Antakya - Hatay - Page II

Sermaye Cami Ornate Minaret

Antakya is a charming city divided in two by the river Orontes or Asi as it is called today. On the west bank lies the modern city with its wide boulevards and on the eastern bank is the narrow noisy Arabic old town.

Around Antakya are also some places of particular historical interest. One of these is Aya Simeon Manastırı or St. Simeon's Monastery. In 521 AD at the age of seven Simeon Stylites the Younger, a native from Antioch, decided to follow the example of his name holder Simeon the Older who devoted his life sitting atop an increasingly higher pillar. Young Simeon kept up living on his pillar and the monastery became a pilgrimage site.  According to some source he spent a total of 68 years living up pillars.

At Çevlik, 35 km from Antakya and close to the sea there are the ruins of Seleuceia ad Pieria, the ancient port of Antioch. There is also the Titüs ve Vespasianüs Tüneli (Titus and Vespasian Tunnel). A masterpiece of Roman engineering. The walk to the tunnel, through a gorge and over the rocks appeared a bit too difficult for us though. However, we did find an early Christian rock-hewn monastery.

The mixture of Turkish, Arabic and French flavours have resulted in the high quality cuisine for which Antakya is known. Hummus is served here, while this is rarely found in the rest of Turkey. We had a very tasteful dinner in Antakya Evi (Silhali Kuvvetler Caddesi)  where the speciality Antioch Kebap is highly recommended. Also the humus is very tasteful and you can drink alcohol. The outside of the restaurant looks a bit worn out, but inside it is a clean and pleasant place where you sit in elegant rooms to enjoy your meals and raki. Apparently Antakya Evi is closed on Sundays, at least it was when we returned. The other restaurant we tried was Antik Han at  Hürriyet Caddesi 19/1. Although looking small downstairs, surprisingly  upstairs it is a rather large place with several rooms that can accommodate lots of clients. The hummus also tasted splendid here.

We spent two nights in Hotel Onur (36 rooms with TV and air conditioning, single about 18 EURO, e-mail: onurhotel@hotmail.com, Tel. +90-326 216 22 14). It is a clean place with a very friendly and helpful staff. They do ask to pay each night in advance.

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