Ankara, Turkey

Ankara is really two cities, each of which seems to exist as a distinct entity with its own separate time-zone. The double identity is a result of the breakneck pace at which Ankara has developed since its declaration as the capital of the Turkish Republic in 1923. Until then Ankara (formerly known as Angora) had been a small provincial city, almost lost in the midst of the steppelands and known chiefly for its production of angora, soft goats' wool. This older city still exists in and around the citadel, which was the site of the original settlement. The other Ankara is the modern metropolis, Atatürk's capital, which has grown up around the original city, surrounding and almost swamping it – a carefully planned attempt to create a seat of government worthy of a modern, Westernized state.

For visitors, Ankara is never going to be as attractive a destination as İstanbul, and the couple of excellent museums and handful of other sights that it can offer are unlikely to detain you for more than a day or two. Even so it's worth the trip just to find somewhere as refreshingly forward-looking as Turkey's administrative and diplomatic centre.