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Western Turkey Tour:
Upon arrival meet with our representative and
transfer to the hotel. Overnight in Istanbul. 4 Star Hotel
or similar. Dinner is included, if arriving in time.
Istanbul: Topkapi Palace
This morning we visit the Topkapi Palace, the
great palace of the Ottoman sultans from the mid-15th to the
early 19th century. It was from this vast complex of
buildings that the mighty Ottoman empire was administered.
Today it is a huge museum containing ceremonial robes in
silk and gold thread, Japanese and Chinese porcelain,
European clocks, miniature paintings depicting Ottoman
courtly life and one of the largest jewelry collections in
the world. Highlights of the jewelry collection include one
of the world's largest diamonds, the Spoonmakers diamond,
and the Topkapi dagger with three enormous emeralds in the
handle.
The afternoon is free for you to explore
Istanbul, a city crowded with beautiful mosques, churches
and palaces. You may want to visit the Topkapi Harem before
leaving the palace (optional entrance fee, approx 9 USD);
the Grand Bazaar and Spice Bazaar beckon for shopping.
Alternatively, you may take an optional ferry ride up the
Bosphorous to the Black Sea. Along the shores of the
Bosphorous are many summer palaces and old wooden houses
dating from Ottoman times.
Overnight in Istanbul. Breakfast and dinner.
Istanbul: Hippodrome & Agia Sophia
Istanbul has been the capital of two of the
world's greatest empires, the Byzantine and the Ottoman. We
start today's walking tour at the legendary Blue Mosque,
built between 1609 and 1616 by Mehmet Aga. The inside is
covered by more than 20,000 Iznik tiles.
At the Hippodrome you will see the remains of
the great sports stadium where chariot races were held in
Roman and Byzantine times. We will also see an Egyptian
obelisk, a giant needle of stone carved for the Pharaoh
Tutmoses III around 1500 BC and brought to Constantinople by
the Byzantine Emperor Theodidius in AD 390.
We continue to the church of St Sophia (Agia
Sophia), built by the Emperor Justinian in 548 BC. It was
the largest church in the Christian world for nearly 1000
years. When the Ottoman Turks conquered the city in 1435 one
of the first things they did was to convert St Sophia into a
mosque. Today it is a museum featuring many beautiful
Christian mosaics.
Outside St Sophia we descend underground to the
gigantic cisterns that contained the vast water supply which
allowed Constantinople to withstand so many long sieges.
Here the many columns are reflected in the water while
classical music plays quietly.
Balance of the day at leisure.
Overnight in Istanbul. Breakfast and dinner.
Istanbul - Gallipoli - Troy - Canakkale
After breakfast we drive along the Sea of
Marmara through the small European part of Turkey known as
Thrace. Only 3% of Turkey is in Europe, the other 97%, known
as Anatolia, is in Asia. One of the fascinations of Turkey
is the huge number of peoples and empires that have occupied
this land; Turkey is known as the "Crossroads of
Civilizations" due to its position between Europe, Asia
and Arabia.
Before leaving Europe we visit Gallipoli.
Called Gelibolu in Turkish, this narrow, mountainous
peninsula on the northwestern side of the Dardanelles has
seen more than its share of history, with countless
civilizations having battled for control over these straits
for over 3000 years. This is the historic World War I
battleground where Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, father of the
Turkish Republic, first rose to prominence. Under the
direction of Winston Churchill, an unsuccessful naval and
land campaign failed in its attempt to capture Gallipoli,
open up the Dardanelles, and seize Constantinople. This
battleground is now marked with over 30 memorials.
We then cross the Dardanelles waterway by ferry
from Europe to Asia, and visit the ruins of Troy where Greek
and Trojan heroes fought for the beautiful Helen. Troy had
been accepted as a lengendary city for ages, but very few
people believed in its true existence. Heinrich Schliemann
excavated here at this own expense in the 1870s, and
discovered the spot where a sophisticated settlement had
existed for centuries. As you stand on the ancient hilltop,
you can look out over the plain of Troy and feel the famous
cool north wind blowing from the Dardanelles.
Overnight in Canakkale. Breakfast and dinner.
Canakkale - Pergamon - Kusadasi
We have an early start today. After breakfast
we travel down the rugged Aegean coast and turn inland to
the typically Turkish rural town of Bergama. Here we visit
the Akropolis and Asklepion of the Roman city of Pergamon,
said to be one of the first hospitals in the world. We see a
carving of two snakes wrapped around a drinking cup (a
modern symbol of the medical profession), and a theatre
where the mentally disturbed would allegedly act out their
emotions (a forerunner of today's psychoanalysis?).
Later we travel through Izmir, Turkey's most
important port. It was here that the blind poet Homer was
born when the city was known as Smyrna. It was also here in
1922 that the Turks expelled the invading Greeks from
Turkish soil during the Turkish War of Independence. We
continue to Kusadasi, a beautiful port city with a small
island fortress. The island, attached to the mainland, gives
the city its name: Kusadasi, "The Island of Birds."
Overnight in Kusadasi. Breakfast and dinner.
Kusadasi: Ephesus
Today we visit Ephesus, one of the highlights
of any visit to Turkey. During its Golden Age, the city was
adorned with splendid monuments, theatres, agoras and
libraries. The protectress of the city was the goddess
Artemis whose temple, dating back to 1300 BC, was considered
one of the Seven Wonders of the World. As a prosperous trade
and banking centre, Ephesus had a cosmopolitan population.
It has been recorded that St John brought the Virgin Mary to
Ephesus where she spent her last days after the death of
Christ. On our tour of Ephesus, we see a 24,000 seat
amphitheatre, the Library of Celsus, and the marble-paved
Arcadian Way.
In addition to the main site of Ephesus we will
visit the superb Ephesus Museum. We also visit the
traditional town of Selcuk which has many beautiful
buildings including the Isa Bey Mosque (which was built in
1307), remains of old Turkish Baths, and a hill crowned by
the Ayasoluk Fortress.
Overnight in Kusadasi. Breakfast and dinner.
Kuşadası-Free Day
Kusadasi - Aphrodisias - Pamukkale - Lake Egirdir
After breakfast we leave the Aegean coast and
drive along the winding Menderes River Valley which gives
its name to the geographical term referring to a winding, or
meandering river.
We visit the impressive Roman site of
Aphrodisias, named after Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of
love. Much of the site's excavation has been funded by the
National Geographic Society. Aphrodisias is the location of
one of the greatest schools of sculpture in antiquity; the
museum here contains some magnificent pieces.
We continue to Pamukkale where mineral-rich
water breaks through the earth's surface and cascades down
the hillsides creating terraces of white chalk-like stone.
We visit the ruins of Hierapolis before continuing to the
tranquil town of Egirdir, clinging to a hillside along the
shore of placid Lake Egirdir in Turkey's lake country. Two
islands, connected by a causeway to the mainland, extend the
town far out into the lake's fish-filled waters.
Overnight in Egirdir. Breakfast and dinner.
Lake Egirdir - Konya
We have a morning departure for the mystical
city of Konya, birthplace of the Whirling Dervishes and
capital of the Seljuk Empire. During the sightseeing tour of
Konya, we visit the Mausoleum and Museum of Mevlana, home of
the famous Whirling Dervishes; and the the ceramics museum
of Karatay, once an Islamic School, built in 1251.
Overnight in Konya. Breakfast and dinner.
Konya - Cappadocia
Today we drive across the flat Anatolian
Plateau to Cappadocia. Along the way we visit the
caravanserai of Sultanhani. Caravanserai were fortified,
medieval inns located one day's journey apart, for the
protection of travelling merchants. This encouraged
merchants and their caravans of silks and spices travelling
the "Silk Route" to trade in Turkish lands, thus
promoting commerce.
Upon arrival in Cappadocia, we will travel to
Avanos, a village known for its hand-made red clay pottery.
We travel through the village of Uchisar, clustered around a
rock pinacle with a splendid view of the entire region.
Since Cappadocia is one of Turkey's major wine growing areas,
we will have the opportunity to sample some of the region's
fine wines.
Overnight near Cappadocia. Breakfast and dinner.
Cappadocia
Today we will spend a full day exploring this unique and
fascinating lunar landscape with its fairy chimneys and
conical towers topped with huge, delicately balanced rocks.
Here the elements have weathered layers of volcanic dust
into giant cones and mushrooms 9 m (30 feet) high! Most of
the chapels date from the Byzantine period of the 10th and
11th centuries. In the Goreme Valley we will see the many
churches carved into this landscape with their wonderful
paintings and frescoes. This monastic complex of rock
chapels covered with frescoes is one of the best known sites
in Central Anatolia. We will visit the underground city of
Kaymakli one of the many cities dug into the soft rock of
Cappadocia. At Kaymakli there are at least eight levels in
the underground city, four of which are currently open to
the public. The city is an elaborate network of tunnels,
stairways and chambers hollowed out of the rock. It served
as a safe haven during times of unrest and protected its
citizens from maurading armies.
This evening, those who wish may attend a
performance of Turkish traditional dances from Turkey's many
regions (optional).
Overnight near Cappadocia. Breakfast and dinner.
Cappadocia - Ankara
Our drive today takes us to a salt lake called
Tuz Golu. We travel through the village of Uchisar,
clustered around the Uchisar Fortress, and the village of
Urgup which was, according to documents found in the Middle
Ages, a bishop's residence.
We continue to Ankara, Turkey's modern capital.
Ankara was an ancient trading town before the Romans arrived;
its name is derived from the angora wool of the goats sold
here. Ataturk, founder of the Turkish Republic, made Ankara
the capital rather than Istanbul to break with the
discredited Ottoman Empire after World War I.
We visit the Mausoleum of Ataturk, before our
visit to one of the best museums in the world -- the Museum
of Anatolian Civilizations. The museum contains a superb
collection dating back to the settlement at Catal Huyuk in
7500 BC and includes pieces from the Phrygian, Urartian,
Assyrian and mighty Hittite Empires.
Ankara - Istanbul
Istanbul
We have an afternoon arrival in Istanbul.
Balance of the day at leisure in this fascinating city.
Overnight in Istanbul. Breakfast and dinner.
Departure from Istanbul.
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Travel Turkey - 2005
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