiting professionals. In 2006 a total of 23,148,669 tourists visited Turkey, most of whom entered the country through the airports and seaports of Istanbul and Antalya.
 
HEALTH
The city has many public and private hospitals, clinics and laboratories within its bounds and numerous medical research centers. Many of these facilities have high technology equipment, which has contributed to the recent upsurge in " medical tourism " to Istanbul, particularly from West European countries like the United Kingdom and Germany where governments send patients with lower income to the city for the relatively inexpensive service of high-tech medical treatment and operations. Istanbul has particularly become a global destination for laser eye surgery and plastic surgery.
 
AIRPORTS
 Istanbul has two international airports: The larger one is the Atatürk International Airport located in the Yeşilköy district on the European side, about 24 kilometres (15 mi) west from the city center. The smaller one is the Sabiha Gökçen International Airport (named after the Turkey's first female aviator and World's first female combat pilot, at the age 23, in 1936) located in the Kurtköy district on the Asian side, close to the Istanbul Park GP Racing Circuit. It is situated approximately 20 kilometres (12 mi) east of the Asian side and 45 kilometres (28 mi) east of the European city center.