Eastern Turkey

Introduction vii PART ONE GENERAL INFORMATION 1 Chapter 1 Background Information 3 Geography 3, Climate 4, Natural history and conservation 5, History 13, Government and politics 22, Economy 24, People 24, Language 29, Religion 30, Education 31, Culture 32 Chapter 2 Practical Information 40, When to visit 40, Highlights 40, Suggested itineraries 42, Tour operators 43, Tourist information 45, Red tape 45, Embassies and consulates 47, Getting there and away 48, Health 50, Safety 54, What to take 56, Money 57, Getting around 58, Accommodation 64, Eating and drinking 65, Public holidays and festivals 68, Shopping 70, Arts and entertainment 70, Photography 72, Media and communications 72, Living and working in Turkey 74, Cultural etiquette 75, Travelling positively 75 PART TWO THE GUIDE 77Chapter 3 Ankara 78 Setting and orientation 78, History 79, Climate and when to visit 80, Getting there and away 80, Getting around 83, Tourist information 83, Tour operators 84, Where to stay 84, Where to eat and drink 85, Entertainment and nightlife 88, Shopping 89, Other practicalities 89, What to see and do 90 Chapter 4 Central Anatolia and the Hittite Heartlands 103 Getting there and away 103, Bogazkale and around 105, Amasya 112, Tokat and around 117, Sivas 121 Chapter 5 Central Eastern Turkey and the Euphrates Headwaters 125 Getting there and around 125, Where to stay and eat 125, Erzincan 127, The Euphrates gorges and Divrigi 128, Elazig and around 132, Routes from Elazig 134, Malatya and around 138, On the way to Cappadocia 141 Chapter 6 Cappadocia 143 When to visit 143, History 143, Getting there and away 146, Getting around 146, Tour operators 147, Where to stay and eat 147, Kayseri 148, Urgup 151, Ortahisar 153, Uchisar 154, Goreme 155, Cavusin 160, Zelve Valley 160, Sarihan Caravanserai 161, Avanos and around 161, Mustafapasa 162, Soganli Valley 162, Derinkuyu Underground City 164, Kaymakli Underground City 165, Nevsehir 166, Hacibektas monastery 166, Ihlara Gorge 167, Guzelyurt and around 171, Sultanhani Caravanserai 172 Chapter 7 Konya and South to the Coast 173 Konya and around 175, South to the coast at Silifke 184, Silifke and around 188, East to Mersin (Icel) 191, Mersin (Icel) 192, South to the coast at Tarsus 193, Tarsus 195 Chapter 8 Southeastern Turkey, the Tur Abdin and the Kurdish Heartlands 197 Adana 197, From Adana to Antakya 201, South to Antakya 202, Antakya 204, South to Antakya 211, Gaziantep and around 214, Towards Sanliurfa (Urfa) 225, The route to Kahramanmaras 227, Nemrut Dagi 229, Sanliurfa (Urfa) 238, Harran (Altinbasak) and around 247, Diyarbakir and around 252, Routes to Lake Van 267, Mardin 267, The Tur Abdin 274, Mardin to Midyat 281, Midyat and around 282, Hasankeyf 288, From Batman to Siirt 291, From Batman to Bitlis 292, Bitlis 293, Bitlis to Lake Van 294 Chapter 9 Lake Van Region 295 History 295, Wildlife 296, Getting there and away 297, Overview of practicalities 297, Tatvan 299, Nemrut Dagi Crater 299, Ahlat 300, Adilcevaz and around 302, Remote monasteries south of Lake Van 305, Akdamar Island 306, Van and around 311, Towards Hakkari 324, Cavustepe 324, Hosap 325, Hakkari and around 327 Chapter 10 Mount Ararat Region 330 From Van to Mount Ararat (Dogubeyazit) 330, Dogubeyazit and around 332, The ascent of Ararat 340 Chapter 11 Northeastern Turkey and the Georgian Heartlands 349 From Dogubeyazit to Kars 349, Kars 352, Ani 355, North via Lake Cildir to Ardahan 360, The Georgian valleys 362, Yusufeli and around 367, Back on the road to Artvin 369, To the Black Sea 373, From Kars to Erzurum 374, Erzurum 375, From Erzurum to the Black Sea 380 Chapter 12 The Black Sea Coast 381 History 383, Getting there and away 383, Getting around 383, Where to stay 384, Where to eat and drink 384, Hopa 384, West from Hopa 385, Camlihemsin and Ayder 386, Rize 388, Between Rize and Trabzon 389, Trabzon and around 390, Trabzon to Erzurum: the Zigana Pass 402, From Trabzon to Samsun 404, West to Sinop 409, Kastamonu and around 410, Amasra 411, Safranbolu 412 Appendix 1 Language 416 Appendix 2 Glossary 419 Appendix 3 Further Information 423 Index