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All photos above
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© Dennis Cox /
Photo Explorer Tours
Featuring Istanbul, Trabzon, Kars, Lake Van,
Mounts Ararat and Nemrut Dag, Mardin, Harran, and Sanliurfa....
Western Turkey has been a favorite destination for Photo Explorer Tours since 1976. For 2008 we finally turn our attention to Turkey's vast Far East, to the scenic Black Sea coast and to the beautiful plains, deserts, and black mountains of the southeast for this adventurous new itinerary. Ancient mosques, medieval ruins and citadels, gloriously sited fortresses, beehive houses and biblical sites, and a blend of Turkish, Armenian, Kurdish and other photogenic peoples are just a few of the myriad photo opportunities that await.
The Eastern Turkey Explorer tour price for 2008 is $4195 sharing a double room. The single room supplement is $695. The land price will include all ground transportation in Turkey in comfortable air-conditioned van, two domestic flights, lodging (4-5 star or charming boutique hotels carefully selected for their location, view, charm and atmosphere), breakfast and dinner daily, all admission fees and boat ride on Lake Van, and and the services of our outstanding English-speaking photo guide, Mehmet, who will facilitate the special requirements of this photographic group completely. Information on international air for this tour is available through Photo Explorer Tours. Additional days in Istanbul or other tour extension may be arranged upon request.
Eastern Turkey Explorer Tour Itinerary
Sunday, June 1, ISTANBUL Arrival in Istanbul and transfer to the hotel. Orientation tour of sights around the hotel and photography of the Byzantine Hippodrome and the Blue Mosque.
Monday, June 2, ISTANBUL Early morning departure to photograph the skyline and boats along the Golden Horn and from the Galata Bridge before a visit to the Spice Market and the New Mosque. Then photograph the Underground Basilica Cistern. In the afternoon, visit and photograph the Aya Sofya Museum and the Topkapi Palace.
Tuesday, June 3, UZUNGOL / TRABZON Transfer to the airport and fly to Trabzon which is the major town along the Black sea. Drive to Macka and photograph the Monastery of Holy Mary known as Sumela Monastery located at 1200 meters above sea level. The monastery was built in the Karadaglar Mountains in the 14th century. Drive back to Trabzon to visit the other church of Aya Sofya, a 13th century Byzantine church with beautiful frescos. In the afternoon, drive to Uzungol which is a small mountain village located in the Little Caucasus Mountains. Along the way, photograph the tea plantations with people picking tea leaves.
Wednesday, June 4, ERZURUM In Uzungol, photograph the quaint mosque of the village with its reflexion over the mountain lake then drive to Erzurum via scenic mountains.
Thursday, June 5 KARS In Erzurum, photograph the Yakutiye Medrese and Cifte Minare Medrese built in the 13th century as koranic schools, then drive to Kars. In the afternoon, visit and photograph the ruins of the old Armenian city of Ani located right on the border between Turkey and Armenia. Here, there are old Armenian churches and the ruins of an old settlement.
Friday, June 6 DOGUBEYAZIT Drive to Dogubeyazit near Mount Ararat. In Dogubeyazit, photograph not only the famous Mount Ararat but also the impressive Ishak Pasa Palace from the 18th century and also see a meteor hole near the Iranian border and the reputed site of Noah's Ark.
Saturday, June 7 VAN Drive to Van with a stop at at Muradiye waterfalls and also make a short stop at the Van University where the famous Van cats with one eye blue one eye green reside. The cats are under protection in the farm of the university. Take the early afternoon to rest then go out to photograph Van Castle, which is an old Urartian settlement from 8th century BC.
Sunday, June 8 VAN In the morning drive to the 18th century Hosap Castle and the ruins of old Urartian settlement 7 thc century BC at Cavustepe. Lunch near the Lake Van followed by a boat ride to the Akdamar Island to photograph the famous Armenian Church which is unique for its reliefs.
Monday, June 9 MARDIN Drive to Mardin in the afternoon. Along the way, stop to take pictures in Hasankeyf with old cave dwellings and an impressive castle near the River Tigris. Unfortunately this beautiful site will in the future be inundated by the reservoir of a dam which will soon be built on the Tigris. Lunch in a local restaurant, dinner in the hotel.
Tuesday, June 10 MARDIN The old part of Mardin is like an open air museum and offers a bounty of photo ops in its narrow streets and around its old stone houses. Photograph the old bazaar area's people and vendors in its medieval like setting. Then procede to Zinciriye Medrese and photograph the interesting 13th century dome and minaret with the Mesopotamian plain in the back ground. In the afternoon, visit the 4th century Syrian Orthodox Christian Monastery of Dayrulzefaran which is still in activity and then photograph the headstones in an old graveyard with a beautiful scene of the city in the background. The charming boutique hotel in Mardin is in an air conditioned old stone house with a great view over the Mesopotamian plain.
Wednesday, June 11 SANLIURFA Drive to Sanliurfa, known as the city of prophets, as Abraham was born here and Job, Jethro, and Moses lived here. In Saliurfa, first photograph the old bazar with people playing chest, dominos and coppercraftsmen, saddle makers and etc., then we will visit the cave where Abraham was born. A holy place and a great site to photograph the people, then see Abraham's pond with its holy carp. The hotel here is a 4 star air conditioned first class hotel located in the old city.
Thursday, June 12 ADIYAMAN Early departure to Harran, old Canaan, to photograph the ruins of the oldest mosque in Anatolia at sunrise. we will then see the ant hill like mud brick domed houses of Harran. Take breakfast in one of these restored houses then drive back to Sanliurfa with a stop at the cave where Job stayed as he recovered from leprocy. In the afternoon, drive to Adiyaman and along the way stop at the Ataturk Dam on the Euphrates, 6th largest earthen dam in the world. A stop will also be made at the bridge on the Euphrates to photograph this holy river. The hotel for two night in Adiyaman is a 4 star with air conditioned rooms and swimming pool.
Friday, June 13 ADIYAMAN Leave the hotel at 1:30 am and drive to Mount Nemrut to begin a hike of about half hour to get to the mountain top for a beautiful sunrise and to photograph the giant statue heads in the open air temple built in the 1st century BC by the King Antiochus of Commagene. Breakfast will be after the photo op in a mountain cafe and on the way back photograph some of the great landscapes with mountains and villages. The afternoon will be available for a much needed rest.
Saturday, June 14 ISTANBUL Drive to Gaziantep to photograph the old bazaar area before flying back to Istanbul.
Sunday, June 15 ISTANBUL Transfer to the airport for flights home.
The Eastern Turkey Explorer Tour will be led by Dennis Cox, an award-winning travel photographer (named "Travel Photographer of the Year" by the Society of American Travel Writers for 1997) who has photographed on all seven continents, been published in hundreds of publications worldwide, and has organized international photo tours since 1981.
The tour will be guided by the exceptional English-speaking guide Mehmet Ozbalci who is expert in Turkey's culture and history as well as a photo guide who is thoroughly knowledgeable about the best times and places to photograph.
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This tour will begin and end with some of the best photo opportunities in Istanbul.
What former tour members say about Turkey and guide Mehmet.....
I am delighted to tell you about OUR trip to Turkey. It was fabulous!!! Mehmet, the guide was terrific, knew all the places to go, times of day for the best light, etc. He is charming, funny and very personable--made it very easy for us to meet and photograph the locals. He is an excellent photographer himself and quite capable of giving you a great photo trip.
In one village, we noticed smoke from a chimney so he knocked on the door, spoke with the owner and we were invited in to see and photograph her baking bread which we also sampled. We spent time in the smaller markets and villages as well as Istanbul and all it has to offer. The hotel had great views, very nice accommodations, great food -- I especially recommend the dish known as Imam Biyildi with that wonderful Turkish yogurt.
This is one of our favorite trips ever.... Dennis Cox has designed this tour with Mehmet and it equals or exceeds any of the other six trips we've taken with Photo Explorer Tours.
Mary Bert Wolf, Louisville KY
.....the trip and Mehmet were both terrific. I was amazed at the wonderful friendly people the Turks are. The concerns about being a single woman in a Muslim country were absolutely uncalled for. Even off walking on my own they could not have been more helpful. I loved the hotel in Antalya with its delightful patio dining and great location and also the one in the village of Yesilyurt. What a lovely place and what wonderful food. Mehmet took us to such interesting off the beaten path places such as Eyup on a Sunday in Istanbul. I got wonderful photos there and so many other places and villages with great color and wonderful people. One of the prettiest places I think was Aphrodesias. And of course I got one of my favorite shots there. I came to love the sound of the call to prayer and really miss it. It is so peaceful.
Carol Maillet, Laguna Niguel CA
Photo Explorer Tours DENNIS COX LLC
2506 Country Village, Ann Arbor MI 48103-6500 USA
Phone 800-315-4462 or 734-996-1440,,,,,
Email DECoxPhoto@aol.com
Direct Link to Reservation Form.
May all your journeys be care free,
And may all your days be filled with wonder.