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Day 1 -
Evening departure from Toronto on Air Canada/Lufthansa via
Frankfurt
Day 2 -
Istanbul - Transfer by private coach to the hotel where accommodation
has been reserved for two nights at the Hotel Arcadia. Welcome dinner.
Day 3- Istanbul - After
breakfast we explore the opulent Dolmabahce Palace.
This was the sultan's magnificent new palace which
eventually bankrupted the country. The construction cost five
million Ottoman mecidiye gold coins, the equivalent of 35
tons of gold. Fourteen tons of gold leaf were used to gild
the ceilings. Dolmabahçe Palace was home to six sultans from
1856 until the abolition of the Caliphate in 1924.
Our next stop is the Spice
Market with its exotic fragrances.
After lunch we visit the Blue
Mosque, an imperial mosque famous for its priceless
blue tiles from Iznik. It was built between 1609 and 1616,
during the rule of Ahmed I. Like many other mosques, it also
comprises a tomb of the founder, a madrasah and a hospice. Until
recently the muezzin or prayer-caller had to climb a
narrow spiral staircase five times a day to announce the call to
prayer. Today a public address system is used, and the call can
be heard across the old part of the city, echoed by other
mosques in the vicinity. Near the Blue Mosque we see the
Hippodrome where chariot races
once were held.
Our final stop is the Grand Bazaar.
Built in 1450, the bazaar is a fascinating maze of small shops.
It houses two mosques, two hamams, four fountains, and multiple
restaurants and cafes.
Later in the afternoon there is an optional
cruise on the Bosphorus and a visit to the underground cistern
of Yerebatan.
HOTEL ARCADIA
Breakfast, lunch and a farewell dinner included.
Day 4 Istanbul
The city's
skyline is eloquent testimony to more than 500 years of Ottoman
rule. But long before that, as Byzantium then Constantinople, it was
one of the greatest cities in the world.
On our tour we discover many Byzantine and Ottoman treasures. First
we tour the Haghia Sophia Museum
which was the great Cathedral of Byzantium. Dating back to
532AD, this "Cathedral of Holy Wisdom" was the
patriarchal church of the Eastern Orthodox church for 1000
years. In 1453 Mehmet II conquered the city and his first stop
was the Cathedral where, with his head to the ground, he invoked
the name of Allah and declared the great house of worship a
mosque. In 1935 the first Turkish
President, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, solved all disputes over the
Haghia Sophia by declaring the building a museum.
The highlight of our city tour is a visit to the Royal Topkapi Palace - the
luxurious residence
of the Ottoman sultans from the 15th to the 19th century. This
palace was a setting for state occasions and royal
entertainments and today contains holy relics of the
Muslim world such as the Prophet Mohammed's cloak and sword. Inside
the palace we see
the sultan's harem section and fabulous treasures including imperial robes,
jewels and magnificent porcelain collections. HOTEL
ARCADIA Breakfast and lunch
included.
/Day 5 Istanbul/ Nevsehir/ Cappadocia -
in the morning we transfer
to the airport for the short flight to Nevsehir. Cappadocia is the ancient name of a large region in
the center of Anatolia, although when we speak of Cappadocia
today we refer specifically to the valleys of Goreme and Urgup,
with their natural pinnacles and rock churches. We tour the
region to see
its fairy chimneys, volcanic landscapes, centuries old rock
churches and troglodyte
dwellings. We visit the open-air museum of
Goreme Valley, a 4th century
monastic complex developed by
St. Basil the Great. St Basil's definition of monastic life was based on the idea that men
should live in small, self-sufficient units with an emphasis on
poverty, obedience and labour.
HOTEL PERI TOWER Breakfast and dinner
included.
Day 6 Cappadocia -
We have a
full day touring in Cappadocia including the Cavusin village with its Church
of John the Baptist which rises above
the village. Nobody
knows who the original inhabitants of the region were, or who
first hollowed out shelters in the soft rock of these sheltered
ravines and odd "chimneys." But, as a largely barren
area, Cappadocia was bypassed by most armies, making it a
perfect refuge for the early Christians. The natural land
formations and huge expanses of silence are just a part of the
mystery of the region. Cappadocian soil is extremely fertile,
and, in spite of Turkish attitude to alcohol, one finds numerous
vineyards. Our
sightseeing includes the
canyon of Zelve, the
natural citadel of Uchisar which gives us a panoramic view and Kizilvadi and Dervent
which
are small villages where people still
use horses and carts as transportation.
HOTEL
PERI TOWER. Breakfast and dinner included.
Day 7 - Konya
Our first stop
today is at the underground
city of Kaymakli. It
remains a mystery as to who first started the digging, although
Hittite artefacts found there indicate inhabitants as far back as 4,000 years ago. Later,
this underground city was used by early Christians
escaping persecution.
We continue to Ihlara Valley where we have an optional leisurely 5 km walk (weather permitting) in the
beautiful canyon along the river to the village of Belisirma.
Along the way we stop to see some of the Rock Cut Churches. Two
thousand years ago
a remote home to early Christian monastic communities, the cave
churches' walls retain many of their vivid frescoes. Just a few of many churches are the Church with Terraces,
the Church That Smells, the Church
of the Serpents - named for the scene showing serpents in the act
of punishing four female sinners. (Women as the source of evil was
a common theme among the monks).
For those who prefer not to take this walk they will travel by coach to
explore the area and meet the
group at the end of the route.
From here we continue on to Konya and along the
way we visit the ancient Caravanserai of Sultanhani. In the days
when camel caravans plied the trade routes along the Silk Road
from the East the caravanserais were secure overnight stops (their
distance apart was the distance a camel could travel in a day -
about 20 miles).
Overnight at Konya HOTEL GARDEN INN Breakfast and dinner included.
Day 8 Konya / Antalya
- Konya
is
home of the mystic sect of Whirling Dervishes. We visit the Mausoleum
of Mevlana (founder of the Whirling Dervishes who believed in
the virtues of dance and music as a means of freeing oneself
from earthly bondage). The whirling dance is now performed as a
folk-lore spectacle.
We continue to Antalya,
descending through the Taurus Mountains.
Along the way we visit the ruins of the ancient Pamphylian cities of Perge and
Aspendos where we see the best preserved Roman theatre in Turkey.
We stay in the lovely walled city of Antalya for three nights.
HOTEL
ASPEN Breakfast and dinner
included.
Day 9 Antalya
- After a leisurely
start we visit the Archaeological Museum
with its survey of the great periods in Pamphylia's history -
from the neolithic, on through the Bronze Age to Hellenistic and
Roman times. This region was the Cradle of Civilization -
inhabited for 50,000 years. This is one of the most
important museums in the Mediterranean region.
Following the museum visit we have a walk around
Antalya's Old Harbour to see
Hadrian's Gate and the medieval walls. The
rest of the day is at leisure - it is a chance to relax at
the hotel's courtyard pool. HOTEL ASPEN Breakfast and dinner
included.
Day 10 Antalya -
Day at leisure -
The guide will have suggestions for optional tours.
Of course, there is always the option of browsing through the many
shops and exploring the fascinating old streets of Antalya.
HOTEL ASPEN Breakfast and dinner included.
Day 11
Antalya / Fethiye
Early morning departure for a long but interesting day. We
follow the Turquoise Riviera's beautiful coastline stopping in
Demre (home of Saint Nicholas) where we visit his
church. The legend of Santa Claus started
here when Saint Nicholas (the Bishop of Myra), in the first half
of the 4th century, was said to have made nocturnal visits to
the houses of local children to leave gifts, including gold
coins as doweries for poor village girls. If a window was closed
he would drop the gifts down the chimney (so the story goes).
This area has many ancient rock tombs. The early people of
Anatolia built beautiful monumental tombs associated with
ancestor worship. Today the
landscape is still dotted with their fascinating funerary
monuments dating back to the 4th century BC and decorated with
mythological scenes. The ancient people seem to have held a
belief that the souls of their dead would be transported from
the tombs to the afterworld by a winged siren-like creature and
so they often placed tombs on cliffs to ease the
flight.
In the afternoon we travel through what was once ancient
Lycia. The earliest historical reference to the
Lycians date back to the Late Bronze Age (ca 1500 - 1200 BC). It is known that the Lycians
fought against Egypt in 1295 BC
(the famous battle of Ramses II.) and we see bits of the "Lycian
Way" the road once travelled along the coast for thousands
of years.
We stop at the old town
of Kas, a quiet town with its narrow streets scented with
jasmine flowers and here we see, in the centre of town, a
classic Lycian sarcophagus.
Later in the day we see Kayakoy, an abandoned village formerly
occupied by Christian Greeks who had been resident in Turkey for
generations. In the 1923 "Population Exchange" between
Greece and Turkey all 2000 residents were removed and deported
to Greece. Turks living in Greece suffered the same
expulsion. Today the ghost-town is a museum.
We
continue to the quaint seaside
village of Fethiye for dinner overlooking the harbour filled
with Turkish gullets (boats). HOTEL ECE SARAY Breakfast and dinner
included
Day 12 Fethiye / Bodrum -
Fethiye is located on the
site of the ancient city of Telmessos, the ruins of which
can be seen in the Hellenistic theatre. Telmessos
was the most important city of Lycia, with a recorded history
starting in the 5th century BC. After
a leisurely morning we continue along the
beautiful Turquoise Riviera. There is a brief stop to see
some of the ancient rock tombs before we continue along the
coast to Bodrum.
Overnight at Bodrum with its beautiful harbour and
castle. In ancient times Bodrum was the city of
Halicarnassos. Our hotel is located right in the
heart of the town facing the harbour. HOTEL MARINA
VISTA Breakfast and dinner included.
Day 13 - Bodrum - In the morning we visit the Mausoleum
of Halicarnasos which was one of the Seven Wonders of the
Ancient World. This was a magnificent tomb built between
353 and 350 BC at what was then called Halicarnassus (modern-day
Bodrum) for Mausolu who was a governor in the Persian Empire by
his wife Artemesia (who was also his sister). As governor
(satrap) Mausolus decided to
build a new capital; a city as safe from capture as it was
magnificent to be seen. If his ships blocked a small
channel, they could keep all enemy warships out. He started to
make Halicarnassus a capital fit for a warrior prince. His
workmen deepened the city's harbour and used the dragged sand to
make protecting breakwaters. On land he paved streets and built
houses for ordinary citizens. Workmen built walls and
watchtowers, a Greekstyle theatre and a temple to Ares.
Artemisia and Mausolus spent huge
amounts of tax money to embellish the city. They commissioned
statues, temples and marble buildings. In
353 BC Mausolus died, leaving Artemisia broken-hearted. As a
tribute to him, she decided to build him the most splendid tomb,
a structure so famous that Mausolus's name is now the eponym for
all stately tombs, in the word mausoleum.
We also visit the Bodrum Castle Rhodes Cavaliers, built by the
Crusaders in the 15th century, which offers
one of the best underwater archaeology museums of the world.
This museum is not just a
dusty collection of lifeless relics. It is an original, creative
and exciting experience - a trip into a fascinating past
with exhibits that take you back in time into the worlds of
ancient mariners who sailed to meet their destiny shipwrecked on
Anatolian shores or the medieval age of knights who built this
castle from stones that once were part of one of the Seven
Wonders of the ancient World.
HOTEL
MARINA VISTA Breakfast and dinner included.
Day 14 - Bodrum/ Kusadasi -
Today we visit Didyma where we visit the Temple of Apollo.
Part of the ancient "Sacred Way" from the Hellenistic
period, this temple is as grand in scale as the
Parthenon with 124 well-preserved columns. To approach it,
visitors would follow the Sacred Way to Didyma, about 17 km
long and along the way would stop at ritual waystations where
stood statues of Branchidae priests. The Branchidae claimed
descent from Branchos, a youth beloved of Apollo. The temple's
oracle rivalled Delphi. A priestess, seated above the
sacred spring, gave utterances and the corridor walls would throw
her voice into deep and ghostly echoes which were interpreted by
the Branchidae priests. In 334 BC Alexander the Great placed
administration of the oracle in the hands of the city, where the
priest in charge was annually elected.
We
continue to Kusadasi where we stay for two nights in a
charming waterfront hotel
HOTEL CHARISMA Breakfast and dinner
included.
Day 15 Kusadasi -
Today is a highlight of a
visit to Turkey. We visit the Ionian City of Ephesus
which dates from the 1st century B.C. and considered to be the
best preserved classical city on the Aegean. As the capital of
Roman Asia Minor, it was richly endowed with marble temples and
beautiful mosaics which have been uncovered recently. The
carefully reconstructed facade of the Celsus Library, built c.
125 AD, the agora and the theatre which seated 28,000 people are
fascinating to visit. Ephesus was the second largest city in the Roman
Empire. Legend has it that the
Virgin Mary came here at the end
of her life and Ephesus was certainly an important center for
early Christianity. From AD 5254, Paul lived in Ephesus,
organizing missionary activity into the hinterlands and
objecting to artisans selling the statuettes of Artemis in the
Temple of Artemis (one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient
World). Touring the site with an expert guide takes us
back to the days of the Roman Empire and earlier ancient times.
This is one of the most fascinating archaeological sites in the
Mediterranean and it is estimated that only about 15% of the
site has so far been unearthed.
There will
be a stop at the Selcuk Archaeological Museum which houses finds
from the excavation site and is best-known for the statue of
Artemis retrieved from the Temple of the Goddess in Ephesus.
HOTEL CHARISMA Breakfast and dinner included.
Day 16 Kusadasi/ Istanbul -
We depart for the airport in Izmir for our flight to Istanbul.
The balance of the day is free. HOTEL ARCADIA
Breakfast included.
Day 17 -
Depart from Istanbul for
home on Lufthansa/Air Canada.
The tour is accompanied by a Turkish expert in Mediterranean
history and archaeology. There will also be an experienced
Canadian tour escort.
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