ANAMUR
At the foot of the rugged walls of the Toros range
dividing Turkey’s eastern Mediterranean coast from the Anatolian
plateau, are the fertile coastal plains of Anamur. This is Turkey’s
southernmost tip facing the Mediterranean to the south and the towering
Toros Mountains to the north. The humid and warm climate of Anamur
is ideal for growing bananas, which are cultivated nowhere else
in Turkey, as well as peanuts, dates and avocado pears. Wildlife,
too, abounds, such as the loggerhead turtle, whose last remaining
breeding grounds include a beach near Anamur. After mating the loggerhead
females clamber up the beach to lay and bury their eggs in the sand
in just two hours before returning to the sea. Hot, sunny beaches,
clean sea, and many fascinating historical ruins are among Anamur’s
other attractions.
Before the advent of imported bananas in Turkey, the tiny, delicious
and fragrant bananas grown here were the only kind available in
markets and greengrocers.
Bananas, which remain the symbol of Anamur, were
in the past grown outdoors, but over recent years most farmers have
begun to cultivate them under glass for protection against frost.
Since both humidity levels and temperature can be controlled in
this way, crops are now larger, enabling local bananas to hold their
own in competition against imports. The village of Kaledran west
of Anamur is the only place where you can still see bananas growing
outdoors. Here they are the only crop, and the banana groves are
so thick and so green, that from the road on the hillside above
you seem to be looking over a great forest.In the Saturday market
held in Anamur villagers in colourful traditional costume sell delicious
summer fruits direct from their own fields and orchards, including
plums, pears, black grapes and strawberries. People come here to
sell their produce from villages and high pastures as far afield
as Ermenek. In between serving customers the stallholders eat grape
molasses mixed with snow as a refreshing antidote to the heat.
Densely packed snow sawn into blocks is brought
down from the Toros Mountains to the market, and a few spoonfuls
are scraped off onto a plate. Grape molasses or sour cherry syrup
poured over the snow and stirred together makes a popular old-fashioned
substitute for ice-cream known as karli pekmez, or ‘molasses
with snow’.
Anamur has an ancient history going back to the Hittites. In the
1st century BC Anemurion, as the city was called, came under Roman
rule. The Emperor Caligula ceded Anamur and all the other coastal
cities of the eastern Mediterranean to the Kingdom of Commagene
whose capital was Adiyaman. During the Byzantine period the city
was sporadically attacked by Islamic armies, and in the 12th century
came under Seljuk Turkish rule. When the Seljuk state went into
decline Anamur became part of the Karamanogullari Principality,
and in the second half of the 15th century was incorporated into
the Ottoman Empire.
Anamur Castle, one of the best fortified castles
in Turkey, lies on the road east of the town and is thought to date
from the Roman period. A small mosque with a single minaret originally
built by the Karamanogullari in 1300 stands in the west courtyard.
The mosque, which is still open to worship, is largely 16th century
Ottoman in character.The ruins of the ancient city of Anemurion
and the nearby beach are both spectacular. The beach is of oval
pebbles of coloured stone and the sea a clear turquoise. The ruins
of the ancient walls and buildings of the city cover Anamur Point
and the hillsides behind.
As you lie beneath one of the rushwork umbrellas on the beach the
ruins nearby present such a vivid picture and are so well preserved,
that you seem to hear the voices of its former inhabitants and the
sounds of bustling streets.Anemurion lay in the region of Cilicia,
which gained importance in the Hellenistic period and developed
still further under the Romans due to its proximity to both the
island of Cyprus and the major Roman city of Germanikopolis in the
Toros Mountains.
It was an important port for the export of raw materials
produced in the region. Excavations carried out by Professor James
Russell of British Columbia University uncovered hundreds of graves
on Anamur Point, aqueducts, odeon, theatre, baths and basilica.
The interior of the mausoleums are adorned with mosaics and frescos.Another
of the sights of Anamur is Kösekbükü Cave near the
village of Ovabasi which contains stalactites and stalagmites. The
cave is located in a rocky area surrounded by Scots pine, and by
it is a café selling delicious savoury pastries known as
gözleme and the yogurt drink ayran. Alternatively, you could
try grilled trout caught in the ice-cold waters of the River Anamur.
Round off your visit with a dip in the river waters which whirl
and race down the steep sides of the Toros Mountains, but I lay
wager that you will not be able to stand the freezing water for
more than a minute!
By Yusuf DARIYERLI
Articles
Index
|
