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Archive for the Category »Antalya «
Alanya’s ancient name “Korakos” meant “a place full of crows”. The city was called “Kalonaros” (Beautiful Mountain) in the Middle Ages. When the Anatolian Seljuk Sultan Keykubat was enthroned, he took on the epithet “Alaeddin” (meaning “superior” or “sovereign”) and Kalonaros became “Alaiye”, or “the city of Ala”. Eventually this was transformed into Alanya, the name the city goes by today.
Modern Alanya is dominated by a huge plug of rock topped off with the remains of a Seljuk castle. This is by far the most interesting part of what is a predominantly modern city. Make it easy on yourself by taking a bus or taxi up and then walking the three kilometers down again to take advantage of the wonderful sea views and to visit the other minor sites on the rock, including a fine Ottoman mosque and bedesten (covered market). Some lovely old Ottoman houses still cling to the hillside as well.
Of Alanya’s several caves, the most famous is the Damlataş Mağrası (Dripping Stone Cave), whose humid atmosphere is supposedly good for asthmatics. Some people will prefer the less crowded Dim Mağarası (Cave), known as the “Gavur İni” (Cave of the Infidel) to the locals. Being the seaside resort it is, Alanya offers a great choice of daily boat tours which visit the Korsanlar, Aşıklar, and Fosforlu Caves, as well as the Cleopatra and Ulaş beaches.
The local museum contains small but interesting archaeological and ethnological collections. The house in which Atatürk stayed overnight on 18 February 1935 is also open to the public.
Kızılkule is the symbol of the city
Although the city of Alanya dates back for many centuries, it never played a major role in history. However, when Alaeddin Keykubat commissioned a Syrian architect to build the aptly-named Kızılkule (the Red Tower) in 1226, he put the city on the world map. Eighty-seven steps lead to the top and a spectacular view out over the sea. The Tersane is another local attraction. Also commissioned by Keykubat, this dockyard, built in 1228, is the only example of its kind to survive from the Seljuk period. The tower next to it is known to have been used as an armory.
One of the best things about Side is the way that the ancient ruins overlap and intertwine with the modern city. The theater, the museum, and the Temples of Apollo and Athena are all within easy walking distance of each other. The bazaar is extremely busy; as a melting pot for many different nationalities and languages, it generates an atmosphere that some find endearing and others find offputting.
The site of a famous love affair…
Some sources say that Side originally meant “pomegranate”, and the pomegranate is the symbol of abundance and wealth. The city experianced its period of greatest prosperity in Roman times when it was a flourishing trade center with a large slave market. Some sources also suggest that it served as a lovenest for Cleopatra and Mark Anthony.
As you walk towards the bazaar from the bus station you will pass a beautiful, newly excavated Roman fountain and then the remains of a colonnaded street once lined with ancient shops. The theater, which has a seating capacity of 15,000, is still used today. Side Museum is housed in what was once the old Roman bath-house; it has a delightful back garden full of stone sarcophagi. The Temples of Apollo and Athena overlooking the sea were built in the 2nd century AD. Few things could be nicer than sipping an evening drink at once of the cafes beside the temples. Protected by its land and sea walls, the ancient city of Side survived the Hellenistic and Roman periods. Unfortunately, the aesthetic beauty of the ancient buildings has not found echoes in many of the structures thrown up in recent years.
Side’s historic sites are some walk from the bazaar in the heat, but the Municipality provides a Disneyesque tractor and trailer to get people from place to place in summer.
More local tourists
Traditionally, Side has been favored by the Germans and the Dutch, but ever since the five-star resorts lowered their prices for dometic tourists, the town has seen an increase in turkish visitors.
Commanding the Mediterranean from sheer cliffs rising out of the sea and backed by the Bey Mountains, Antalya has one of the most beautiful geographical locations in the world. It is also a vibrant modern city, grown up around a fascinating old inner city full of reminders of the past from Roman times right through of the Ottomans.
Antalya was founded by the Pergamum King Attalos II in the 2nd century BC. Legend has it that Attalos instructed his soldiers to find “heaven on earth” and that after a long and tedious search across the world, his men offered the king this city, which he named Attaleia. Today, Attalos statue stands across from the Clock Tower. The magnificent Hadrian’s Gate, on the other hand, is named after the Roman Emperor Hadrian, who visited the city in 130 BC.
Antalya was an important harbor during the Crusades and served as a base for soldiers on their way to the Holy Land. Conquered by the Ottomans during Sultan Bayezid’s reign, the Italians in 1918. It’s a city that has attracted travelers throughout history and Ibn Battuta, who visited in the 14th century, wrote that the Egyptians called lemons “Adalia” because so many were exproted from Antalya. Having traversed the area in 1671. Evliya Çelebi noted that the city walls were 4400m in length, and had 80 bastions, and that the 200 fountains received their water from the Düden Creek.
Famous for the Kaleiçi (Old Town) with its lovely old Ottoman houses, the Yivli Minare (Fluted Minaret) and the beaches along the coast, Antalya also has a wonderful museum.An incredible collection spans a wide time frame with exhibits from the Stone Age to the Ottoman period. The most outstanding pieces are from the Roman era; the statuary alone would be enough to rank the museum among the top five in Turkey. In ancient times, Antalya was surrounded by Pisidia in the north. Pamphylia (”the land of all tribes”) in the east, and Lycia in the west.
Because of its position at the crossroads of all the most important transport routes, the city acquired an incredible historical heritage, and the museum doesn’t have enough space to accommodate all the finds from local archaeological sites.
There are many things to do in Antalya and its environs; ski in Saklıkent in the winter, go to the ancient city of Selge near Köprüçay (which is perfect for rafting), visit Sillyum, see Side, get some rest in Manavgat, discover the ruins of Olympos, and wander amid the cedar trees in the ancient city of Idebessos on the northern slopes of Aykırca Creek. With time to venture a bit further, you can also admire one of the most beautiful Greek theaters in the world at Arycanda near Finike, and enjoy some trout at one of the many local fish farms.