ULUDAG

Uludağ, the ancient Mysian Olympus, is a mountain in Bursa Province, Turkey, with an altitude of 2,543 m (8,343 ft). It is a popular center for winter sports such as skiing, and a national park of rich flora and fauna. Summer activities, such as trekking and camping, also are popular.

In Turkish, Uludağ means "Great Mountain", but in colloquial Turkish, the older name Keşiş Dağı, "Mountain of Monks," is still used. In ancient times the range of which it is a part, extending along the southern edge of Bithynia, was known as Olympos in Greek and Olympus in Latin, the western extremity being known as the Mysian Olympus and the eastern as the Bithynian Olympus, and the city of Bursa was known as Prusa ad Olympum from its position near the mountain. Throughout the Middle Ages, it contained hermitages and monasteries: "The rise of this monastic centre in the 8th c. and its prestige up to the 11th are linked to the resistance of numerous monks to the policy of the iconoclast emperors and then to a latent opposition to the urban, Constantinopolitanmonasticism of the Studites.". One of the greatest monks of the Christian East, the wonder-working Byzantine monk Saint Joannicius the Great, lived as a hermit on this mountain.

Mt. Uludağ is the highest mountain of the Marmara region. Its highest peak is Kartaltepe at 2,543 m (8,343 ft). To the north are high plateaus: Sarıalan, Kirazlıyayla, Kadıyayla, and Sobra.

There is an abandoned wolfram mine near the summit. The mine and the integrated plant, which were built in 1974 for 60 million dollars, were eventually closed in 1989 due to high production costs.

Uludağ National Park Turkey

The highest area in western Anatolia, Uludağ is easily ascended by car or cable-car. The park is about 22 km (14 mi) south of Bursa and is signposted from there. Bursa can be reached by road from Istanbul. The cable-car ascends from Bursa and has an intermediate stop in the alpine meadows of Kadiyayla at about 1,200 m (3,937 ft) elevation. It ends at Sarialan at about 1,630 m (5,348 ft).

Mt. Uludağ, the ancient Mysian Olympus, is one of the most popular skiing resorts in Turkey

Habitats of the park range from maquis on the lower slopes, through deciduous woodland and beech and fir forest to alpine meadows at the highest levels. It is a refuge for mountain birds, such as Lammergeier and other vultures, Golden Eagle and more than 20 other raptor species. Other high-altitude species include Alpine Accentor, rock thrushes and choughs. The area is also good for eastern specialities such as Isabelline Wheatear, and, at almost the most westerly points of their range, Red-fronted Serinand Krüper's Nuthatch. The dense fir forest holds Short-toed Treecreeper, Common Crossbill and Tengmalm's Owl, a rare and very local bird in Turkey, as well as the White-backed Woodpecker. The rare and local butterfly, Parnassius apollo graslini, is found on Uludag and the area has much of interest to botanists, with colourful pink primroses, Primula vulgaris var sibthorpii; Leopard's-bane, Duronicum orientalis; crocuses: the purple Crocus siberi and yellow Crocus flavus; and grape hyacinths, Muscari racemosum.

Gulf of Gökova

GULF of GÖKOVA- (Turkish: Gökova Körfezi) or Gulf of Kerme (Turkish: Kerme Körfezi, Greek: Κεραμεικός κόλπος, Latin: Ceramicus Sinus, English: Ceramic Gulf or Gulf of Cos), is a long (100 km), narrow gulf of the Aegean Sea between Bodrum Peninsula and Datça Peninsula in south-west Turkey.

Administratively, Gulf of Gökova coastline includes portions of the districts of, clockwise, Bodrum, Milas, Muğla, Ula, Marmaris and Datça. The Greekisland of Kos lies along the entry into the Gulf.

Bodrum, located in its northwest reaches, is the only large city on the gulf today. In ancient times, alongside Halicarnassus (modern-day Bodrum), the city of Ceramus, located midway along the gulf's northern shore and after which the gulf was named, was also an important urban center. Across Ceramus (the modern-day township of Ören, called under the name Gereme, a derivation of the ancient city's name, until recently), at a short distance from the gulf's southern shore and not far from its outlying waters, was another historical site of note, called Cedrae in ancient times, located in Sedir Island prized by visitors for its beach and of which some remains still exist.

Name

The alluvial plain, also named Gökova, which extends at the Gulf's end is the location of the townships of Akyaka and Gökova, with only a few kilometers separating the two and these settlements saw their populations increase considerably in recent years, with Akyaka especially becoming a rising center of tourism. The municipalities of both these townships were created of recent date and they depend the town of Ula, located inland and reached through Sakar Pass at an altitude of 670 meters, climbed from sea-level in a short distance and offering an impressive view of the Gulf as a result. That, until 1945, the hamlets across the plain, mostly marshlands ridden with malaria until that time, were collectively known as Gökabad, and that one of the settlements created and the gulf as a whole came to be called under the slightly modified name of Gökova, a term often used to designate the whole area of touristic interest in which Akyaka, and not the neighboring township of Gökova, is actually prominent, may sometimes lead to confusion.

In sum, the name Gökova (itself possibly deriving from Cova, the designation by which the area was known in Ottoman Ottoman times -mentioned as "Djova" in some English language navigation charts of recent centuries-) is used alternatively for the gulf, for the plain at the end of the same gulf, for a township situated in the same plain and as a casual term covering the emerging resort area centred in the coastal town of Akyaka, with a sea beach, accommodation, residences and amenities for visitors, seasonal residents and forested uplands. The Carian city of Idyma with acropolis and famed rock tombs is found at Kozlukuyu, Gökova town, inland from Akyaka. In ancient times Akyaka was simply a suburb of Kozlukuyu.

MARMARIS

MARMARİS- Marmaris is a port city and a tourist destination on the Mediterranean coast, located in southwest Turkey, in the Muğla Province.

Marmaris' main source of income is tourism. While little is left of the sleepy fishing village that Marmaris was just a few decades ago after a construction boom in the 1980s, Marmaris still retains its charm due to the exceptional natural beauty of its location. The town's population is 28,660 (2000) and is estimated to reach 300,000 - 400,000 people during the tourism season, when the flow of people reaches critical levels. Marmaris' nightlife rivals anything on the Turkish coast.It is also a major centre for sailing, possessing two major and several smaller marinas. It is a popular wintering location for hundreds of cruising boaters. There are regular ferry services to the Greek island of Rhodes, and large cruise ships call at the port.

Climate

Marmaris has a Mediterranean Climate characterized by a hot and humid summer and cool, rainy winter. Showers and rain are very unlikely between May and October.

Summers are hot and humid, and temperatures can reach over 40°C sometimes during heatwaves in July and August. October is still warm and bright, though with spells of rain, and many tourists prefer to visit in the early autumn, especially in September, because the temperatures are not as hot.

Winters are warm and more often sunny. Winter is the rainy season, with major precipitation falling after November. The annual rainfall can reach to 1181,8 millimetres (46 in); the rainfall is concentrated during scattered days in winter falling in heavy cloudbursts which cause flash floods sometimes in flood prone areas.

History

Historic map of Marmaris by Piri Reis

Although it is not certain when Marmaris was founded, in the 6th century BC the city was known as Physkos, and considered part of Caria.

According to the historian Herodotus, there was a castle in Marmaris since 3000 BC. During the Hellenistic Age, Caria was invaded by Alexander the Great and the castle was besieged. The 600 inhabitants of the town realised that they had no chance against the invading army and burned their valuables in the castle before escaping to the hills with their women and children. The invaders, well aware of the strategic value of the castle, repaired the destroyed sections to house a few hundred soldiers before the main army returned home.

Marmaris Castle

The next important event during the history of Marmaris was almost two thousand years later, in the mid-fifteenth century, when the Ottoman Empire began to rise after the efforts of Sultan Mehmet II, who succeeded in conquering and uniting under one banner the various tribes and kingdoms ofAnatolia. Some of his greatest difficulties came from the Knights of St. John, who occupied theDodecanese Islands. Based in Rhodes, the Knights had fought for many years; they were able to withstand the onslaughts of Mehmet II until a succeeding and more powerful Sultan came on the scene.

Beaches of Marmaris on the Turkish Riviera

Marmaris castle was rebuilt from scratch in 1522 by the Ottoman sultan Süleyman the Magnificentwhen he had set out for his campaign on Rhodes, for which Marmaris served as a base. Since 1979, renovation work has been continuing at the castle, in order to restore it back to original condition. Under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture, the castle was converted into a museum. There are seven galleries, of which the largest is being used as an exhibition hall and the courtyard is decorated with seasonal flowers. Built at the same time as the castle in the bazaar, there is also a small Ottoman caravanserai built by Süleyman's motherAyşe Hafsa Sultan.

Twin towns - Sister cities

Marmaris has nine sister cities

NEMRUT

NEMRUT- Nemrut or Nemrud (Armenian: Նեմռութ սար) (Turkish: 'Nemrut Dağı') is a 2,134 m (7,001 ft) high mountain in southeastern Turkey, notable for the summit where a number of large statues is erected around what is assumed to be a royal tomb from the first century BCE.

Location and description

Some of the statues near the peak of Mount Nemrut

View of Mount Nemrut from the north-east

The mountain lies 40 km (25 mi) north of Kahta, near Adıyaman. In 62 BC, King Antiochus I Theos of Commagene built on the mountain top a tomb-sanctuary flanked by huge statues (8–9 m/26–30 ft high) of himself, two lions, two eagles and various Greek, and Armenian gods, such as Hercules-Vahagn, Zeus-Aramazd or Oromasdes (associated with the Iranic god Ahura Mazda), Tyche, and Apollo-Mithras. These statues were once seated, with names of each god inscribed on them. The heads of the statues have at some stage been removed from their bodies, and they are now scattered throughout the site.

The pattern of damage to the heads (notably to noses) suggests that they were deliberately damaged because of belief in iconoclasm. The statues have not been restored to their original positions. The site also preserves stone slabs with bas-relief figures that are thought to have formed a large frieze. These slabs display the ancestors of Antiochus, who included both Macedonians and Persians.

The same statues and ancestors found throughout the site can also be found on the tumulus at the site, which is 49 m (161 ft) tall and 152 m (499 ft) in diameter. The statues appear to have Greek-style facial features, but Persian clothing and hairstyling.

The western terrace contains a large slab with an lion, showing the arrangement of stars and the planets Jupiter, Mercury and Mars on 7 July 62 BC. This may be an indication of when construction began on this monument. The eastern portion is well preserved, being composed of several layers of rock, and a path following the base of the mountain is evidence of a walled passageway linking the eastern and western terraces. Possible uses for this site is thought to have included religious ceremonies, due to the astronomical and religious nature of the monument.

The arrangement of such statues is known by the term hierothesion. Similar arrangements have been found at Arsameia on Nymphaios at the hierothesion of the father of Antiochus, Mithridates I Callinicus.

Ancient History

When the Seleucid Empire was defeated by the Romans in 189 BCE at the Battle of Magnesia it began to fall apart and new kingdoms were established on its territory by local authorities. Commagene being one of the Seleucid successor states occupied a land in between the Taurus mountains and the Euphrates. The state of Commagene had a wide range of cultures which left its leader from 62 BCE - 38 BCE Antiochus I to carry on a peculiar dynastic religious program, in which it included not only Greek and Persian deities but Antiochus and his family as well. This religious program was very possibly an attempt of Antiochus to unify his multiethnic kingdom and secure his dynasty's authority.

Antiochus supported the cult as a propagator of happiness and salvation Many of the monuments on Mount Nemrud are ruins of the imperial cult of Commagene. The most important area to the cult was the tomb of Antiochus I, in which was decorated with colossal statues made oflimestone. Although the Imperial cult did not last long after Antiochus, several of his successors had their own tombs built on Mount Nemrud. For about a half a year Mount Nemrud lays covered in snow which in effect has increased its weathering in which has in part caused its statues to fall in ruin.

Modern history

The site was excavated in 1881 by Charles Sester, a German engineer assessing transport routes for the Ottomans. Subsequent excavations have failed to reveal the tomb of Antiochus. This is nevertheless still believed to be the site of his burial. The statues, all of them "beheaded", have not been restored to their original condition.

Visiting Nemrut

In 1987, Mount Nemrut was made a World heritage site by UNESCO. Tourists typically visit Nemrut during June through August. The nearby town of Adıyaman is a popular place for car and bus trips to the site, and one can also travel from there by helicopter. There are also overnight tours running out of Malatya.