Middle East - Anthony Ham [494]
Angora House Hotel ( 309 8380; angorahouse@gmail.com; Kalekapısı Sokak 16-18, Ulus; s/d/tr €45/60/75; Mar-Oct; ) Ankara’s original boutique hotel is in a great location inside the citadel and offers beautiful, individually decorated rooms in a restored house, benefiting from some fine half-timbering and a walled courtyard.
Hotel Metropol ( 417 3060; www.hotelmetropol.com.tr; Olgunlar Sokak 5, Kızılay; s/d TL70/100; ) Quite a snip at these prices, the three-star Metropol provides quality and character across the board. The breakfast is excellent, but laundry rates are high.
Eating
Head to Ulus Meydanı for cheap eats.
Le Man Kültür ( 310 8617; Konur Sokak 8a-b, Kızılay; mains TL6-11; 10am-11pm) One of Kızılay’s coolest hangouts, this restaurant packs in the ripped denim and beehives (of the Amy Winehouse variety) between walls decorated with subversive cartoons. The menu ranges from kebaps to Mexican and even Argentinean dishes.
Zenger Paşa Konağı ( 311 7070; www.zengerpasa.com; Doyran Sokak 13, Ulus; mains TL12-17; noon-12.30am; ) Built in 1721 for governor Mehmet Fuat Paşa, the Zenger Paşa is crammed with Ottoman ephemera. It looks at first like a deserted ethnographic museum, but the pide, meze and grills, still cooked in the original oven, plus the perfect citadel views, attract wealthy Ankaralıs.
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SAFRANBOLU & AMASYA: RELAX IN (OTTOMAN) STYLE
Bored with the ubiquitous concrete eyesores that disfigure almost every city in Turkey? Make a beeline for Safranbolu and Amasya, respectively 145km north and 270km northeast of Ankara. These picture-postcard towns are slightly off the beaten track, but beckon savvy travellers with their ethereal settings and historical atmosphere. Both retain many of their original Ottoman buildings.
Safranbolu is such an enchanting city that it was declared a Unesco World Heritage site, on a par with Florence, Italy. It boasts a wonderful old Ottoman quarter bristling with 19th-century half-timbered houses. Most of them have been restored, and as time goes on, more and more are being saved from deterioration and turned into hotels or museums.
Blissfully located on riverbanks beneath cliffs, Amasya is one of Turkey’s best-kept secrets. One of the country’s prettiest towns, it harbours numerous historic sites, including the rock-hewn tombs of the kings of Pontus, a lofty citadel, Seljuk buildings and enough picturesque Ottoman piles to satisfy the fussiest sultan.
Good news: both Safranbolu and Amasya boast excellent accommodation, with a profusion of lovely B&Bs set in restored Ottoman mansions. There are a few direct buses from Ankara to both Safranbolu (TL20, three hours) and Amasya (TL30, five hours); the latter is closer to Sivas.
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Köşk ( 432 1300; İnkılap Sokak 2, Kızılay; mains TL15-30; 9am-midnight) Ankara’s best fish restaurant has a glass-fronted dining room with views of the pedestrianised boulevards and a chanteuse warbling away. Meze such as fresh calamari with peppers, and simple but effective grills and fish mains, are just as alluring.
Getting There & Away
AIR
Ankara’s Esenboğa airport, 33km north of the city centre, is the hub for Turkish Airlines’ domestic-flight network; there are daily nonstop flights to most Turkish cities with Turkish Airlines or Atlasjet. International flights are generally cheaper using one of İstanbul’s airports.
BUS
Ankara’s huge otogar (Ankara Şehirlerarası Terminali İşletmesi; AŞTİ) is the vehicular heart of the nation, with coaches going every-where all day and night. They depart for İstanbul (TL25 to TL33, six hours) at least every 30 minutes.
TRAIN
There are useful services to Adana, İstanbul, Kayseri, Sivas and a few other cities, but some of the long-haul services can be excruciatingly slow.
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SİVAS
0346 / pop 294,000
Sivas lies at the heart of Turkey geographically as well as politically, thanks to its role