Weekend in Antalya

Last weekend was a long weekend in Turkey for the Youth and Sports Day Holiday.  On Saturday morning, I flew to Antalya, Turkey for a long weekend.  I had flown into Antalya once before, when I went on the blue cruise in October.  I didn't do any exploring since we had to get on a bus right away to Olympos.  Antalya is a premiere tourist area in Turkey and I really enjoyed my time there.  I arrived and checked in to a nice hotel near Lara beach.  By 11:30 a.m., I was lounging on a private beach.  The water was a stunning shade of blue.  It was perfect beach weather, very hot and sunny.  When you started to get too hot, you could jump right into the sea to cool off.  It was an incredibly relaxing and enjoyable Saturday!

Beautiful blue seas and rocky coastline

The next morning, I went on a tour of the Antalya old city and archaeological museum.  It turned out I was the only one on the tour, and I enjoyed a nice few hours getting a private tour with Nasli, a very nice Turkish woman.  Antalya was an important port city during the Roman empire, and later during the Ottoman empire.  The old city has been very well preserved.  The streets are filled with old Ottoman houses that have been made into hotels, restaurants, or shops.  The first stop was at an Ottoman bell tower.

Ottoman bell tower

Next we walked down to the historic marina.  From here it is possible to arrange for a boat ride along the coastline in Antalya.  Many of the boats are made to look like pirate ships.  There are also fish restaurants and shops down by the marina.

Lots of theme ships in the marina.

From there, we continued on and saw more views of the beautiful Antalya coastline, as well as an old Ottoman fortress.

One really interesting part of the Old City tour was a ruins spot.  It is called the Broken Minnaret.  The ruins at one point were a Roman temple, then a Christian church, and finally a mosque.  It always astounds me how long and how many thriving civilizations have lived here in Turkey over the past few thousand(s) of years.

Roman temple/church/mosque

Broken Minnaret

We continued on to the main Roman entrance into the Old City.  The three arches are a beautiful example of Roman architecture.

A street scene in Antalya old city

Posing in front of the arches

Next we took the tram to the archaeological museum in Antalya.  Before going to the museum, I got to see beautiful views of Konyaalti beach, a famous beach in Turkey.  On my next trip to Antalya, I hope to stay in the Old City and take the tram to this beach!

Konyaalti beach

 The archaeological museum has been ranked one of the best museums in Europe.  There are many rooms filled with Roman sculptures, sarcophogi, and other artifacts.  From Antalya, it is possible to take day trips to many famous Roman ruins sites.

On Monday, I went back to the beach and relaxed before flying back to Adana.  It is only an hour flight between the two cities.  I would definitely recommend Antalya as a travel destination if you are living in Europe or travelling in Turkey.  It is a wonderful mix of beach, relaxation, history, and sightseeing.  I can't wait to go back next school year to do some of the day trips and spend more time in the Old City.