Türkiye – broad history and mass tourism today

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Since the founding of the republic in 1923 as the successor state to the Ottoman Empire, Turkey has been secular and Kemalist in orientation. The country's founder, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, initiated a modernization of Turkey through social and legal reforms modelled on various European nation states.

The current President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has been at the helm of the country since 2003. Since around 2012, he has led the country in an increasingly authoritarian manner. Freedom of expression and freedom of the press in particular are considered to be severely restricted. The currency and debt crisis triggered by its economic policies as well as high inflation have continued since 2018, which makes Turkey quite attractive from a tourist perspective.

The culture of today's Turkey is a fusion of the ancient Turkish nomadic culture of Central Asia and Siberia, the Greco-Roman era, the culture in the Ottoman Empire with its Byzantine, Persian, Arabic, Caucasian, Armenian and Kurdish influences, as well as the strong European direction since the founding of the Republic Ataturk. The cultural centre of the country is the metropolis of Istanbul.

With the political changes, the content of Turkish literature also changed. Early representatives include Fakir Baykurt, Sabahattin Ali, Sait Faik Abasıyanık and Yaşar Kemal, who put ordinary people at the centre of their work. With the turn to describing living conditions, social and political criticism of the state is inevitable. The state reacts with censorship and political violence. Authors like Nâzım Hikmet, Yaşar Kemal and Aziz Nesin spend many years in Turkish prisons because of the persecution of their publications. Kemal therefore referred to the prison as a “school of Turkish literature”.

Turkish cuisine has also influenced Greek and the rest of the Balkan cuisine - including etymology. For example, tzaziki comes from the Turkish cacık, and Ćevapčići comes from kabapcik. Yogurt also comes from Turkish Yoğurt. Doner kebab is made from beef, veal or poultry. In Turkey, but also in other countries, the kebab is also served on a plate.

14,000 year old settlement discovered on the west coast

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14,000 year old settlement discovered on the west coast

During a rescue excavation by the German Archaeological Institute in the province of Izmir, layers from the post-Paleolithic period (Epipalaeolithic) were discovered for the first time in a cave between the modern locations of Dikili and Bergama (UNESCO World Heritage Site Pergamon-Bergama).

Gazipasa - Serene Paradise

Gazipasa - Serene Paradise

Turkey, an ever-shining star in the global tourism market with returning tourists and foreigners deciding to settle by buying houses, continues to attract new tourists every year.

Syedra - Ancient City on the way to Gazipasa

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Syedra Ancient City - Alanya

Syedra - The ancient city of Syedra is situated on a hill between the present day villages of Kargıcak and Seki, about 18 kilometers south-east of Alanya and 24 kilometres north-west of Selinus, today called Gazipaşa.

Alanya Beaches - simply beautiful

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Alanya Beaches

Alanya Beaches - To the East and to the West of the castle mountain of Alanya you will see the huge beaches up to 5 kilometers wide. Because of its excellent quality of the water all parts of the beaches have got blue flag. 

Red Tower of Alanya - City symbol from Sultan Keykubat

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Red Tower of Alanya

Red Tower - As the Seljuk Sultan Alaaddin Keykubat, after a five years lasting battle, conquered the city of Alanya in 1226, he started to work on plans how to protect the settlement in the future, within these ideas the Kızılkule was built.

Hamaxia - lost city high above Alanya

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Hamaxia - lost city near Alanya

Hamaxia - A few years have passed since we were last on the 400-meter-high mountain right next to the new road tunnels near Alanya to visit the Helenistic ruined city of Hamaxia, which is just over half an hour's walk and within sight of Cleopatra's beach.

Hamaxia - The ancient town high above Alanya

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The antique town Hamaxia / Alanya

Hamaxia - The ancient town, in Turkish called Sinek Kalesi, is situated about 6 km to the West of Alanya city centre. From the coast road, after the 2nd tunnel from Alanya (1st tunnel from Manavgat), turn north by a big board showing the direction to Elikesik Tesisleri and you will notice two cement factories (Atam Hazir and Alanya Hazir).

Patara - Important ancient habour town of Lycia

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Patara - Ancient habour of lycian people

Patara is situated on the Mediterranean coast of Turkey (also called The Turquoise coast or the "Lycian Coast"). A region boasting thousands of years of history, breathtaking scenery and couple of miles of unspoiled coastline. 2000 years ago Patara was the largest and the most important sea port of the Lycian civilization.

Perge - Tour with W. Dorn through the ancient city

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Perge - Tour with W. Dorn through the ancient city

Visiting Perge you can get a good impression of what a Roman towns looked like with its theatres, stadium, agora, baths, streets and town gates, as large parts of the town have been excavated and are still being restored.

Perge - History of a city - founded by colonists

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Perge - History of a city - founded by colonists

Perge - According to the Greek Writer Strabon (63 BC-19 AD) the city was founded by Greek colonists led by Mopsos and Kalchas who came to Pamphylia after the Trojan War around 1200 BC.

Adada - basilicas and imperial temples in the forgotten city

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Adada - basilicas and imperial temples in the forgotten city

Adada was an ancient Roman city in Pisidia, about 40 km southeast of Egirdir and 80 km northeast of Antalya, near the present-day village of Sagrak in the Sütçuler district of the Turkish province of Isparta, which is probably just known to hikers on St. Paul's Way.

Manavgat without a waterfall - but with a lot of water!

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Manavgat without a waterfall - but with a lot of water!

Manavgat Waterfall - We were on the way to a friend in Manavgat / Oymapinar when we noticed, while driving through the village, the high water level of the Manavgat River, because the meadows and shore fortifications left and right of the river were completely flooded.

Manavgat Waterfall - in spring time with plenty of water

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Manavgat Waterfall

Manavgat Waterfall - The various watercourses, which finally form the Manavgat River from the Taurus foothills and the two reservoirs, are fed by many further inlets and underground springs, forming an imposing waterfall before the river flows into the Mediterranean at Side.

Altinbesik Cave - up in Taurus - an Excursion

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Taurus Excursion - visit of the Altinbesik Cave

Altinbesik Cave - The short holiday visit of Brita and Peter with family appendix in Alanya brought, beside delicious Nuremberg bratwurst and various types of cheese as a souvenir, the idea of a short excursion into the Taurus Mountain, which should be started with a hearty breakfast at Ömer at the lower part of the artificial lake at the Manavgat river, the Manavgat Baraji.

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