Turkey
Turkey spans two continents: a small part lies in Europe, while most of the country stretches across Anatolia in Asia. It is washed by the Black Sea, the Sea of Marmara, the Aegean and the Mediterranean, and its Aegean and Mediterranean coastlines run for hundreds of kilometres. Istanbul sits on both shores of the Bosphorus, the strait between Europe and Asia, and few cities wear their layers of history so openly; its historic quarters are on the UNESCO World Heritage list. In Sultanahmet, Hagia Sophia, built as a Byzantine cathedral, raises its vast dome opposite the Blue Mosque with its six minarets and walls of blue tiles, and next door lies Topkapı Palace, with its courtyards, pavilions and views over the water. The Grand Bazaar is a covered maze of lanes selling carpets, lamps, jewellery and spices, while across the Golden Horn the Galata Tower rises above the steep streets of Galata and Karaköy, surrounded by galleries, cafés and rooftop restaurants. The city is best seen from the water: ferries and boats run up the Bosphorus past palaces, old wooden waterfront mansions and former fishing villages such as Bebek and Ortaköy, and in an hour or so a ferry reaches the Princes’ Islands in the Sea of Marmara, with pine woods, wooden villas and streets almost free of cars.
In the heart of Anatolia, Cappadocia looks like another planet: wind and water have carved the soft volcanic tuff into cones and pillars known as fairy chimneys, and valleys wind between them — Rose Valley, Pigeon Valley, Love Valley — perfect for evening walks. Since ancient times people have hollowed homes, churches and storerooms out of this rock, and today many of them are cave hotels with stone terraces above the valleys. The Göreme Open-Air Museum, part of a UNESCO World Heritage site, gathers rock-cut churches and chapels painted with Byzantine frescoes, and nearby lie underground cities several levels deep. The region’s signature moment comes at dawn, when dozens of hot-air balloons rise over the valleys in the first light; a flight, or even watching from a terrace, is unforgettable. On the Aegean coast the mood changes completely. The Bodrum peninsula is a string of bays and villages with whitewashed houses, yacht-filled marinas and the Castle of St Peter guarding the harbour, built partly from the stones of the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world. Further south, the quiet Datça peninsula reaches out between two seas towards the ruins of ancient Knidos, and north of Bodrum lies Ephesus, one of the best-preserved ancient cities in the Mediterranean, with marble streets and a great theatre.
Around Fethiye the coast turns green and mountainous: the turquoise lagoon at Ölüdeniz is sheltered by a long sandy spit, paragliders drift down to the beach from the slopes above, and boats head out to nearby coves and islands. This is also where the Lycian Way begins, a long-distance trail that follows the coast past ancient tombs and mountain villages towards Antalya. The Antalya coast, known as the Turkish Riviera, means long beaches and warm sea: Lara and Belek, famous for its golf courses, lie east of the city; in Side ancient temples stand right by the water, with the great ancient theatre of Aspendos a short way inland; and Kemer sits at the foot of the pine-covered Taurus Mountains. Antalya’s old town, Kaleiçi, is a tangle of lanes and historic houses around an ancient harbour. Turkish cuisine alone is worth the journey: meze, kebabs, grilled fish, baklava, tea in tulip-shaped glasses and thick Turkish coffee, followed by an unhurried hammam. Summers on the coast are hot and dry, and the sea is usually warm enough for swimming from around late May to October; Istanbul and Cappadocia are loveliest in spring and autumn, while winters in Cappadocia are cold and often snowy. Turkey suits city and culture lovers, beach and family holidays, couples, food lovers, golfers and sailors.
