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In the immediate vicinity of the Ceyhan-Iskenderun road, a little past the branching off of the Marash road, we come to the fortress of Toprak Kale on a large mound dominating the whole of the surroımding plain.
This building probably dates back to the Byzantines and to the Arabs, and was modified considerably by the Franks or Armenians. Note the double rectangular wall enclosing a small moat; the second walİ has two storeys, and the second storey has a passage with loop-holes. Large rooms have been preserved in the south-east and the north parts. The whole castle is bııilt of black basalt.
The basin of Lake Burdur is already desert-like in appearance.
Impressive bad lands are developing in the clay and sand of the late tertiary, and the whitish or colourcd layers can be scen on the section of the escarpment bordering the southern edge. The settlements on this side are hardly more than large oases hugging the banks of the small rivers from the highlands and nestling in gardens a few miles from the lake. Fiat roofs predominate in ali the villages and even in Burdur they out-number tile roofs. The slope of the Soğut Daglari to the north-west is fairly densely covered with scrub. The plains of Isparta and Atabey have more water and are not so forbidding.
The country between Lake Burdur and Eğridir constitutes the heart of Pisidia and contains the threc principal cities, Burdur, Isparta, and Eğridir as well as many good-sized country towns.
The three towns have experienced various changes of fortune. Burdur and Isparta, although occupying medieval or ancient sites, did not become important until the Ottoman period as small regional centres in the middle of their respeetive plains.
They are busy towns Burdur being more populous and bustling, Isparta more aristoeratic with large fortunes tied up in the carpet trade carpets have been vvoven in the villages of the region for almost a century. They have no interesting ancient remains.
Alanya, ancient Korakesion, which rises at the foot of an enormous 250m high rock, is 2km from the sea. Alanya reminds one of a landscape picture of Gibraltar. The picturesque position, the long beautiful seashore, the pleasant climate, nice hotels and bungalows make this town a popular holiday resort. Alanya is the most beautiful town of the Turkish Riviera after Antalya.
History
A castle was built on the rocks of ancient Korakesion by pirates in in the 2nd century B.C. in 67 B.C. the Roman general Pompey destroyed the pirates’ fleet and had the castle razed to the ground. Alanya was a place of importance from the Roman Empire period to the Byzantine Empire period. After being captured by the Seljuk sultan Alaettin Keykobat in 1220, Alanya gained prosperity. He called this small town Alaiye (the noble), had a winter palace built here, and an arsenal established for his fleet. in 1471 the city was con-quered and became part of the Ottoman Empire. Since that time Alanya has been Turkish. The historical buildings of Alanya are almost all of Seljuk origin, and date from the 13th century.