Antalya
Sahil Kasabası (Beach Town)
We arrive in Antalya, right on the shores of the Mediterranean, after a bus ride of about 125 miles through the Taurus Mountains.
We check-in at a great hotel in Antalya. The Ninova Pension hotel. We be here for two wonderful nights.
Day 9. An entire day on our own! If you prefer, you can also enjoy some side trips with the group and our fearless leader, Yaren.
Day 10. Leaving Antalya and heading to another other-worldly place in Turkey - that is Pamukkale.
Kasabada gece (Night on the Town)
Day 8 - continued. Yaren gives us a brief introduction to Antalya, and then sets us free to enjoy!
Orientation Tour
Yaren provides a quick tour of the neighborhood around the hotel. She makes sure everyone knows how to get back to the hotel and how to get to and from the beach. As always, Yaren provides her contact information, room number, and business cards of the hotel so that no one is every truly lost. Everything was very walkable from our hotel, and if you were exploring outside of the city center, the trams were located right across the street.
Dinner on our own
There are a million choices of where to eat in Antalya. Antalya is located right on the shores of the Mediterranean, so it is a tourist town for sure. People everywhere. Music everywhere. Parties everywhere. Once again, another stop on our Turkey tour that is completely different from anywhere else we've been. In keeping with the beach theme, tonight it is seafood pizza and people watching. This seafood pizza was purchased at the Gazetta Brasserie restaurant.
Glass floor to ancient ruins
Our restaurant has a nice glass floor to show some of the ruins located under the restaurant. Only in Turkey!
Free Day in Antalya - Tatil Günü (Vacation Day)
Day 9 - "A vacation from your vacation", one of Rick Steves Tours most popular features. A free day in Antalya sent us to the beach, a sunset boat ride on the Mediterranean and a visit to the Archeology Museum.
Beach Time!
A nice beach with easily accessible water that was warm and mild temperatures in the air.
Beach Passes - Check
Beach pass for access to the beach.
Antalya Archeology Museum
This museum has everything related to excavations and archeology. One of the nicest archaeology museums in the world. Have that museum pass ready!
Tram Tickets to Museum - Check
Ready to ride to the Antalya Archeology Museum.
Tram ride to the museum
Crowded tram, but not too packed, and it gets you where you want to go.
Ready to go on a sunset cruise
Kind of a funny picture because I am the first one on board for the cruise. About 45 minutes later the boat will be stuffed full of locals and tourists, all singing and dancing to modern Turkish music while heading out onto the sea for a nice sunset.
Sunset on the Mediterranean
Sunset from the Boat. Great views everywhere as the sun set over the Mediterranean Sea. Celebrating a perfect end to a fantastic "vacation from a vacation".
Dinner after the boat ride to wrap up a great day.
Doner and fries served fast, fresh and hot at Berlin Döner.
Half way through dinner
So hungry, I forgot to take a picture until I was almost finished with dinner.
Dinner is over - time for one last picture of the day
Next to the "B" sign, wrapping up the "vacation from a vacation".
Veda etmek zor (Hard to Say Good-Bye)
Day 10 - Sadly, we must depart the city of Antalya and head out to Pamukkale. We still have one more stop to make before departing and Aphrodisias is on the way!
On the road again
Our group is back on the road again. This time we're heading to a local farmer's market. YAY!
Flea Market Protocol
The group receives the protocol for shopping at the flea market (or farmer's market, whichever you prefer) and off we go!
Farmer's Market - Flea Market
Located in Çavdır, we are now about an hour and a half outside of Antalya as we head to Pamukkale. This market was a great stop on the journey. It was really what we would call a flea market in the US. There was a section that was a farmer's market within the flea market, but this market had everything. Including the famous "baggy pants" that several group members flocked to and found exactly the pants they wanted. Once Rick Steves purchased a pair of these pants at this flea market and found out later that they were intended for women -- oops!
Baggy Pants Anonymous
And here is proof. A picture of Yaren assisting some of our group members with a baggy pants purchase.
Lunch with the group
Lunch here was included with the tour! Order as much as you want and enjoy the scenic landscape as well. The stuffed mushrooms were great, and it was nice to leave the cash in the pocket and have a lunch paid by the tour for the whole group! This lunch was at the Anotolia Restaurant.
A nice outdoor setting for the group
A great outdoor seating area makes lunch even more enjoyable for the whole group.
Aphrodisias
One of the most spectacular stops on the entire tour. Our last stop before heading into Pamukkale. Here the group poses for a picture in front of the temple of Aphrodisias.
Hercules
Here I am trying to knock down the temple.
Success - Hercules Triumphant!
Standing in the rubble of the temple that I knocked down.
Road Block
A little bit of a road block, a whole herd right in front of the bus.
Gallery of Pictures #1
Click on any picture in the gallery to scroll through all of the pictures shown in gallery #1. To return here from the gallery, click ESC on your keyboard or X (found in the upper right corner when scrolling). If you accidentally click the browser back button, you will be returned to the scrapbook home page.
Some of my favorite pictures from Antalya divided into two galleries, scroll down to see the second gallery of pictures...