My sister is leaving in a few days for a trip to Turkey. Her question: Does she need to pack a skirt, or will slacks be okay everywhere?

Thanks in advance.

>Turkey dressing<

Well, some like oysters; some like chestnuts; but I've never had Turkey dressing that had skirts or slacks.

Ira, you're bad, bad, bad, I was thinking the same thing.
I would pack a skirt and a head scarf.

I thought it's a bit too late for T-giving.

Oh, it's clothing in Turkey!

My mother's family recipe is hamburger and rice, heavy on the dill.

Well the heading does catch one's eye. I think she can wear either a skirt..below the knees, or slacks. She'll be more comfortable if she doesn't wear bright colors and "stand out"... that being said, Turkey is a WONDERFUL country and I never felt anything but safe there!!!

Slacks or jeans will be just fine.

She can wear anything she likes. No scarf please. If needed they supply one outside of every mosque. There is also no problem to stand out becouse of bright colors....Com'on there are 15 million people living there, there are people with miniskirt, with head scarf, blonde, red, pink, people with slacks, people with skirts, even some with shorts !

Happy travelling,
Murat

I usually dress fairly conservatively, a little less in the summer. For whatever reason I was STARED at while in Istanbul. I wore Capris, and yes tank tops but I always put a scarf around my shoulders. It was odd, in other places they thought we were Turkish. Maybe they thought that I dressed odd for a Turkish person But then again, the locals seemed to dress every which way. It was odd.

Where is she travelling? In Istanbul, Ankara and resort cities on the coast, you will see many Turkish women wearing clothing that is indistinguishable from what you would see elsewhere in Europe. They will probably be more fashionably dressed than your sister. This Europe (picture Rome in terms of fashion and appearance, not Saudi Arabia). A lot of younger women and girls will wear all the short, tight, see-through and stretchy clothing you'd see elsewhere. Except if she's visiting a mosque or religious site, no one will take any offense to whatever your sister chooses to wear (although they might snicker if she wears the "full American" - white running shoes, yoga/sweat pants, baseball hat, sunglasses, water bottle and fanny pack).

If she plans to visit the Blue Mosque, she should pack a scarf to cover her head. (They will loan one at the mosque, but I expect she'd prefer to wear her own.) I travel everywhere with a pashmina (to keep me warm, but it's also useful as a head covering where necessary).

Istanbul is a great place for clothes shopping, by the way. A lot of clothes are manufactured in Turkey and there are a number of home-grown designer and "high street" labels that are in line with North American and European fashion but are quite distinctive and not available elsewhere. I usually make a trip to the new Kanyon and slightly older Metrocity shopping malls when I go to Istanbul on business. (They're easy to get to on the metro from Taxim Square). Great prices and styles.

If she is travelling in the countryside, she will still see many women dressed in very modern European styles, but she will probably see more conservatively dressed women. In such an environment, miniskirts and cleavage would probably not go over as well.

She should pack comfortable, stable shoes. Although she will see women in Istanbul, Ankara and other cities zipping around on vertiginously high heels, she will probably break her neck if she tries to emulate them. Maintenance of sidewalks and roads in Istanbul and Ankara is patchy, and there are a lot of hills, so she may encounter broken patches of sidewalk, mud and ice (in the winter - she might encounter snow in Istanbul and Ankara), and steep narrow sidewalks.