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09:00
Konyaalti
10:00
Departure
· Visiting Tophane, Antique Port/Marina, and the Old
City
· Hadrians Gate
· Karpuzkaldiran (Lower Düden) Waterfall
· Lunch
· Visiting a workshop for an introduction of traditional
hand crafts
· (upper)Düden Waterfalls
· Public Market of the day of the week
16:30 Return
and transfer to Hotel
ANTALYA
Antalya; called the Turkish Riviera, the Touristic Capital of
Turkey, the Paradise. It deserves these names by combining the
Mediterranean Sea, the close range of the Taurus Mountains, the
numerous rivers and waterfalls, the ski resort, long clean sandy
beaches, numerous historical sites and many five star hotels lined
up on approximately six hundred kilometers of coast line. The well
taken care of city, of Antalya itself, is a site worthy to see. It
reflects the ancient Anatolian cultures including the Hittite,
Lycian, Persian, Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine, Seljuk, and Ottoman
and is one of the prominent provinces of the modern Republic of
Turkey. The city was named after the founder King Attalus II, King
of Pergamum as Attaleia and the present name of Antalya is derived
from that through the ages. Antalya is also an agricultural center
with suitable climate, plenty of water from numerous rivers and
green houses. Citrus, bananas, a variety of vegetables and fruit,
cotton, corn and grain are some of the crops. It is also a good base
for visiting the sites around it. Starting from the east
consecutively: Alanya, Side, Manavgat waterfall, Aspendos, Köprülü
Kanyon (ideal rafting river of Köprü Çayi), Selge, Sillyum, Perge,
Kursunlu waterfall, Düden waterfalls, Termessus, Karain Cave,
Phaselis, Olympus, Myra, St. Nicholas’ (Santa Claus) Church, Kekova,
Üçagiz, Antiphellos, Xantos and Sagalassos are some of the sites
within close range of Antalya. The Karain Cave has been a dwelling
for the human race since the Neanderthal man and with the other
historical sites in the region, it gives us a continuous record of
the culture of the human race from the beginning. Alexander the
Great has come here on his long expedition and the Konya Seljuk’s
have used the region for their resort palaces. The antique name of
the region, Pamphylia (the land of various people), reflects it’s
meaning today with its approximately ten thousand European citizens,
other than the historical mixture of the people, from all races and
religions.
KALEICI (
THE OLD CITY)
According to old travelers, the old city of Antalya was
surrounded by walls from both the land and the sea side
(port side). It was also divided internally to four
sections between races and religions by walls. Hidirlik
Tower, Hadrian’s Gate and the Clock Tower are what
remain of the ancient walls. What remains of the harbor
a wall is quite impressive. They also report that it was
surrounded by gardens and vineyards and that it was a
busy trade center exporting goods to Egypt. The area
that was within these city walls is now called the old
city (Kale Içi). The old city still reflects the late
Ottoman period quite well. The narrow streets show
houses heavy with lattice work windows overhanging into
the streets. They face one another as if reminding us of
the heavy gossip of the old days that were exchanged
across those narrow streets. These quaint streets lead
down to the antique harbor which has been restored as a
marina now. A good number of these houses have been
restored and are serving various purposes, i.e.
Pensions, hotels, bar restaurants, souvenir shops etc. |
