It’s so California — or EU, actually, a body that the Turkish Republic fervently hopes to join. But banning smoking in indoor establishments may not be so easy to accept for a country where half of the men light up. The ban went into effect today in the country that is the 10th largest consumer of tobacco in the world. Hurriyet Daily News has more about the introduction of the ban:

“Despite their fears of losing customers, business owners on Sunday strictly enforced a new law that bans smoking in all enclosed spaces, as plainclothes policemen patrolled bars, restaurants, cafes and teahouses for violations.

The ban started Sunday, but café owners were confused about whether their gardens were smoke-free places. Mehmet B., who declined to give his surname, the manager of a café in the center of IstanbulÂ’s Bakırköy district, said they received a warning from municipal police on Sunday for allowing smoking. The café has no walls and only a tent roof; now it has a ‘no-smoking’ sign. Tents and areas with a roof are considered enclosed areas, according to the law.

Many café owners are not sure whether their garden is considered an enclosed area. They said they will not allow smoking there until municipality police tell them that they can.

Murat Sarp, the manager of a café in Bakırköy, said they had to stop serving nargile, which is Turkish for hookah, a traditional tobacco product used with water that dates back to Ottomans.”