Extraordinary Turkey … the land at the middle between East and West influences. With its knobbly-topped rock cliffs speckled with cave dwellings, walking through Zelve Open-Air Museum is an experience of the Cappadocia of old. The settlement began life as a monastery in the 9th century, and by the 20th century was a thriving village. Due to erosion and rockfall dangers, the village had to be abandoned in 1952. Now the entire valley is a museum. There are a couple of interesting chapels to see — the Uzumlu Kilise (Grape Church) being the most intact — and a rather picturesque rock-cut mosque. But the real joy of this site is meandering down the cliffside paths, exploring the fire-blackened interiors of the cave dwellings, and staring out at the magnificent vistas over the surrounding countryside.
Nemrut is a 2,134 meter (7,001 ft) high mountain in southeastern Turkey, near the city of Adiyaman. In 62 BC, King Antiochus I Theos of Commagene built a tomb-sanctuary flanked by huge statues of himself, two lions, two eagles and various Greek, and Persian gods on the mountain top. Since their construction, the heads have toppled from the bodies and lay scattered throughout the site. The summit of Mount Nemrut provides a great view of the surrounding mountains. The main attraction is to watch the sunrise from the eastern terrace which give the bodyless heads a beautiful orange hue and adds to the sense of mystery of the place.
The top sightseeing drawcard for Eastern Turkey, Mount Nemrut’s summit funerary mound is scattered with the broken remnants of once mammoth statues, which guarded it. This weird and lonely place has to be one of Turkey’s most peculiar archaeological sites. The giant stone heads of long-forgotten gods stare out from the summit, casting an eerie atmosphere over the barren mountaintop. The time to come is at sunrise, so you can watch the statues as they loom out of the dark.
An imposing tourist attraction in one of Turkey’s most popular resorts, Bodrum Castle has provided many a visitor with an afternoon of exploration when a break from the sun lounger is required. This impressive 15th century citadel was originally built by Christian knights. Today, Bodrum Castle is open to the public and houses the world renowned Museum of Underwater Archaeology founded in 1962.
A Cappadocia balloon ride is a fantastic way to explore the rolling stone and rippling of the cliffs with their green landscape that was formed by the volcanic eruptions, the vegetable plots and vineyards that are tended to by the local farmers. Many tours of Cappadocia will show you the hermit hideouts carved into the soft volcanic rock. Extra details on https://www.goodmantours.com/cappadocia.
The Basilica Cistern has been providing Istanbul residents with water since the sixth century when it was ordered built by the Roman Emperor Justinian I. A visit leaves travelers raving about the technology the ancient Romans used to build this architectural wonder that was very advanced for its day. The underground cistern, just a few steps away from the Blue Mosque, was built on the site of a basilica that was constructed in the third century. Known as the Sunken Palace, the cistern can hold up to 2.8 million cubic feet of water. The cistern is one of the locations used in From Russia with Love, a James Bond thriller filmed in 1963.