Sue joined me and the others for breakfast on the terrace this morning having recovered from the worst of her tummy upset. We checked out and went to visit another former old christian church (now a mosque) on the outskirts of Mardin before leaving the town today. Next we drove the 80 odd kilometers to a town called Batman which is renowned for it's silversmiths and silverware. We spent a short while there checking out the wares but not buying anything before heading off again, this time our destination was an old 3 or 4 storey guest house in Batman. We climbed to the top and enjoyed the view before heading off yet again in our bus to our final destination in the eastern part of the country, Diyarbakir. En route we had the pleasure of crossing the Tigris river and following the gorge it has cut through the countryside for a while. The views of the Tigris were beautiful and it's a shame to think that a lot of what we saw will be underwater when Turkey completes the Ilisu dam that is currently under construction. It has drawn international controversy because it will flood portions of the ancient city of Hasankeyf and it's associated archaeological sites. We arrived at Diyarbakir and visited the old city castle walls, climbing to the ramparts and also investigating the spaces underneath. The walls surrounding the city are believed to have been built in 349 AD during the rule of Roman Emperor Constantine. They are built from large blocks of black basalt and extend for some 5.5 kms around the city. From here we walked quite a distance to a restaurant for lunch after first visiting the great mosque, Ulu, en route. After lunch it was time to head to the airport as we were booked to fly to Istanbul this evening. A short flight to Istanbul and another minibus ride to the Golden Horn hotel in Sultanahmet saw us settle in for the evening. But first a quick meal in a nearby restaurant before hitting the sack.
No comments:
Post a Comment