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Sunday, April 1, 2007

Turkey - Alanya

Alanya is extremely tourist beach resort neighborhood on the Mediterranean part of Turkey. I found myself there in April, which isn't quite the tourist season. Having an empty beach all to myself was nice although it was a bit nippy. Alanya has beautiful sandstone beaches with millions of small pebbles. The water is clear and I could envision the days of old.
Beach nearby Alanya
Endless sandy steps surrounds the beaches of Alanya. I wonder how they came to be. I sit on one of the dry stone steps and look out into the endless ocean. I wonder...will I be transported back in time to the world of ottoman empire?
Beach nearby Alanya
One structure no one will miss in Alanya is the Red tower and the surrounding fortress structure. I hear you will be able to go all the way to the top of the mountain on foot, but exhaustion led us back down in the midst of our climb. The view out to the ocean and to the top of the mountain is spectacular from the red tower.
Red tower
In olden days, one could hypothetically travel all the way to the top from Red Tower. We embarked on one such path only to the thwarted by the erosion due to aging fortress structure. My advice is to take a transport that gets you all the way to the top!  
From Red Tower
You get a spectacular view to the Alanya surrounding beaches from the red tower. I could only imagine what it would have been like many hundreds of years ago.
From Red Tower
You also get a spectacular view to the top of the mountains. Next time, I plan to be on top of the mountain looking down. I suppose next time too, I will want to get a historical details on this coast of Turkey before coming. This apparently used to be a favorite vacation spot for Seljuk kings.
From Red Tower
Looking at the openings on the ceiling, I assume this used to be Hammam, the bath house. I wonder if it is still working Hammam...perhaps it has long ago been abandoned. Wouldn't it be nice to restore something as beautiful as this? I wouldn't so mind living in Harem.
From Red Tower
Alanya coast. I guess I can see why this would have been the favorite vacation spot for Seljuk kings. Who wouldn't want to be here? Seriously though...if you really want to see the rest of Turkey, plan ahead! 
Alanya
Books about Alanya:

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