We visited Turkey twice during 2008 year. First time in late April we went to Kemer and visited several places from there. And in November went on longer trip around the country. Later, in 2013, we flew to Istanbul for weekend.
Impression of the country is highly dependent on the number of tourists. So, in late April there were a lot of them everywhere. In summer there have to be even more. And in November there were almost no tourists in all the places we visited. Thus, the best time to travel around the country - beginning of April and the beginning of November.
Turkey is the ideal country for lovers of the history. Of all the countries we visited, the number of ancient monuments here is the largest. Natural wonders are also presented.
Unfortunately public transport is still not perfect. Due to the reconstruction of railways, buses are the main transport now. Because of the large distances they are inconvenient. It is expected that railways for high-speed trains will appear in recent years.
Description of our trip in Turkey
Turkey on a larger map
Day 1 - Istanbul
During the first trip to Istanbul we had only one day and it's too short period of time for such a large city. We managed to see only the main Mosque, Topkapi Palace and Sultanahmet. So later we came again for the weekend and visited much more places. Our article about Istanbul is describing three days, but we're pretty active travelers, so the program can be transfomed into four days or more.
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| Blue Mosque ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Hagia Sophia ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Istanbul cats ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Galata tower ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Istiqlal Street ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| View from the Galata tower ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| View of Istanbul from Buyuk Chamlydzha ©Yuriy Buriak |
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Later in the afternoon we went to Ankara. The distance is about 430 kilometers and the road is very good.
Day 2 - Ankara, Hattushash, Yazilikaya
Early in the morning we went for a walk around Ankara.
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| Ankara ©forum.awd.ru |
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| The mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in Ankara ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Museum of Anatolian Civilizations in Ankara ©Yuriy Buriak |
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Further continued our way to the east and visited the ruins of Hattushash - the ancient capital of the Hittites.
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| Hattushash ©Yuriy Buriak |
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In a few kilometers visited a very ancient Hittite sanctuary - Yazilikaya.
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| Yazilikaya ©Klaus-Peter Simon / wikipedia.org |
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Went to sleep in Goreme (Cappadocia).
Day 3 - Derinkuyu Underground City, Goreme National Park, Stone columns in Cappadocia
In the morning we went to see the underground city of Derinkuyu.
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| Derinkuyu Underground City ©Yuriy Buriak |
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Next - the monasteries in Goreme.
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| Goreme National Park ©Yuriy Buriak |
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And of course visited the main attraction of Cappadocia - stone columns.
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| Monks Valley in Cappadocia ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Imagination Valley in Cappadocia ©Yuriy Buriak |
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We spent the night in the same hotel in Goreme.
Day 4 - Caravanserai in Sutanhani, Mevlana Museum in Konya, Akshehir - the native land of Hodja Nasreddin
In the morning we started our travel in the direction of Konya and stopped at caravanserai in Sutanhani.
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| Caravanserai in Sutanhani ©Yuriy Buriak |
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In Konya we visited Mevlana Museum (Rumi - a prominent Turkish Sufi poet, thinker and philosopher).
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| Mevlana Museum in Konya ©Yuriy Buriak |
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Next town is Akshehir, the birthplace of Nasreddin Hodja. Had a little walk there.
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| Akshehir - the native land of Nasreddin Hodja ©Yuriy Buriak |
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Next we pass another interesting place - a highway strip, built by the military.
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| Airfield on the road ©Yuriy Buriak |
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In the evening we arrived at Pamukkale and settled near the lake.
Day 5 - Pamukkale, Kusadasi
Next morning we spent 4 hours in Pamukkale, visited limestone terraces and the ancient city of Hierapolis.
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| Pamukkale ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Pamukkale ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Pamukkale ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Pamukkale ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| ne of the largest ancient theaters in Turkey, capacity - 10-12 thousand spectators ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Pamukkale ©Yuriy Buriak |
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Next interesting place is an ancient city of Ephesus. This day we visited the House of the Virgin Mary and the temple of Artemis. Spent the night in Kusadasi, a resort on the Aegean coast.
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| Kusadasi ©Dietmar Giljohann / wikipedia.org |
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Day 6 - Ephesus, Izmir, Pergamon
In the morning we went to Ephesus, walked there for 3 hours.
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| Library of Celsus in Ephesus ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Large theater in Ephesus ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Toilet in Ephesus ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Temple of Hadrian in Ephesus ©Yuriy Buriak |
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Next we went to the big city of Izmir and walked in the center, which is beautiful.
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| Izmir ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Izmir ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Izmir ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Izmir ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Izmir ©Yuriy Buriak |
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After went to see the ancient city of Pergamon.
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| Pergam ©Yuriy Buriak |
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We spend the night in the resort town of Ayvalik. In November it was completely empty.
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| Ayvalik ©Yuriy Buriak |
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Day 7 - Troy
On the way to the ruins of Troy we stopped several times to make a pictures of a beautiful landscapes.
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| Observation deck near Ayvalik ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Observation deck near Ayvalik ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| On the way to Troy ©Yuriy Buriak |
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Troy
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| Troy ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Troy ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Trojan Horse in Troy ©Yuriy Buriak |
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In Canakkale we reached the other shore by the ferry and went to Istabul on the european part of Turkey. This day our trip ended. While relaxing on the southern coast, we visited a few more places:
Kemer
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| Promenade of Kemer ©FlankerFF / wikipedia.org |
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Antalya
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| Antalya, harbor in the old town ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Antalya, harbor in the old town ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Antalya ©Yuriy Buriak |
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Demre
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| Tombs of the ancient city of Myra ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Tombs of the ancient city of Myra ©Yuriy Buriak |
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| Amphitheater of the ancient city of Myra ©Yuriy Buriak |
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Kekova
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| Ruins of ancient city Dolihiste ©Yuriy Buriak |
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Ride on a boat along the coast
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| Boat trip from Kemer ©Yuriy Buriak |
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Useful links :
http://www.goturkey.com - official tourism portal of Turkey
http://www.turkishairlines.com - the main Turkish airline
http://ferries-turkey.com - all ferries
http://www.seat61.com/Turkey2.htm - all about rail transport in Turkey.
http://www.tcdd.gov.tr/tcdding/index.htm - official website of railways
http://www.neredennereye.com/en/ - All kinds of practical information about Turkey, timetable of public transport
http://www.turkeytravelplanner.com - a lot of information about Turkey
http://www.allaboutturkey.com/map.htm - roads
http://maps.turkishpress.com - maps
http://www.iett.gov.tr/en - public transport in Istanbul
http://www.istanbul.net.tr - ferries in Istanbul
http://taksiyle.com/en - costing taxi in Istanbul
http://www.biletix.com - all activities in Istanbul
http://www.roomsinistanbul.com/ - rooms and apartments in Istanbul
http://www.dmi.gov.tr/ - weather forecast in Turkey
http://www.3dmekanlar.com/en - 3D-panoramas of Turkish attractions
http://www.ibb.gov.tr - webcams of Istanbul
http://www.only-apartments.com/turkey-en.html - apartments
http://www.guzelbirtatil.com/kamp-alanlari/ - campings in Turkey
Maps of Turkey:
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| Tourist Map of Turkey ©@ |
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| Railway Map of Turkey ©wikipedia.org |
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Some movies which show Turkey
Troy (2004) - probably the most famous film about Turkey, although it was filmed not in Turkey.
Topkapi (1964) - a classic detective adventure about a team of thieves who are stilling dagger in Topkapi Palace. A lot of cool shots of old Istanbul.
From Russia with Love (1963) - the second James Bond film, mostly shot in the suburbs of Istanbul.
World Is Not Enough (1999) - another Bond film, partly shot in Turkey. Showing Kuchuksu Palace and Maiden's Tower.
Skyfall ( 2012) - Bond loves Istanbul , so one more movie was filmed here. Opening chase takes place in Istanbul.
Ghost Rider 2 (2011) - some scenes filmed in Cappadocia and Pamukkale.
Taken 2 ( 2012) - thriller about a very angry dad Liam Neeson. Many scenes filmed in Istanbul. Especially impressive chase on the roofs in the old city.
International (2009) - a political thriller with Clive Owen. The final scenes are filmed in Istanbul and again chase over the rooftops.
Murder on the Orient Express (1974) - Sidney Lumet's film based on one of the best works of Agatha Christie. Initial scenes are filmed in Istanbul.
Web 2.0 (2006) - a little-known thriller, shot entirely in Istanbul.
The Accidental Spy (2001) - an action comedy starring Jackie Chan. A good half of the movie filmed in Istanbul. There are interesting chase scene on the roofs of Turkish baths and naked Jackie on the streets of Istanbul :)
Hamam (1997) - a romantic drama, filmed in Istanbul, well-told story about a Turkish bath.
Istanbul tales (2005) - a modern urban fairy tale. A few unrelated stories in Istanbul.
Argo (2012 ) - Ben Affleck's political thriller based on real events. Film is about Iran, but was filmed in Istanbul. Received three Oscars, including best film. |
