Discovering the Turkish Riviera - Five on Friday

It seems that I have have been away too long from my beloved blog.   My family and I were in Turkey for three weeks.  It was my second visit to that wonderful country and this time we discovered a new area.

So, there are a couple of items on today's agenda.  First, I'm linking up with Amy at Love Made my Home for Five on Friday.   If you have the time, please drop over to this great link party.  And, I'm going to share some pictures of my visit to Alanya, Turkey.

We flew nonstop from LAX to Istanbul and then took a flight to Alanya.  It's a beautiful city situated on the southern coast of Turkey.  Here's a view of my son's home up on the mountain overlooking the sea....

They say that Alanya can get quite warm but it was much cooler up high....

 Our first sightseeing adventure was to see Alanya Castle. It sits high upon a peak overlooking the Mediterranean on three sides.  It was built in the 13th century.....

The view from the top was amazing.....

Here is a door in one of the castle walls...

If only the ruins would "talk".....such fascinating history

The castle was built over Roman and Byzantine fortifications.  Seeing this ruin of an Byzantine Orthodox church was amazingly heartwarming to me, being an Orthodox Christian.  I was surprised to see the dome is still intact.....

Here is a photo of the sign telling about the church.....

Another day we ventured to the east of the city into the mountains.  After a short drive, we arrived at Dim River  (Dim Çayı).  The scenery was breathtaking.  Being from Washington state, it reminded me of the beautiful Cascade Mountains....

Dim River is a very popular area for the local people.  There were numerous "pik nik" areas with restaurants and water parks.  We chose one and had a lovely Turkish lunch, including this amazing bread hot out of the oven....

I loved this display of Turkish pots outside the pik nik area....

And, they also offered traditional seating for those who wanted to relax and take in the amazing view...

The downtown city of Alanya is a tourist town.  They have lovely beaches but tons of stores selling knock off items that really didn't interest me.  But, I found a beautiful little garden area next to the beach club we went to.  I thought this trompe l'oeil was quite lovely....

Here's a very poor photo of one of the beach clubs.  The one we went to was free (including umbrella and lounge chairs) as long as we ate or drank.  It was very inexpensive and the beach/water is very nice....

We had never had a proper "Turkish Breakfast" before so this trip we went to the Tepe Mountain Restaurant.  It sits high up on the mountain and has a lovely view of the sea. The breakfast consisted of homemade breads, hot from the oven, numerous kinds of cheese, olives, pickles, potatoes, omelet, homemade preserves, candied figs and quince and much more....

We saw numerous goat herds during our stay in our home.  This beautiful creature was grazing on the side on the road on our way to the breakfast....

Alanya and the surrounding area is a beautiful place.  For years my family has gone to Egypt for vacations.  But unfortunately, it has gotten harder each time to visit due to many factors.  For us, Turkey has become our new family destination.  There is a significant foreign population in Alanya.  Home buying for foreigners is quite easy; hence the purchase of my son's home in the mountains.  The beaches are beautiful.  The downside is that parts of the city are too commercial but you can find many non tourist areas and attractions that are great.

Here are Five Facts that you may enjoy:

1.  Alanya is surrounded by the Taurus Mountains

2.  The city has a population of around 100,000+

3.  Over 30,000 homes in Alanya are owned by foreigners (Russians, Scandinavians and Germans make up the majority of foreign owners)

4.   The currency in Turkey is the Turkish Lira.  At the time of my visit is was approximately 2.67 TL to $

5.   Modern Turkey was founded by Mustafa Kemal in 1923.  He was later given the title of "Ataturk" meaning Father of the Turks.  His photo is still prominently displayed today. 

I hope you have enjoyed this little glimpse into  travel and history.  At a later time, I will share one more episode of my Turkey trip.  My best to each of you and I would love to hear from you if you have a chance to comment.  Enjoy your weekend!

Pat 

Note:  I wasn't sure if I should share this but I will.  As I mentioned, the shops on Ataturk Blvd. in downtown Alanya are numerous.  They are selling knock off brands of all types of clothing, shoes, handbags, etc.  They usually have a little section of Turkish souvenir goods but the selection is very poor compared to the bazaars in Istanbul.  As soon as they see you, you are aksed "where are you from".  It becomes very annoying.  Needless to say, we were in one of the shops (they all look the same) and the shop keeper was pestering us to buy and of course asked us where were we from.  When we answered, California (America), his demeanor changed completely.  He started on a triad saying how America is trying to dominate the whole word, his father who worked on F-16 planes, told him all this, and on and on.  We were a bit shocked to say the least.  We didn't reply and at that point he told us to get out of his store as he didn't want any "dirty American money" and any (I won't say the word) loving people.  

If I wasn't in a foreign country, I would have spoken up.  First,  just because I'm an American doesn't mean I always agree with my country's politics.  Secondly, if he hates American money, so to speak, why is he selling knock off brands of AMERICAN designers?  Why is his shop full of Michael Kors, Nike, and Disney designs to name a few?   It really doesn't make any sense to me.

After googling this episode, I found that one of the shops actually had a sign outside stating that there was a group of people who are not welcome in their shop.  I find this appalling.  I later spoke to numerous Turkish people who said that we should have called the police and that this is not the norm.  It was the only incident we encountered during our stay in Turkey.  All the other people we met were very kind and welcoming to us.  

Linking With:

The Art of Home Making Mondays....

Create with Joy....

Bella Rose Antiques....

Oh My Heartsie Girl.....