Karatepe, St Paul's Ghost & Across the Taurus
Trip Start
May 26, 2011
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Trip End
Jun 26, 2011
Tarsus, Turkish Mediterranean Coast, Turkey
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Crossing the river via Kennedy Bridge we got a quick sighting of Taskopru (a Roman era stone bridge built by Hadrian, early C2). Nearby, the six minarets of Sabanci Merkez Camii, the largest mosque between Istanbul & Saudi Arabia, bulit by one of Turkey's richest industrialists.
It would have been nice to spend a while absorbing the energy of this town but, unfortunately, we had no time to dally in Adana;. we had a full morning's agenda to complete before we headed up into the mountains.
100 km E to the neo-Hittite site of Karatepe, crossing the river Ceyhan, thru fields of glowing sunflowers and then up into olive & conifer foothills. Here we found the delightful Karatepe - Aslantas open air Museum in a national park.. Great pine forest setting, on a hilltop by a lake. The site dates from C8 BC when the Hittites left Central Anatolia under pressure from Iron Age people (theirs was only a Bronze culture). This was a summer retreat for the Hittite kings. We entered by one lion gate & exited by another. Wonderful relief carvings, made even more powerful by the setting. They spoke to us clearly across 3 millenia - musicians & warriors, sacrificial bull, a boat with oarsmen, a mother suckling a child beneath a tree, the Sun God looking reminiscent of scary dreams. The small museum held other treasures - a tree of life relief & a goddess admiring herself in a mirror. Great start to our last day together...
Some back-tracking necessary as we sped 150 km west on modern freeways, beyond Adana to Tarsus, hometown of St Paul. Here we visited St Paul's Well (reputed to be his birthplace) and then wandered the old quarter taking photos under a scorching sun (great old stone & timber houses). Statue of a fierce Turkic warrior in full battledress + mace on chain at a roundabout. Brief stop at Cleopatra's Gate, the Roman Kancik Kapisi (="Gate of the Bitch"; the gate has little to do with Cleo except that she is thought to have met Mark Antony here in 41 BC).
Now it was time for some serious mountain driving. We headed due north into the majestic Taurus Mountains. Broom flowering a brilliant yellow; steep rockfaces; conifers clinging to the mountainsides; fast flowing rock strewn streams.
Stopped at the alpine village of Pozanti lunching at an excellent diner (good simple tucker, friendly staff, very proud of their pristine mountain water). More, even higher, mountains ahead ( snow remnants). We followed a cascade upstream. Tunnel after tunnel. Impressive engineering.
Finally we reached the plateau; a vast flatland with snow capped peaks in the distance. Wildflowers = red poppies, splashes of yellow & purple. Mt Erciyes (4150m) rising in the distance with a decent covering of snow on top. Murat said of this mountain:"often she hides her face". But not today. We skirted the mountain and found that it would be with us all the way to Kayseri. We saw her from three sides.
Goodbyes were being exchanged as we motored across the plateau. I was leaving the group in Kayseri; most were flying to Istanbul; some off on other adventures....
Murat had plenty of time up his sleeve, so he dropped me right at my hotel, the Bent, on Ataturk Blvd.
