Turkey`s Culture and Ancient History

In February 2014 I had the great pleasure of traveling on Turkey’s southern coast together with TutorZ’ own marketing assistant Lilly Kuleshova. We learned first hand about Turkey’s fascinating history and breathtaking natural beauty.

Turkey’s southern coast stretches for over 1000 miles from the Aegean Sea to the Mediterranean Sea.  This area has many coastal mountains which rise high, often more than a thousand feet. For example, the coastal peak Mt. Babadag near Fetihye rises to a towering height of more than 5000 feet. This peak is also one of the world’s finest paragliding locations where many local sports schools offer para gliding lessons. These coastal mountains together with Turkey’s arid vegetation and endless sunshine are akin to the conditions of California’s central coast. When meeting fellow American travelers I had a déjà vu of staying on California’s Pacific Cost Hwy 1 somewhere between Hearst castle and Big Sur.

A trip to Turkey’s Turquoise coast would be incomplete without a boat trip. We took a skippered sailing yacht trip from Marmaris to Bozukale bay. This bay is calm and beautiful and had served as a natural harbor, fleet base and shipyard in antiquity. For example, the Athenian fleet utilized Bozukkale as a base during the Peloponnesian Wars (431-404 B.C.). 20 years later, in 395 BC, the Athenian commander Karori prepared his fleet here before the Cnidus War. Another 90 years later Antigonos’ son Demetrios had chosen this harbor to gather and prepare his ships in the harbor before attacking Rhodes (305 BC).

Lilly and I made the Turkish tourist town Fethiye our primary destination of the trip. Apart from its pleasant climate in February and natural beauty, I was especially taken in by the hospitality of the local people and how Fethiye participated in world history.

The first people to inhabit Fethiye were the Lycian, known to history since the records of ancient Egypt and the Hittite Empire in the bronze age. The Lycian believed their bodies rise into the heaves after death. To accommodate the journey from earth to the skies, the Lycian carved tombs into the rocks. In Fethiye, there is the Tomb of Amyntas, built in 350 BC.

Alexander the Great entered Fethiye (or Telmessos as it was named then) with his fleet in the winter of 334–333 BC. Alexander was on a mission to invade Anatolia, and rest in the city where a big feasts was held that night.

In the 12th–13th centuries Fethiye renewed its prosperity: it was a center for perfume production and trade. On their way to the Holy Land, the medieval soldiers, pilgrims, priests and nobles of the Crusades rested and settled in Fethiye. Built during this period, a crusader’s castle can be seen south-west of Fethiye. While today only the ruins are left it is free to enter and offers spectacular views over Fethiye and the entire coast.

Only 5 miles south of Fethiye lies a historic sight – the ghost town of Kayaköy, sometimes referred to as Karmylassos. Greek speaking Christians lived there until 1923  when its inhabitants were forced to abandon their home population in exchange for an agreement that was signed by the Turkish and Greek governments. Walking among the ruins of Kayakoy gave us frightful feelings. We were the only visitors on a late weekday afternoon and climbed over these abandoned houses. It was almost like being in a bad horror movie, knowing that people lived there and probably loved their homes and neighbors not wanting to leave. Thankfully, the warm sun and beautiful nature soothed our apprehensive feelings.

When traveling in a foreign country, speaking a few words of its language goes a long way. This is because locals feel appreciated knowing you made an effort to study their native language. I saw this happening when I asked the bus driver to stop and let us off. (Turkish: Otobüsü durdurun Lütfen). Otherwise, we would have to walk a long way back. In another occasion the Turkish-only speaking hostess of a bed & breakfast had already cleaned up when I asked them to reopen the breakfast buffet. (Turkish: Biz kahvalt? alabilir miyim lütfen). So here are a few but important Turkish word:

Knowing some Turkish words and some history of turkey has helped us to get around in this exciting country and deepened our appreciation of it. Therefore, I recommend you to learn from TutorZ Turkish tutors and learn world history especially the ancient Greek and history of the crusader .