This morning we had a delicious
breakfast in an idyllic location – on the balcony of our hotel overlooking the Mediterranean. We then boarded our bus for the
two-hour journey, along the stunning Mediterranean coastline, to Myra and the Church
of St Nicholas, an early Christian bishop (believed to have lived 270 -343CE) who
became famous for his support of the poor and was the inspiration for Santa
Claus (although the jolly, plump, white-bearded fellow with the red suit who we
now associate with Christmas is an invention of Coca-Cola in the early 20th
century). The church was first built in
520CE and, although it has been renovated a few times, it still contains some of
the original frescoes.
Next stop was the nearby rock
tombs and theatre, dating back to the 4th century BCE, overlooked by
the remains of the citadel perched high on the hill overlooking the town. While there we stopped for a delicious lunch
of pancakes filled with cheese and parsley, then continued on through the
mountains and along the winding road clinging to the hillside above the
sparkling Mediterranean, passing thousands upon thousands of greenhouses that, during
the colder months, produce much of Turkey’s tomato crop for domestic consumption
and export, to complement those grown in the open during the summer months, in all some seven million tonnes a year!
We finally reach Antalya, an
ancient city that now boasts a population of four million people, and our hotel
overlooking the sea.
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