Tarsus
Cleopatra's Gate
Tarsus the birthplace of St. Paul can
easily be reached from Mersin. There are several buses and the ride takes
only about half an hour. Tarsus is one of
the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world with history
reaching back to at least 3000 BC. Surprisingly Tarsus has managed to keep
the same name from antiquity to the present. Unfortunately, the ravages of
war and time have destroyed most vestiges of the past. Moreover, since
Tarsus was never abandoned the ancient city lies about 15-20 meters below
the modern one. The modern city is mostly a sprawl of concrete apartment
blocks.
Tarsus was
the meeting place of the legendary
lovers Mark Antony and
Cleopatra. In 41 BC Marcus Antonius, while ruling
the eastern part of the Roman empire, had residence in Tarsus and had
called Cleopatra to Tarsus in order to extract money from Egypt. Dressed
like Aphrodite, the goddess of love, she arrived at Tarsus and seduced
Marc Antony. The Roman gate that carries the official name
Cleopatra's gate, but more commonly is called "Gate of the Bitch", has
actually nothing to do with Cleopatra.
Since
Tarsus was an important trading center, it gathered a colony of Jews which grew and prospered.
At 10 AD, Saul of Tarsus, the
later Saint Paul was born here.
Saint Paul's well, of Roman construction, is said to stand on the site of
his family home. However, the Byzantines or Crusaders both of which were
very inventive in creating relics and places of pilgrimage probably named
the well. In reality there is no evidence that it had anything to do with
the Saint.
At the edge of the town, there are the
waterfalls on the Nehri river (Cydnus River) Tarsus Şelalesi,
which can be reached easily by dolmuş or taxi.
The waterfalls surrounded by tea gardens an restaurants provides a cool
and charming place for a drink or lunch.
Click on the thumbnails to get a greater picture
