DRIFTING THROUGH TIMES Magical Turkey

No traveler can define Turkey with a single characteristic. Perhaps the synthesized appeal of both oriental and European elements is the pulse of this beautiful country. Mitasha Chatterjee shares her experience traveling to this magical land.

It was my first day in Antalya, was having dinner in a seaside restaurant .in Kaleici, the old town. Suddenly I realised the restaurant is on the old Roman city wall, after asking them, Hachi, a waiter took me for a walk inside the centuries-old roman walls, it is just part of the restaurant, what an incredible feeling that was "walking inside the Roman walls during Dinner".

Modern-day Turkey historically was part of Asia Minor, a region with major ancient civilisations. The area I travelled was mostly the southwest coast and a part of central Turkey. Here the known history began with the time of Hittites, followed by Lycians, Graeco-Roman, easternroman/Byzantian, Seljuk Turk and Ottomans. Covering all of them will probably take months, but the small amount of historical, ancient ruins I have seen was enough to take my breath away. I stood on the steps of the Theatre of Hierapolis, an ancient Graeco-roman spa city, on the hills of modern-day Pamukkale and its famous Travertine. The ruins of the roman bath house become part of the museum; modern people come from all over the world to take bath in the Cleopatra pool, hoping they will be younger again, the centuries-old huge terracotta vessels still lying leisurely outside the museum.