The Eastrern And Souteasthern Anatolia Region

The Eastrern And Souteasthern Anatolia Region

The region's long and turbulent history has left monuments to its various civilisations: Byzantine monasteries and churches, Selcuk mausoleums and caravanserais, elegant Ottoman mosques and hilltop citadels.
To the inveterate traveller and lover of adventure, this region of Turkey fascinates, astonishes and informs.Van, the ancient Urartian capital of Tuspa, temps visitors to its location on the eastern shore of the lake. An imposing 9th century BC citadel overlooks the new and the old parts of the town. Steps carved in the rock lead to the Urartian fortress; halfway up, in******ions in cuneiform pay homage to Xerxes. The women of Van produce beautiful kilims woven in blue, red and white patterns.The exotic Van cat, a protected animal, has thick white fur and one blue and one green eye. 41- km. southwest of Van, on Akdamar Island stands the 10th century Church of the Holy Cross, now a museum, whose outer stone walls are richly carved with Old Testament scenes and figures. After sightseeing, swimmers and picnickers can enjoy themselves around the island almond groves.Erzurum is the largest city in eastern Anatolia. As you enter the city, the large Aziziye monument will catch your eye. Paland�ken, only 6 Km. from Erzurum.This centre has longest ski run and the best snow quality in Turkey, and is a favourite haunt of expert skiers.The Archaeological Museum in Kars houses beautiful wood carvings, an excellent collection of coins found in the surrounding region, as well as many ethnographic items relating to eastern Turkey. Kars is particularly known with its folkdancing. About 42-km. east of the city on the ancient Silk Road the medi******* city of Ani lies mostly in ruins.Agri, a provincial capital on a 1650 meter high plateau, takes its name from the mountain which looms over it. Ishak Pasa Palace only 6 km. from Dogubeyazit. Ishak Pasa the Ottoman governor of the province, constructed the palace in the 17th century with a mixture of architectural styles.Nearby you can see a bas-relief of an Urartian king, and a rock tomb from the 9th century BC.Near Dogubeyazit, Turkey's most scenic natural monument, Mount Agri rises to a hight of 5137 meters.To see the place where it is believed that Noah's Ark came aground, go to Uzengil village, 25- km. east of Dogubeyazit. Be sure to try the local dessert, asure (Noah's Pudding), believed to have first been made by Noah's wife from the last bits of food in the ark.
• 0 Yorum • Bağlantı
2/2/2008 - The Central Anatolia Region
The Central Anatolia Region
The Mevlevi order of whirling dervishes is a mystic group whose members are followers of Mevlana Celaleddin Rumi, a great Turkish poet and mystic.The brotherhood is based in Konya, where its founder is buried.
Mevlana was never the head of an order, and the brotherhood was not established by himself but by his followers and devoted companions. The order derived its essence, rites, moral code and discipline from the mystical path first shown by Mevlana.Sultanhan Caravansary was built by Sultan Alaattin Keykubat in 1229.In these buildings they provided the caravans with every possible service such as places to sleep, hamams, mosques, doctors, veterinarians, kitchens, coffeehouses, libraries.Cappadocia can be viewed from three different aspects, natural,historical and religious. When the volcanoes in the region were active, the lava, which poured out, covered all previously formed hills and valleys forming a high plateau. This plateau consists mainly of tufa and some rare layers of basalt. The basalt is less affected by erosion when compared to the tufa and has served as a protective cover, which are known as fairy chimneys. The other interesting places : Goreme open- air museum, Uchisar, Pigeon Valley, Avanos (famous for it pottery and carpets), Underground cities.