Kas to Gelidonya
Kas to Gelidonya was about 110 km, along the way we stop at ruins of Myra Ancient City. Again there were several ruins along the route but we chose only Myra Ancient City as it seemed to be a more worthwhile ruins to visit.
The route to Myra Ancient City was pretty scenic. Green hills, yellow flowers, mountain ranges with snow caps and blue sky. The April/May weather was beautiful, not too hot or cold.
Myra Ancient City
The ancient Lycia civilisation existed from 15–14th centuries BC (as Lukka) to 546 BC. It stretched from Dalyan to Antalya. Myra was one of the most important towns of ancient Lycia, located near the mouth of the Andriacus River on the Mediterranean Sea in southwest Turkiye.
At the entrance we paid 180tl per person for an entry ticket. One of the first artifacts we saw was three heads with “O” shape mouths carved into a huge stone. We wondered the reasons for that “O” expression.
On the steep face of a hill were many “stone carved” tombs, one on top of another. These tombs carving did not looked as majestic or intricate as those seen in Daylan or Telmessos. These tombs were probably not of Kings’.
At the ancient site was a theatre. Myra’s theater was quite well-preserved. Apparently the seats could accomodate some 12,000 people.
Coffee Break
On our way from Myra Ancient City to Gelidonya we turned out of the highway for a coffee break. This time we turned into the town Finike and drove to its marina. The “best place” we found for a tea/coffee break was a cafe beside Finike Su Ürünleri Kooperatifi. We ordered two turkish tea, sat down with some chips and relax for an hour.
Gelidonya Lighthouse
Our stay was about 5.5km from Gelidonya Lighthouse. After we checked into our stay and rested and near to sunset hour we started our trip to Gelidonya Lighthouse. Soon paved road gave way to mud road, we drove as far as our “2 wheel drive” could manage.
We left our car by the side of the road and walk to the light house. We walked and walked and walked. 15 minutes passed and another 15 minutes passed. Google map said it was 20 minutes but wenwere already into our 30 minutes!
It was tough to walk without an idea when would be the end. It was difficult to trek up and up slope without knowing how many more slopes to go. After another 30 minutes we finally reached the lighthouse.
It was a short wait for the sun to begin setting. The scenery under the setting sun was stunning. It was so beautiful. We would love to stay till the sunset but we could not. We had to walk back before the place became pitch black! Our car was one hour away!
We saw a group of youngsters setting up tents, they were the minority that would be staying the night in this “no facilities” place. At about 7.10pm we started trekking back to our car. Along the way we could see the sun setting and the sky turning more golden and orangy. Finally when it reached our car it was already pitch black. Driving pitch dark with only our headlights brightening the mud road was not a comfortable feeling. Luckily it was a short 10 minutes drive back to our stay.
Gelidonya Cape
Our stay at Gelidonya
We booked an apartment at Gelidonya it called Ezgi Apart. The apartment was housed in a two storey building. The common areas was not in its best of shape as it seemed that our senior host was not able to upkeep the place. Our stay cost Eur47 for a night.
Our apartment was not fantastic but pretty okay. It had a washine machine, ensuite toilet, a bedroom, a huge living room and a kitchen.
The apartment had a huge apartment with a view of the sea far ahead. Generally the apartment was large, clean and bright.
