Day 7: Tuesday 5 October - Perge and Aspendos

A slightly later start to today – 8am! Ray wrote up the following:“


Set out by bus and joined by our guide Achmet, who led us through some of the most significant archaeological sites with a fact-filled commentary along the way. The sites included the theatre and the town centre (agora) at Perge, its main road with colonnades, public baths and water reticulation system. The highlight of the day was perhaps the enormous and impressive theatre at Aspendos, largely restored using original materials, and in which performances are still being staged.

After lunch we stopped at the Koprulu waterfall which is in a nature reserve and the more energetic amongst us climbed down umpteen stairs to the base of the falls- a
very pretty area.

Finally, we stopped at the well-know “Alice” leather works and were entertained by a glamorous fashion show and were given the opportunity to purchase leather garments.”

Perge was once near the sea, which is now about 11 kms away. It was one of the most important towns of ancient Pamphylia, had its heyday under the Romans in the 2nd and 3rd centuries BC and surrendered to Alexander the Great in 334 BC. It declined in Byzantine times and was abandoned in the 7th century.


Aspendos was once the eastern most city of the kingdom of Pergamum and an important trading centre in Roman times. The magnificent theatre was built during the reign of Marcus Aurelius (AD 161-180) and can seat 12 000 people. It is said to be the best preserved theatre of the ancient world. It was restored in the 13th Century and after several centuries of neglect was brought to life again by Ataturk.

The remains of the Roman aqueduct nearby once again left us awed by ancient ingenuity and skill and led to a profound discussion on engineering, Rob from Ghana being a civil engineer!

Before lunch we also visited the quaint village of Side (“pomegranate”) which is
surrounded by Roman ruins and boasts the Temples of Apollo and Athena on its shores, dating from the 2nd century. Perfect photo opportunities! Side was first settled by Greek colonists in the 7th century BC and became a centre of the slave trade and piracy in the 2nd century BC. It was burned by Arab raiders in the 7th century, revitalised by the Seljuks and resettled by Muslims returning from Crete during the population exchange of the 1920s.

My mom and I hoped to have a swim below the harbour walls when we returned to Antalya but the sea was very choppy so instead we had a lovely start to the evening watching the sundowner boats see-sawing (sea-sawing?!) out of the harbour. After supper a few of us went down to see the harbour lit up and browsed through the shops in the narrow streets in the vicinity of the hotel.

Charmaine's reflections on Antalya:Exceptionally modern merged in ancient. A sleepy-time warped town now a centre of tourism and light industry. A delightful place. Kekova Island and beyond can only be reached by boat or on foot. Magic place to escape to some time! St Nicholas Church a place for devout pilgrims and despite the crowds of followers it felt very special to be there. The theatre nearby and the beautiful tumbled marble carving and statuettes- magical!