The Galata Tower (Turkish: Galata Kulesi) is a medieval stone tower that dominates the skyline of Istanbul’s Beyoğlu district. Rising approximately 62.6 metres (205 ft) above the ground, this cylindrical Romanesque tower crowns the historic Galata (Karayaka) neighbourhood, near the Golden Horn. Built of rubble masonry, with a conical roof atop its nine stories, it was […]

Rising above the heart of historic Istanbul, the Hagia Sophia (Ayasofya) has been “the sovereign maiden” of the city’s skyline for 1,500 years. Originally consecrated as an Eastern Orthodox cathedral in 537 CE, it would later serve as the coronation church of Byzantine emperors and the seat of the Patriarchate of Constantinople. For nearly a […]

1. Introduction to Rumeli Fortress 1.1. Overview of Rumelihisarı and Its Location on the Bosphorus Rumelihisarı—often rendered in English as Rumeli Fortress or Rumelian Fortress—stands upon a strategic promontory on the European shore of the Bosphorus Strait in Istanbul, Turkey. Its name derives from Ottoman Turkish, in which “Rumeli” denotes the “land of the Romans” […]

Termessos is anything but ordinary. Perched high on the slopes of Mount Güllük (ancient Solymos), this ancient Pisidian city has remained remarkably intact, largely because it was abandoned early and left undisturbed. Nestling at about 1,000–1,050 meters above sea level, Termessos commands sweeping panoramas of rugged peaks and valleys. No formal archaeological excavations have been […]

Hadrian’s Gate (Turkish: Üçkapılar, meaning “The Three Gates”) stands at the threshold of modern Antalya as the last surviving entrance of its ancient walls. Erected in 130 CE to honor the visit of the Roman emperor Hadrian, this marble-and-granite triumphal arch once marked the transition from the Mediterranean port to the city’s heart. Over nearly two […]

Located in Cappadocia, Uchisar Castle dominates the skyline as a monument of both nature and human history. This vertiginous rock outcrop – often called Cappadocia’s “largest fairy chimney” or even its “natural skyscraper” – rises some 95 meters above the valley floor. From its summit one may survey “every part of Cappadocia,” including the Göreme […]

The Mevlana Museum in Konya is the mausoleum of the 13th-century poet–mystic Jalal al-Din Muhammad Rumi (known in Turkey as Mevlana), and the heart of the Mevlevi Sufi order. Originally a Sufi dervish lodge (dergâh), it now preserves Rumi’s tomb and a rich collection of artifacts related to his life and teachings. Visitors from around […]

Side, perched on a glistening peninsula of Turkey’s Mediterranean coast, is an extraordinary fusion of sun-drenched beaches and millennia-old history. Once the leading port of ancient Pamphylia, this city commanded a natural harbour so fine that even Alexander the Great claimed it in 333 BC. Today its ruins – walls, temples and a colossal amphitheatre […]

Alanya Castle: An Epic Fortress Forged by Empires More Than Just a Castle: An Introduction to a Living Museum Nestled at the tip of a rocky peninsula, the medieval Alanya Castle surveys the turquoise Mediterranean. Its defensive walls, nearly 6.5 km in length, encircle a living museum of stone. From this vantage one can make […]

Hierapolis stands as an ancient thermal spa city built atop the surreal white travertine terraces of Pamukkale. These terraces – called the “Cotton Castle” in Turkish – were formed by calcite-rich hot springs cascading from a 200-meter cliff, creating an otherworldly landscape of petrified waterfalls and stepped pools. But Hierapolis itself is far more than […]

An Introduction to Pamukkale: The Cotton Castle of Turkey What is Pamukkale and Why is it So Famous? Pamukkale (pronounced “pah-MOOK-ah-leh”) is a natural marvel in southwestern Turkey whose name literally means “cotton castle.” The site’s fame rests on vast white travertine terraces that climb a limestone cliff, giving the impression of terraces hewn from […]

Perge Ancient City lies approximately eighteen kilometers east of Antalya, perched on a gentle rise overlooking the alluvial plain of the Cestrus River. Founded before the Hittite treaties of the thirteenth century BCE, this settlement—known in Luwian as Parha—grew from a Bronze Age village into one of Pamphylia’s most illustrious urban centers. By the time […]

Phaselis Bay occupies a narrow ribbon of coastline where the whisper of maritime trade once mingled with the creaking of Byzantine church bells, and dense pine forests exhaled an intoxicating resinous perfume. Far from a mere “photo stop” on the Mediterranean itinerary, this cove is where the layered strata of Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine civitas […]

An Introduction to the Enigma of Kaymakli Kaymakli Underground City (ancient Enegup) is one of Cappadocia’s most extraordinary subterranean sites. Carved from soft volcanic rock (tuff), this multi‑level city lies beneath the village of Kaymaklı, roughly 19 km south of Nevşehir in central Turkey. It was once a fully self‑contained underground settlement, with an intricate […]

High on the slopes of the Taurus Mountains in southwestern Turkey, the ruins of Sagalassos crown a lofty ridge some 1,500 meters above sea level. From this “eagle’s perch” one can survey distant lakes and peaks, the Mediterranean shores shimmering to the south and the Anatolian plateau to the north. The site lies about 100 […]

Located on the Asian shore of the Bosphorus beneath the 1973 suspension bridge, Beylerbeyi Palace offers a serene counterpoint to Istanbul’s more famous European-side monuments. It stands amid citrus groves and ornamental gardens, a stone’s throw from the water. Built between 1861 and 1865 by Sultan Abdülaziz, it served as a summer palace and state […]

The Temple of Apollo at Didyma, also known as the Didymaion, was one of the grandest sanctuaries of the ancient Greek world. Located on a headland of what was once the Milesian peninsula (now near modern Didim, Turkey), the sanctuary was celebrated as the site of a great oracle of Apollo. In its heyday this […]

At the heart of Turkey’s Pontic Mountains, the Sumela Monastery (Panagia Soumela) perches on a sheer cliff face, seemingly clinging to the rock itself. This Greek Orthodox monastery, officially the Monastery of the Virgin Mary of Sumela, is located in the Altındere Valley of Trabzon Province. UNESCO notes that its full name is Panagia Soumela […]

Located on a tiny islet at the southern entrance of the Bosphorus, the Maiden’s Tower (Kız Kulesi) has cast its silhouette over Istanbul’s waters for more than two millennia. From its vantage 200 meters off the shores of Üsküdar, it is “one of the most popular landmarks and monuments of the city,” embodying a rich […]

Located on a gentle hillside above the Köprüçay (Eurymedon) valley, the ruins of Aspendos testify to millennia of history. Visitors today come chiefly to behold a singular marvel: a 2nd-century Roman theatre that ranks as “the best preserved ancient theatre of the world”. Yet Aspendos was once a thriving Greco-Pamphylian city whose fortunes waxed and […]