TOKAT GUIDE

A culturally rich settlement center in Anatolia, with traces of history all over the land, Tokat lies inland of the middle Black Sea region, 422 kilometers from Ankara Wandering in the city is an opportunity to catch a glimpse of life at old times, with the many historical buildings at the numerous ancient sitesThe most important figure here, is the Ottoman Citadel of 28 towers, founded on a rocky hill overlooking the town The Garipler Mosque dating to the 12th century and the Ali Pasa Mosque of 16th century constitute other sights worth visitingOne of Tokat's finest buildings is the Gök Medrese (Pervane Bey Darussifasi) which was constructed in 1270 It was founded as a school of theology, and is now converted into a museum, housing archaeological finds from the areaTwo other notable monuments in this region, are the Hatuniye Medrese of the 15th century, built by Sultan Beyazit, and a Seljuk bridge spanning the Yesilirmak River, belonging to the 12th century The Latifoglu Mansion is still another, which is a traditional architecture of a Turkish house of the 19th century, restored recently to its original state69 kilometers northeast of Tokat, is Niksar, one of the most beautiful towns of the province, which carries important signs from the history of the country It was once the capital of the Turkish Danismend Emirs, and among the interesting sights are the well-preserved citadel, the Ulu Mosque, and the 12th century Yagbasan Medrese Niksar has also a crystal clear and delicious spring waterZile is another ancient town, 67 kilometers west of the province, with its fortress and the 13th century Ulu Mosque near it This district has been the scene of many events of the earliest ages too, and it was here that the Roman Emperor Julius Caesar said his famous words "Veni, Vidi, Vici"; "I came, I saw, I conquered"Resadiye is well known for its vast pine forests, hot springs, clays and natural beauties Ballica cave at Pazar is a natural wonder The Dumanli meadows are the other famous places for resting and refreshingOn March 29th, 2006, Total Solar Eclipse was seen in Tokat as well at 14:05pm local timeSebastopolisSulusaray (Sebastopolis) is about 68 kilometers from the center of Tokat, and about 30 km from Artova town The site is situated on a plain surrounded by mountains and the river of Cekerek runs near itThe foundation of this ancient city is still unknown Some sources say that it was first established in the first century AD during the Roman emperor Trajan's period, and that the city was separated from the Pontus Galaticus Polaminiacus districts and was included in the Cappadocia region There is an epitaph (inscription rock with several rows of writings carved on it) about this The epitaph was written as a monument for the Arrian, the Governor of the Cappadocia regionThe word Sebastopolis comes from Greek; Sebasto means huge, great or magnificent, and Polis means city So Sebastopolis means Great City In some resources the city was named as Heracleopolis Heracleopolis means the city of Heracles, a pagan god symbolizing power and strength in the Greek and Roman mythologyArchitectural pieces recovered during the diggings organized by the Directorate of the Tokat Museum in 1987, showed that the city was an important settlement during the Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine periods The artifacts recovered at the Comana Pohtica (Old Tokat) are very similar to those recovered from the city of Sebastopolis, probably these two ancient cities had a close relationship in the pastSebastopolis is at the crossroads of east to west route and south and central to north route This shows the importance of the city during the Roman and Byzantine periodsThe ancient city was surrounded by a city wall made of small, neatly cut stones put together without using mortar A circular shape temple was discovered at the northeast side of the city, it was made of marble floor The baths are situated at the eastern part of the Sebastopolis, where the water needed was recovered from the thermal spring located about 3 kilometers to the southwest Many statues and statuettes, friezes, columns, grave steles and epitaphs have been found during excavations

TEKİRDAĞ GUIDE

Tekirdag is on the Marmara Sea coast of Thrace, and has been settled from the beginning of history. Its ancient name was Bisanthe, while today’s name originates from the color of the surrounding mountains. There are several historical places in the city, some of which are the Rakoczy Museum (a Turkish house dating from the 17. century built by a Hungarian Prince II. Ferenc Rakoczy in 1720, he lived there until his death in 1735), the Rustem Pasha Mosque, the Tekirdag Museum and the statue of Namik Kemal, the celebrated patriotic poet whose birth - place is Tekirdag.
Corlu (Tzoulou), a small town of Tekirdag, was a citadel on the antique road between Istanbul and Europe during the Byzantine period.
Marmara Ereglisi (the ancient names Perinthos/Heraklia) is ideal for getting use of the sea and the beaches. Acropolis, antique harbor, sea and city walls, theater, vaults and stadium are the main historical remains here.
Sarköy (60 kilometers west) is a sun-sea-sand resort with sandy beaches and holiday villages. It is also a wine center where a wine festival is held every year. Kumbag and Barbaros are other pleasant places with their long beaches.
Today Tekirdag is famous with its sunflowers, meatballs (köfte in Turkish Cuisine) and raki, and it is a big port on the Marmara Sea.

ŞIRNAK GUIDE

The province of Şırnak is located in the Southeastern Anatolian Region, at the borders of Syria and Iraq. The Cudi Mountain, the ancient city and the caves are laces which worth visiting.
Districts: Şırnak (center), Beytüşşebap, Cizre, Güçlükonak, İdil, Silopi, Uludere.How to Get
It is possible to reach to the province of Şırnak via highways from all around the country.
Where to Visit
The major localities for visiting purposes in the province of Şırnak are the Cudi Mountain, Kasrık Strait and Saint Nuh Mausoleum and Mem-u Zin Mausoleum in Cizre province.
Geography
The dominant climate in Şırnak province varies depending on the regions of the province. The dominant climate at the higher sections of the province is the severe terrestrial climate while normal terrestrial climate is effective at the other sections of the province.
History
Şırnak was at the status of a village during the Ottoman period and become a district in 1927 connected to the province of Siirt and finally become a province in 1990.
What to Buy
Tourism Facilities Data Base Updating Project is still in progress.Upon the end of the current process some of the shortcomings related to Tourism facilities and regarding information will be removed.
Don’t Leave Without
- Visiting Cudi Mountain,
- Visiting Saint Nuh Mausoleum and Mem-u Zin mausoleum
- Visiting Kasrık Strait

SİVAS GUIDE

Anatolia M.d. By establishing a political union of lü in 1800, the first settlement areas of the Hittite empire in the past in Sivas, Firigyalıların, Lidyalıların, Roman and Byzantine domination of people, “Diapolls” and “Sebaste” was also named as.Of the commanders of the Sultan of Great Seljuk Emir Danisment Meliksah 1071 in the conquest of Sivas Danişment established Beylikler.In 1220 the Sultan İzzettin Keykavus Sivas made the capital of the Seljuk State, 1343′te Eratna States, was established in Sivas 1381′de Kadıburhanettin States ….After entering the year 1413 in Sivas Osmanhılar’ın sovereignty under the name of the state-i Rum Amasya, Çorum, Yozgat, Divrigi, Samsun and covers a large area Arapkir city center has become the state.One of the most important dates of the national struggle with the Congress of Sivas 4 September 1919 United Atatürk’ün BaşkanIığında and Turkey was held in Sivas in Sivas Rebuplic Turkey’s basics atılmıştir.
Mosques
Divrigi Ulu Mosque: UNESCO World Heritage List by the Divrigi Ulu Mosque, Mengücek son of the monarch’s son Süleyman Shah has been built in 1228 by Ahmet Shah. Mosque, north, east and west in the direction and extremely beautiful stone ornamentation, which is entered through three doors. Darüşşifa on the other hand, Behram Shah’s daughter, was built on 1228 by Melike Turan Melek. This unique monument to sit in an area of 768 m2. To make the Şifaiye Medresesi 18.yüzyılda medrese is called.
Ulu Mosque: is the center of the province. According to the Sivas Museum in 1196-1197 was made by the Red Arslan Bin Ibrahim.
Sheikh Hasan Bey Kümbet the (Güdük Minaret): City is the center. Frames on the pedestal, a cylindrical body with a brick build tressed and because people like the short minaret Minaret Güdük was called.
Provincial Center; Ahi Emir Ahmet Tomb, Şemseddin Sivas-i Tomb, Akbaşbaba Tomb, Sheikh Erzurum-i Tomb, Tomb Kadı Burhaneddin, Süt Evliya the Tomb, the Tomb of my father, the Arab Evliya Tomb, Tomb of the Arab Sheik, Meydan Mosque, Ali Ağa Mosque, Alibaba Mosque and Tomb, in Divrigi Sitte Melik Mausoleum, Kemareddin Mausoleum, Nureddin Salih (Kemankeş) Tomb, Gemerek’de Çepni Mosque. Kara Mustafa Mosque and Hamam Yıldızeli’nde Kemenkeş, Sheikh Halil Tomb. Zara Sheikh in the tomb and mosque are the other provinces Merzuban Tomb.
MOSLEM THEOLOGICAL SCHOOLS
Şifaiye Medresesi: Selçuklu park in the center of the province within, Double Minareli Medresesi is the exact opposite. In 1217 the Seljuk Sultan I. It was built by İzzeddin Keykavus. Medical schools and hospitals, the oldest of the Anatolian Seljuks, and most who died in büyüklerindendir.1220 I. İzzeddin Keykavus, loved on intestacy Şifaiye Medresesi in Sivas with the family mausoleum in the south of eyvan lies.
Cifte Minareli Medresesi: City is the center. By the Queen in 1271 with Ilhan Şemseddin Mehmet Cüveyni was built in. Just east of the main fronts in the direction of Medresesi remained standing.
Gök Medrese: City is the center. Owner in 1271 by Ali Ata Fahreddin Selçuklu queen was built in the year. Two minarets rising above the blue crown doors brick tiles tressed because the name was Gok Medrese. Masterpieces of art from plastic materials used in the crown door and marble, crown door into the top two corners of the animal motifs are intertwined. Medresesi right in the introduction to the mosque, the Dar-ul Hadis section on the left is possible.

SİNOP GUIDE

Sinop is one of the most beautiful natural harbors on the Black Sea coast. There are many legends about the foundation of the city but the most dependable is that the Miletion colonists founded it in the 7th century BC and the city is the birthplace of the cynic philosopher Diogenes. According to another legend the province is said to have received its name from the Amazon Queen “Sinova”. The town’s citadel dates from that early age and the foundations of the Temple of Serapis is to be found on the grounds of the Archaeological Museum where some beautiful golden icons are displayed. The 13th century Alaeddin Mosque, the Alaiye Medresse, and the Balatlar Church are of interest in the city.
Traditional nautical wood carvings, good crystal and the original cotton clothes of the city are praiseworthy and unique, so you will want to have examples of these artifacts. The seaside hotels and small holiday villages will make you stay longer and you will have the opportunity to sit in a fish restaurant by the harbor and watch the perfect combination of green and light blue while sipping your wine and tasting some traditional Turkish food. Hamsilos Fjord, 11 kilometers from the city center is the only fjord in the country.
Gerze, situated on a peninsula, 40 kilometers southeast of Sinop, will provide you with fine beaches, meadows, restaurants and parks, while Camgölü provides camping facilities in a large forest sloping to the sea. At Boyabat, the largest town of the province, there are many rock tombs and a citadel

SİİRT GUIDE

Siirt is a pretty province located in Southeastern Anatolia, 224 km northeast of Mardin, and separated from this province by the Tigris (Dicle) river. This region which once under the hegemonies of the Persians, Romans and Byzantines, was also an important center during in the Abbasid Caliphate era.
It was a place of settlement for many civilizations flourished along the Botan stream. The native people are the Hurri and Subarru settled in the area around 3000 BC. It witnessed the Assyrian and Med domination in the 7th century BC, and later that of the Persian Empire, Seleukos Kingdom, RomanByzantine Empires and Iran. After forming the stage for struggles among the Mongolians, Eyyubi, Artuklu and Karakoyunlu, it was annexed by the Ottoman Empire in 1514. The name Siirt is believed to derive from “Keert” which meant “city” in Keldani language. The tombs of Veysel Karani and Ismail Hakki form a bridge of history and civilization between the past and our times as pieces of Islamic civilization. and
Grand (Ulu) Mosque was built by Mugiziddun Mahmut, the Seljuk Ruler, in 1129. In 1260, Cizre Governor El Mucahit Ishak built some annexes to the original structure. The mosque was restored by the General Directorate of Foundations in 1965. Its pulpit made of walnut wood is exhibited at the Ethnographic Museum in Ankara as one of the finest specimens of Seljukmosque has a single balcony minaret ornamented with turquoise China work. However, these works can not resist to climatic woodworking. The conditions. The great dome at the centre is surrounded by smaller domes.
Billoris Springs are on Siirt-Eruh highway. Its 35 centigrade hot water comes in from a cave on the Botan brook and makes a pool. Calcium bicarbonate and sulphurous hydrogen make this water undrinkable but valuable in healing rheumatism and some skin diseases.
6 kms from Siirt is Aydinlar, a beautiful town where the Ibrahim Hakki Mausoleum Complex stands, with the private Ibrahim Hakki Astronomical Museum nearby. The tomb of Sheik Ismail Fakirullah is another significant religious site, beside the many others.
The province extends over an area of 5,406 square kilometers. The Tigris river and its tributaries constitute its water network. According to the 1997 Census, the population of the province is 262,371. The province has 6 administrative districts (Aydinlar, Baykan, Eruh, Kurtalan, Pervari and Sirvan) and 271 villages.
Textile and copper works are the traditional handicrafts of the city. Its goat wool blankets woven with geometric designs and dyed by natural plants have high value internationally.
The province is rich in terms of its animal population and therefore has a high potential for the development of integrated meat and leather processing industries. It can also move towards woodworks with its forested area of 700,000 hectares. The province has also high potential in promoting its pistachio and vegetable culture. Finally, Siirt is well endowed with asphalt, copper and chrome reserves

SAMSUN GUIDE

Turkey, on the coast of the Black Sea, with a population of 725,111 as of 2007. It is the capital city of Samsun Province and an important port. Samsun was founded as the colony Amisos (alternative spelling Amisus, Eis Amison - meaning to amisos took the name Samsunta or Samsus ( Eis Amison - Samson - Samsounta) as in Greek + ounta "Greek toponomical suffix". ) by settlers from Miletus in the 7th century BC. It was later a part of the Pontus realm.HistorySamsun Samsun's ideal combination of fertile ground and shallow waters has attracted numerous trade interests. Greek colonists settled in the 6th century BC and established a flourishing trade relationship with the Anatolians. At that time, Samsun was part of the Greek colony of Amisus. In the 3rd century BC, Samsun came under the expanded rule of the Kingdom of Pontus. The Kingdom of Pontus had been part of the empire of Alexander the Great. However, the empire was fractured soon after Alexander's death in the 4th century BC. At its height, the kingdom controlled the north of central Anatolia and mercantile towns on the northern Black Sea shores.SamsunThe Romans took over in 47 BC, and were replaced by the Byzantines after the fall of Rome. In 1200 Samsun was captured by the Seljuks, to be later taken over by the İlhanlılar. Samsun was incorporated into the network of Genoese trading posts and was taken by the Ottomans in the beginning of the 15th century. Before leaving, the Genoese razed the town.Ataturk founded the Turkish republic movement at Samsun and it served as its base during the Turkish War of Independence.For more details on this topic, see Turkish War of Independence.The city is a Roman Catholic titular see.GeographySamsun is situated between two river deltas which jut into the Black Sea. It is located at the end of an ancient route from Cappadocia: the Amisos of antiquity lay on the headland northwest of the modern city. To Samsun's west, lies the Kızılırmak ("Red River", the Halys of antiquity), one of the longest rivers in Anatolia and its fertile delta. To the east, lie the Yeşilırmak ("Green River", the Iris of antiquity) and its delta.RiversTerme river, Yeşilırmak, Aptal river, Mert river, Kürtün river, KızılırmakLakesAkgöl, Dumanlı, SemenlikClimateSamsun has a humid, temperate, marine climate with cool winters and warm summers and high rainfall throughout the year.EconomySamsun is an important Turkish trade centre and the most important port on the Black Sea coast. Samsun is one of the major Turkish tobacco producing provinces. In the later Ottoman period the land around the town mainly produced tobacco. The town was connected to the railway system in the second half of the 19th century, and tobacco trade boomed. The Çarşamba Valley and the Bafra Valley offer possibilities for farming.A concern of automotive industries is located in Samsun.Education

The University of Samsun (19 Mayis Üniversitesi) is one of the seven best universities of Turkey. Moreover the city has colleges, 58 grammar schools, 1.048 primary schools, and public libraries.Places to seeKultur Sarayi (Palace of Culture). Concerts and other performances are held at the Kultur Sarayi, which is shaped much like a ski jump. Archaeological and Atatürk Museum. The archaeological part of the museum displays ancient artifacts found in the Samsun area. The Atatürk section includes photographs of his life and some personal belongings. The museum is open from 8:30 till 12:00 and from 14:00 till 17:00. The Russian Market (Rus Pazari). Statue of Atatürk. By Austrian sculptor Heinz Kriphel, from 1928 to 1931. Atatürk (Gazi) Museum. It houses Atatürk's bedroom, his study and conference room as well some personal belongings. Pazar Mosque, Samsun's oldest surviving building, a mosque built by the Ilhanid Mongols in the 13th century. Karadağ Geçidi (Karadag Pass) (at an altitude of 940 metres). The landscape, on the way to Amasya