Day 219: Alanya - Side - Taşucu

Nov 8 - Our bus to the next city leaves town at only 14:30, so I decide that is enough time to see Side. It is about 1.5 hours west, back toward Antalya. I do this one by myself, since the only way to assure that it gets done is to leave the hotel at 7:00 and move fast.

Catch an 8:00 bus to Manavgat. The bus leaves late because someone on board has some issue with where their seat is, or maybe that two people have the same assigned seat. I’m not sure, except to say that it entails about ten minutes of argument. Interestingly, during the whole thing there is almost a constant effort on the part of several people to keep the intensity of the arguing down. A lot of shushing and pleas to keep it calm. Finally it gets resolved somehow and we set off.

In Manavgat, the driver announces we are there, but just on the side of the road. That is a real bummer for me, since I am only using this town to get to another. Do the long walk to the nearest shelter where taxis are supposed to collect, but there are none. Carry on to the nearest otogar, where I grab the first taxi I see and take it to Side (about ten minutes away).

Side turns out to be a sort of gated town. Taxis, or any vehicle for that matter, are not allowed to go in unless they are going to a specific hotel. I am dropped off there and go find the little choo-choo that transports people in and out. Ten more minutes and I am in the town center.

This gated part of Side is all hotels and tourist shops/restaurants. It is peaceful enough to stroll around in.

The modern town of Side is all constructed over the ancient city. It appears that all new construction must first uncover and record the old building foundations. In some areas, as on the left of the above photo, glass flooring allows people to see down to the old foundations.

This is the iconic photo of Side, showing the columns of what used to be the Temple of Apollo. It has the best real estate of the city, facing the ocean at the very end of the peninsula.

The oldest archaeological evidence dates habitation on this peninsula to the 7th century BCE. The town was eventually taken over by the Persians. Alexander the Great marched in unopposed and left a small garrison, and it is these soldiers that brought Hellenization to the area. The city was part of first the Ptolemaic then the Seleucid Empires, then freed of the latter when a Greek force, backed by Rome, invaded it in 190 BCE.

This didn’t really bring the city within the control of the Romans, however, since it was east of a treaty line established with the weakening Seleucid Empire. It became a haven for pirates, until Rome came again for real and brought it fully within their control in 67 BCE.

From that point on, it followed the history of Perge, growing quickly and adding most of the buildings now being excavated by archaeologists. It stayed prosperous until about the 4th century CE, then went into decline due to raids from groups in the Tarsus Mountains. It never really regained a permanent population again, until the 19th century, when it was settled by Turks expelled from Crete.

No beaches here, but some of the ruins provide quiet seaside walks.

One spot in the middle of town has extensive mosaic floors preserved, both in rooms and on a street (top of photo). The room shown must have been for storing wine or water, due to the traces of large encased amphoras.

The front outside of the amphitheatre.

The amphitheatre is decently preserved, and thought to date from the 2nd century CE. In about the 5th century, it appears to have been partially modified to be used as an open-air church.

Part of the back wall of the amphitheatre. This portion of the wall looks to be much later. Note the use of older Roman columns and marble blocks as part of the construction.

Part of the outer wall of the Agora, built in the 2nd century CE. It may be part of the Neokoros, or city of the Imperial Cult, where statues of past emperors were brought and displayed.

A section of the aqueduct, all constructed with the conglomeritic blocks I see so much of here, but are rare in other Roman ruins I’ve looked at.

The Nymphaeum, at the very northern edge of the Roman city. This monument used to have a series of pools, fed by fountains in the walls. According to inscriptions found here, a festival called Epibaterios (start of the commercial sailing season) was held in Side. A procession started at these pools and moved through t

From here, have to make a quick exit by taxi. The driver, unlike most I’ve seen in Türkiye, speaks English and wants to talk. “My president is hungry,” he rants “he never stops eating our country!” What follows is an extended diatribe on how much Erdoğan lies about what he will do for the country, and how the ‘simple people’ of the villages believe it all and will vote for him again (he faces re-election in 2023). I let him go on but don’t have anything to contribute. I also don’t like him much, mostly because it is clear he isn’t interested having any more real elections. As far as I can tell, he is following the lead of Putin in that respect. I only note this conversation because it is the first I’ve had with a Turkish citizen that speaks negatively of Erdoğan.

Back in Alanya at 12:15, we are already checked out of the hotel so off to eat lunch. The bus is supposed to leave at 14:30 but delayed until 15:00. The route takes us near the coast, but on the side of the mountain range. Several hours of this trip is nothing but curves, which are easier in the day but soon it gets dark. I feel awful so try to sleep through the worst of it. At one point, we stop at a town with a large store selling nothing but bananas. The bus attendant announces the stop and almost everyone piles out to buy bags of them. I have never seen people get so excited about bananas.

Today’s route: (A) Alanya, (B) Taşucu.

Arrive Taşucu about 20:30, and walk it down the dark streets to our hotel. Even at night, it looks like this town has sprung up from nothing, to support the beach-going tourist industry. What a relief to finally lie in bed. I spent over eight hours on public transit today.

Türkiye III