Middle East - Anthony Ham [509]
Yöresel Yemek Evi ( 312 4026; Dr İsmail Beşikçi Caddesi; mains TL3-5) Yay! Some feminine touches in this male-dominated city! This place is run by an association of Kurdish women whose husbands are imprisoned. They prepare lip-smacking yöresel (traditional) meals at bargain-basement prices.
Getting There & Away
There are about four daily minibuses to Van (TL10, three hours). To get to Kars, change minibus at Iğdır (TL5, 45 minutes); the journey should cost about TL10 total.
Minibuses (TL4) to the Iranian border (Gürbulak) leave from near the junction of Ağrı and Rıfkı Başkaya Caddesis, just past the petrol ofisi (petrol station), approximately every hour. The last one departs around 5pm.
Return to beginning of chapter
SOUTHEASTERN ANATOLIA
Turkey’s wild child, southeastern Anatolia feels different from the rest of the country, and that’s part of its appeal. Apart from a few Arabic and Christian pockets, this huge chunk of territory is predominantly Kurdish.
What does it have on its menu? For starters, you can choose from a wealth of historical cities, such as Mardin, the region’s trophy piece, perched on a hill dominating Mesopotamia; Şanlıurfa, swathed in historical mystique, and the old city of Diyarbakır, ensnared in mighty basalt walls.
For the main course, how about natural wonders? Adjust your camera to ‘panoramic’ and shoot life-enhancing images of Mt Nemrut (Nemrut Dağı), topped with colossal ancient statues, or shimmering Van Gölü (Lake Van).
Best of all, you can savour these sights without any tourist hustle and bustle. Oh, and southeastern Anatolia has its fair share of gastronomic pleasures (hmmm, pistachio baklavas…).
Return to beginning of chapter
VAN
0432 / pop 391,000
Young couples walking hand in hand on the main drag, students flirting in the pastry shops, live bands knocking out Kurdish tunes in pubs, unscarved girls sampling ice cream and daring eye contact with foreigners. Frontier towns never looked so liberal! Van is different in spirit from the rest of southeastern Anatolia – more urban, more casual – and boasts a brilliant location, near the eponymous lake.
* * *
SAFETY IN THE EAST
The security situation in southeastern Turkey has improved considerably since it was the epicentre of the Kurdish rebellion during the 1980s and ‘90s. Although it’s always wise to keep your ear to the ground, there is currently little reason to think travellers would suffer anything worse than delays at checkpoints along their way. If there is any trouble, the military will simply not let you get anywhere near it. The only road that was closed at the time of research was the long stretch from Şırnak to Hakkari, on the Iraqi border.
* * *
Everything you’ll need (hotels, restaurants, banks, the PTT and the bus-company offices) lie on or around Cumhuriyet Caddesi, the main commercial street.
Sights
Van’s main claim to fame is its castle (admission TL2; 9am-dusk), about 3km west of the city centre, where you’ll also find the foundations of Eski Van (the old city). The small Van Museum (Van Müzesi; Kişla Caddesi; admission TL2; 8am-noon & 1-5pm Tue-Sun) boasts an outstanding collection of Urartian exhibits, with gold jewellery, bronze belts, helmets, horse armour and terracotta figures.
Around the city, Van’s 8th-century Armenian rulers took refuge on Akdamar Island in Van Gölü (Lake Van) when the Arab armies flooded through from the south. The recently restored Akdamar Kiliseli (Church of the Holy Cross) is one of the wonders of Armenian architecture. The island is a day trip from Van by minibus or the occasional boat.
A slightly longer excursion to the southeast takes you to the spectacular Hoşap Castle (admission TL2), a Kurdish castle perched on top of a rocky outcrop. To get to there, catch a Başkale- or Yüksekova-bound minibus on Cumhuriyet Caddesi, and say you want to get out at Hoşap (TL5). After seeing the castle, flag down a bus to Çavuştepe, where you can pick up a bus to Van. Frequent minibuses and buses ply the route.
Sleeping
Otel Aslan ( 216 2469; Özel