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 SEFERHiSAR
(TEOS) |
POPULATION:
28.707
DISTANCE FROM IZMIR: 55
km
Advantages Offered by Seferihisar:
the long summer season and the natural beauties enhance
the potential for summer and sea tourism. It is one of the
three best surfing centres of the world. It is very
suitable for thermal tourism |
| On the
southern side of the Çeşme Peninsula, near the town of Seferihisar is the small
picturesque marina of Sığacık. Teos ruins stand in the 1 km. away from south of
Sığacık village that is 5 kms. further than Seferihisar district. According to some
historians it is stated that it was found as an Ionian colony in 1000 B.C, with Ionian
settlement teos gained its independence. |
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The main living source of Teos was
sea-trade,
Teos had a small and ahudge totaly two harbors. of
the ancient worlld was errected here. This important yachting centre is surrounded by fortifications dating from
the Genoese period and is a good point from which to visit the Temple of Dionysus, it's
founder is known to be Athamas who is a son of Dionysos, the biggest Dionysos Temple.
More over, Ionian Actors Union was firstly
originated in Teos towards the end of 3 B.C. and the actors played many plays by using
teos as a center in different places the monuments of Hellenistic and Roman period are
found in Teos.
Agora, Theatre, Odeon city-walls and Harbor ruins in 1522, The Ottomans built a castle that was
utilized as naval-base in Sığacık. |
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| Today, we can plainly see the the ruins of the
castle, Dionysos Temple and the theatre. At the antique site of Teos as well as the lovely Akkum
beach. South of Akkum, the
New Neptune Holiday Village has windsurfing and diving schools; this is the best area for
these sports. The ruins of Teos are set amidst olive groves at one end of Sığacık harbour ,
famous for its beaches and thermal springs. Thales relates that Teos was selected as
capital of the league of twelve Ionian cities in the 7th century BC. The largest temple of
Dionysus ever built in Teos. Cumali Thermal Bath is on the by way going to Seferihisar. Setting out on a journey from
Seferihisar, the first break should probably be given at the ruins of ancient
Colophon town at Örenşehir
village of Degirmendere. Colophon was one of the richest towns of lonia in 8th-7th centuries
BC. Citizens of Colophon were renowned with their fertile
lands, their mastery in sailing
and tendency to luxury, and extravaganza lifestyle. |
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| Excavations have revealed important
architectural finds, but to the amateur traveller, their shapeless apperance is a far cry
from their historic significance. Looking at the ruins over and over you may ask "What on earth can important architectural finds be?" in the vicinity of
Doğanbey village is the other
lonian town Lebedos. |
| SIĞACIK:
"Hospitable harbour for 3000 years" |
The small gulf of
Sığacık on the shore of the peninsula south of İzmir was described by the famous 16th
century Turkish navigator and cartographer Piri Reis as ‘an anchorage with water like
yufka’, in other words waters as soft and calm as the paper thin pastry, yufka. Ancient
seafarers discovered this hospitable shelter from storms 3000 years ago.
Sığacık lies between the headlands of Doğanbey Burnu and Teke
Burnu. Its shores have been home to many of the peoples who made their home in Asia Minor,
bringing their rich array of cultures, and the inhabitants of this region were aptly
described by the ancient Egyptians as "the
people who live in the heart of the sea".
Today Sığacık is a magnet for windsurfers, sailors and, less
predictably, rock climbers attracted by the challenge of towering cliffs on a small
island.To get there from izmir or Kuşadası head for Seferihisar, and then follow the
signs to Teos and Sığacık. |
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| The road leads through tangerine orchards until you reach
the coast for your first spectacular view of Sığacık, with its calm bay, tiny castle at
whose foot are moored colourful fishing boats, and the delicious fragrance of grilling
fish filling the air. It is thought that the 16th century Ottoman castle was constructed
on the advice of Piri Reis. The castle originally had two storeys, but only one
remains today. If you climb the staircases concealed in the two towers to the top of the
walls, you will be rewarded by unforgettable views to every side. Dignified yachts
alongside cheerful fishing boats, the picturesque traditional houses of Sığacık inside
the citadel walls to the east, and a white tomb on the opposite shore. Local legend has it
that sailors seeking refuge one stormy night saw a light on the spot where the tomb now
stands, turned the helm towards it, and so found their way to safety in Sığacık
Harbour. The ship’s captain asked to be buried there when he died, and his tomb is a
memorial to both the captain and the miraculous light.The road climbing the hill behind
the tomb marks the site of the ancient city of Teos, and the distant cliff visible on the
east side of the bay is actually an ancient quarry. |
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| Archaeological finds in the harbour show that stone quarried here was
exported by sea. To the west is the beach of Altınkum (the appropriately named Golden Sands), and dotted on the water windsurfers gliding to and fro absorbed in the
delights of their sport and surroundings. To reach the ruins of Teos take the road past
the Ministry of Forestry staff holiday camp.Teos was founded in 1050-1000 BC, one of
twelve Ionian cities. In this beautiful part of the Aegean coast the people of Teos built
magnificent architectural monuments, such as the Temple of Dionysos which stands at the
edge of the road. The temple was built at the beginning of the 2nd century BC by
Hermogenes of Priene and is the largest of all temples to Dionysos in Turkey. It was
repaired several times during Roman times but fresh earthquakes took their toll. Walking
along the paved road of Teos your eye is caught by a column capital here, and a water
conduit there. |
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| Five hundred metres to the northwest you discover Hellenistic walls, a
theatre, acropolis and gymnasium. Inscriptions found here reveal that the gymnasium had
three classes and three teachers, two for sport and one for music. Looking south from the
gymnasium you see a tiny jetty with bobbing rowing boats. This is the remains of the
ancient breakwater of the South Harbour. Beyond is a tiny island known variously to local
people as Çıfıtkale, Çifte Kale or Korsan Adası today, but in the 16th century it was
called Cüneyd Kalesi by Piri Reis. Your tourism leaflet is likely to give yet another
alternative, the ancient Myonnessos. To reach this island, so generously blessed with
names for such a small place, you must return along the road to Seferhisar and head south.
Hekataios of Miletus described Myonnessos as a town in the 6th century BC, and it is
thought to have subsequently become a pirate stronghold (recalled in the name Korsan Adası, Pirates Island). The only remains from the archaic period is a 5-6 m piece
of wall on the northwest side. The other ruins and cisterns date from Seljuk and Ottoman
times. |
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| The names Çıfıtkale or Çifte Kale (kale
meaning fort or castle in Turkish) refer to the
time when the last ruler of the Turkish Aydınoğulları principality Cüneyd Bey made his
last stand in his fort here before being defeated by the Ottoman sultan Murad II (1421-1451).To see
the island at closer quarters you do not need to take a boat, but can walk along the 80
metre long ancient submerged pier lying 25-30 cm beneath the surface of the water. This is
the way used by mountaineers who come to climb the towering 62 metre high rock cliffs on
the south side of the island.Just as Sığacık Bay is a calm refuge for storm battered
sailors, so Çıfıtkale attracts climbers and those wishing to enjoy the delights of
clear blue sea and superb scenery. And in Sığacık harbour another surprise awaits
visitors, delectable gilthead bream, red sea bream and sargo, accompanied by glasses of
ice-cold cloud white rakı, the perfect conclusion to a glorious day. |
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