Information About Antalya Turkey

The city of Antalya is one of he most important tourist centers in Turkey. During the excavations, artifacts dating far back to the Paleolithic Age were found in the Karain cave to the northwest of the town. The area was ruled by the Hittites between 1900 and 1200 B.C. The independent city states of Pamphilla, Lycia and Cilicia were sovereign till the Phrygians. Dominated by the Lydians for a while the province was invaded by the Persians in the 6th century B.C.

The Persian domination came to an end with the arrival of Alexander the Great and after his death, his generals ruled the area. Antalya, named after the Pergamum King Attalos II. became a district of the Roman Empire in 67 B.C. The city was conqered by the Seldjuk Turks in 1805. After a short interval of Byzantine rule, Antalya became an Ottoman province in 1426. Between   1919 and 1921, the city was under Italian occupation.  During the crusades the knights set sail from Antalya on their way to Palestine. As the new city of Antalya extends over the ancient site, there is not much left of the ancient Attaleia. The Kocaali Park, Yivli Minare, Hadrian’s Gate and the outstanding Museum of Archeology as well as Kaleici or the inner citadel are the greater attractions in the town.

Pamukkale Hierapolis

The site is located a half hour drive from Denizli, the provincial capital. The ancient city of Hierapolis is part of the setting, orginally known as Pamukkale.
The Ancient site has been severely damaged as a result of the recurrent earthquakes, and unfortunately only a few structures remain standing.
The ancient site is most famous with the impressive of incredible size. The extremely well preserved Theater with perfect marble reliefs and the monumental gate with round towers on either side, built in the honor of emperor Hadrian and the colonnaded road behind it are a few of the attractions in the site.

Information About Cistern Basilica

The great Byzantine cistern, located across from Hagia Sophia was used to supply the necessary water to the city during the barbarian attacks and when  the city was under siege.336 colums wit Doric and Corinthian capitals, were bought from various locations in Asia minor for the construction of the cistern. A monumental aqueduct, built by emperor Valens and still a major attraction of the city provided water to the cistern.

Suleymaniye Mosque

The Mosque of Suleyman the Magnificient, located in the center of a large religions complex, stands as the most important work of Architect Sinan, one of the greatest architectsin the world history. Built in the mid 16th century, in the reign of Sultan Suleyman the Magnificient, the Mosque represents the summit of the Ottoman Empire.

The Blue Mosque

Known as the The Blue Mosque ( Sultanahmet Cami ) the mosque is located next to the ancient Hippodrome and across from Hagia Sophia. The mosque was built in the first quarter of the 17th century. The architect was Mehmet Aga, one of the pupils of the great Architect Sinan. As he tried to surpass his master he created a masterpiece that still has a great reputation. Next to the mosque is a religious complex, that had a soup kitchen, a hospital, a primary education school, a madrasah and the tomb of Sultan Ahmet. The six minarets and the lay out of the domes and semidomes create a unique exterior.

Hagia Sophia

İts a masterpiece of the Byzantine architecture and considered as the 8th. wonder of the world by most art historians. Hagia Sophia, ftom the 6th century, is the one and only construction that still stands in an excellent state of preservation and well worth an extended visit. At first sight, you may be a little disappointed by the external view of the building the minarets built in different style, the buttresses added later on and the tombs in the courtyard distort the harmony of the exterior desing. However, as you enter into the basilica, used as a museum today and get some background information on the building its hard not to respect and admire the people who built it and kept it in such good shape.

Topkapi Palace

Topkapi the administrative palace of the Ottoman Dynasty, that ruled on three continents for over six centuries is definitely a must see. Open every day, except Tuesday the museum and the artifacts displayed deserve a thourough attention. The construction started in 1470, the palace dont show an architectural uniformity in the classical sense as each reigning Sultan added new parts or seperate parts of it were rebuilt after the destruction of fires and earthquakes. The beatiful gardens of the palace, that occupied the eastern end of the peninsula in the time interval the palace was used by the dynasty, serve different purposes today. Through the Central Gate, adorned with two defense towers on two sides one reaches a large courtyard.