Turkey  Map

 

 

       Middle East Map

latest picture: June 3, 2013

• click a picture to see details

001  Right after Esendere – the Turkish

border post to Iranian Sero – we meet a flock

of sheep. Being now in Turkish Kurdistan, a

political sensitive area, Liliana decides still to

wear the head scarf that is mandatory in Iran

002  A little creek meanders through

lush green meadows; snow covered

mountains greet from the distance. This

is the refreshing picture we see on our

way from Esendere to Yüksekova

003  A Kurdish village: All the houses

are built in a uniform way. They look

clean, spacious and comfortable

004  Long-stemmed yellow flowers cover

wide areas. With their golden yellow color

they conjure sunshine also in cloudy weather

005  The road to Hakkari is clear of

snow. But on the avalanche barrier

there are still remnants of snow

006  Hakkari is situated on a hillside on

about 5’700 ft., surrounded by impressive

mountain scenery. In 2011 24 Turkish

soldiers were massacred in this city.

Still today it teems with military vehicles

007  Deep gorges and high mountain

peaks – the scenery around Hakkari

is impressive. We stop along the road

to take pictures

008  The road from Hakkari to Sirnak

meanders spectacularly through a narrow

gorge. It follows the border to Iraqi

Kurdistan and is still regarded militarily as a

very sensitive area with the corresponding

checks and restrictions (photographing)

009  The houses of the Kurds are

built with corrugated iron roofs.

They glisten already from far

010  We drive past a rural Kurdish

scene with scattered houses towards Başkale

and Van through Southeast Anatolia. This

region is not yet “overrun“ by tourism

011  Roaming nomads set up their tents

on a river shore between Başkale and

the 8’957 ft. high Güzeldere mountain

pass. The partially annoying military checks

along the roads stop after Başkale

012  Shortly after the melting of

snow, there are enough rich green

pastures for sheep

013  Winter has not yet retreated in the

over 12’000 ft. high Koçkıran mountains. But

in the valley flowers are already blooming.

Liliana cannot resist taking a picture in the cold

014  At a lower altitude a golden

glowing floral splendor covers an

entire hill – a feast for the eye

015  The Hoşap Castle in Güzelsu,

built 1643, on the way to the town of

Van on lake Van, 36 miles away

016  New snow has fallen during the

night at higher elevations. The virgin

white of the Erek mountain range

sparkles wonderfully against the dark sky

017  Peace lies over Lake Van at sunset.

It has a size of 1’450 sq.mi. and is located

at an altitude of 5’640 ft.

018  Framed by snowcapped mountains

and blooming flower carpets, Lake Van

shimmers in the morning sun. Opposite

on the northwest shore Mount Süphan

(Mt. Sipan), a dead volcano with an

altitude of 13’314 ft., is greeting

019  The about 0,6 miles long walls of the

Van Fortress lie about 2½ miles west of the

city center of Van. At one time or another

they were under control of Armenians,

Romans, Medes, Achaemenid and Sassanid

(all 3 = old-Persians), Arabs, Seljuks,

Ottomans and Russians

020  We make a short stop along the

way to the Tendürek pass for taking a

picture of the peaceful village of Çolpan

021  Matching wonderfully: The

Kurdish village of Soğuksu and the

dormant (since 1855) snow-covered

volcano Tendürek (11'759 ft.)

Spring has exploded – in yellow, white, red, blue and pink. The colors and beauty of the flowers are overwhelming

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Our LandCruiser waits patiently on the side of the road while we enjoy yellow “unknowns”, red poppies und blue forget-me-not

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028  On the way to the 8’675 ft. high

Tendürek pass: As far as the eye can see,

there is nature and solitude. However on the

road there is less loneliness. Here 15 Italian

mobile homes are crossing us in a convoy

029  Liliana climbs to the snow wall to

touch snow. The expression on her face

shows how she feels; it is the first snow

since April 3rd, 2008, at the Franz Josef

Glacier New Zealand (picture No. 120)

030  The neat village with the

mountain backdrop and rural charm

– shortly before the Anatolian plains

around Doğubayazıt that are

at a height of 5’330 ft.

031  A woman is spring-cleaning her carpet

032  The blue of the tarps that cover

different things is the dominating color

in this mountain village of Somkaya,

located about 4 miles on the north

side of the Tendürek pass on an

altitude of about 7'700 ft.

033  Mothers gather in front of a

modest dwelling with their small children

034  The İshak Paşa Palace – built 1685 –

sits high on a rocky hill surveying the border

town of Doğubayazıt with the main border

crossing Turkey-Iran

035  Camouflaged between natural

rocks: Parts of the old Bayezıd Mosque

and the Doğubayazıt Fortress close to

the İshak Paşa Palace

036  The Ahmed-İ Hânî shrine close

to İshak Paşa Palace – a bit further

than the old Bayezıd Mosque

037  Evening light over the İshak Paşa Palace.

It sits in a magic setting 4 miles uphill of

Doğubayazıt. Across (behind the clouds) is

the 16’854 ft. high Mount Ararat and below

are the Anatolian plain and Doğubayazıt (left)

038  The second courtyard of the

palace contains the richly decorated

tomb of Çolak Abdi Paşa, who

built the complex

039  Morning light over İshak Paşa

Palace. It is a blend of Seljuk, Ottoman,

Georgian, Persian and Armenian

architecture. Construction began 1685

and was completed in 1784

Springtime is in full bloom: The immense carpet of bright red poppies short of Iğdır is a breathtaking sight

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043  Scattered white tents of nomads add

more spots of color to the plain before Iğdır

044  The dazzling white of this new

mosque close to the airport of Kars

stands out in its green environment

045  Rural at its best: dwellings with

grass covered roofs east of Kars in the

village of Ocaklı near the ruins of Ani,

the former Armenian capital

046  In Ocaklı Köyü, 28 miles east of

Kars, high city walls shield the entrance to

the ruins of Ani, the former Armenian capital

that lies on Turkish soil since 1920

047  Ani`s "Arslan Kapısı“ is the

entrance to the ghost city that was once

the stately Armenian capital and home

to 100`000 people. In power and

glory it rivaled Constantinople

048  The conical roof rising from

the undulating grass belongs to the church

of “Saint Gregory of the Abughamrentz“

(Abughamir) family and dates from 994

049  Not much remains of the church

of “Saint Gregory of King Gagik I” dating

from the year 998. The Turks destroyed

1921 nearly everything in Ani

050  The east side of the South Narthex

of the „Church of the Holy Apostles“

(Surp Arak'elots), which dates from 1031.

Starting from 1064 it was used also as a

caranvanserei

051  From the windswept plateau of Ani,

Emil is overlooking the gorge of the

Arpa Çayi River and the church “Kız

Kalesi” (Turkish), also called “Kusanats”

(Armenian) or “Maiden’s Castle”

At the 350 ft. high "İç Kale" hill - the Ani Citadel - the highest point, we pause and enjoy the eerie silence and the nature surrounding us

052  Orphean Warbler (Sylvia hortensis),

a migrant – in winter in sub-Saharan Africa

053  Swallowtail butterfly

(Papilio machaon)

054  Black-headed Bunting

(Emberiza melanocephala) also a

migrant – but in winter in India

055  To the ruins of Ani`s old stone

buildings belong also a mosque (Mosque

of Minuchhihr “Menüçehr Camii” from

1072) and a former street lined with shops

where travelers, merchants and nobles

were bustling about their business

in this “Silk Road” entrepot

056  Now, all the ruins of the former

Armenian Kingdom are freely accessible

without any restrictions. But this rusty

sign shows that there was (recently) a

time when some were military security

zones with absolute ban on photography

057  On the Armenian side across the

Arpa Çayi River a watchtower is still

visible, interestingly with a Russian flag

flying at half mast and a “dummy-

watchman” on the top

058  The Cathedral of Ani (Church of

the Holy Mother of God) from 1010 A.D.

on the plateau is the largest building of this

ancient Kingdom. Ani was once also the seat

of the Armenian Orthodox Patriarchate .....

059  ..... at the entrance of the cathedral

a Turkish family poses for a picture .....

060  ..... and in the somewhat

‘hollowed’ interior Emil is standing

a bit lost in the nave

061  The church of “Saint Gregory of

Tigran Honentz” (1215 A.D.) sits on the

escarpment of the Arpa Çayi River that marks

the border to Armenia. There is no border

crossing at all between Turkey and Armenia

062  The fading and also partly

destroyed frescoes in the interior of

the church of “Tigran Honentz” are

testimony of its former glory

063  On the west side of Ani there

are also rock-cut chambers in the

“Tsaghkotsadzor Valley” (the

“Blooming Gorge”), both beneath

the plateau and the opposite walls

064  A dreamy place to live: At the

lakeshore of Lake Çıldır near Doğruyol

065  On the north side of Lake Çıldır –

after Akçakale – the road follows directly

the lakeshore and reveals the unspoiled

state of the surroundings in this region

066  Cowpat is used as heating fuel

in the rural areas of Anatolia. It is spread

out to dry and then piled up into

pyramids or fences

067  Cattle is grazing peacefully along

the northern shore of Lake Çıldır. In

northeast Anatolia livelihood depends

on agriculture

068  There is the feeling of vastness

and harmony at this peaceful rural village

of Semiha Şakir in northeastern Anatolia

069  A thirsty flock of sheep rushes

to the shore of Lake Çıldır. Animals

have almost unlimited space to roam

around – also on the roads

Climbing up to the 8’662 ft. high Çam Pass and the following “Karagöl Sahara Millî“ Park between Ardahan and Şavşat,

we are captivated again and again by the lovely alpine flora that burst into life

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To Liliana`s joy also cowslip (Primula veris), crocuses (Crocus) und kingcups/marsh marigold (Caltha palustris)

sprout on our climb to the Çam Pass – flowers that take her back to her childhood

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076  From the 8’662 ft. high Çam Pass the

road descends continuously to sea level at

Hopa; here we are in the national park

“Karagöl Sahara“ – in fact it doesn’t

look exactly like the Sahara

077  Near a little pine tree forest

Liliana makes some lunch, usually

our last meal of the day

078  A village with simple wooden

"chalets" nestles on a slope along the

Çam pass. It doesn’t seem that they are

used during the whole year – probably

only in the warmer season. This hamlet

is called Kocabey Yaylası

079  On the western side of the 8’662 ft.

high Çam Pass the healthy pine tree forests

and little villages remind us of Switzerland

080  We follow the spectacular road

along the reservoir, which is dammed up

by the 817 ft. high and 2’360 ft. long

Deriner Dam, fed by the Çoruh river. It

leads through stunning mountain scenery

and many tunnels ca. 20 miles to the

dam wall about 3 miles before Artvin

081  View towards Artvin (47 miles

further is the Black Sea). There are

still clear-up operations down in the

Çoruh valley, because the reservoir

started to operate only in February 2013

(filling with water since February 2012)

 

More websites from the Middle East:

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Trip to Dubai in January and February 1999

Oman 1999 - from mid-March to mid-April 1999

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Oman 2013 - Part 3 - March 2013: Sur - East Coast - Island of Masirah - Dhofar

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Oman 2013 - Part 5 - March 2013: Western Hajar Mountains

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Part 2: Socotra trip in Yemen (South) – Homhil - Aomak Beach - Wadi Daerhu - Dicksam Plateau

Part 3: Socotra trip in Yemen (West) – Qalansiya - Shouab Beach - Qadama Beach - Momi Plateau - Wadi Ayhaft