Turkey
7/19-7/31
Leaders: Cheryl Kong and Jerry Yan
AMBASSADOR: Cem Yilmaz
ESTIMATED BUDGET DURING YACHT WEEK: $2100
Saturday, July 19th
Istanbul Arrival
Day at leisure
Dinner at Hamdi Restaurant
Night in Istanbul
Sunday, July 20thIstiklal Street, Galata, Galata Tower, Çukurcuma
Dinner at Leb-i Derya Restaurant
Monday, July, 21st
Hagia Sofia, Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, Chora Church, Basilica Cistern
Night in Istanbul
Tuesday, July 22nd
Dolmabahce Palace, Istanbul Modern, Unter (Lunch), Karakoy, Karakoy Lokantası (Dinner)
Night in Istanbul
Wednesday, July 23nd
Grand Bazaar
Lunch: Kilisli Ali Usta
Spice Market, Eminonu
Dinner: Cibalikapi Balikcisi in Balat
Party: Zelda Zonk
Night in Istanbul
Thursday, July 24th
Early flight to Cappadocia (Kayseri - Airport Code: ASR)
Night in Capadocia
Friday, July 25th
Ballon ride, Sultanhani Silk Road, Underground City, Selcuklu Camii
Night in Capadocia
Saturday, July 26th
Fly from Cappadocia, visit ruins, relax on beach
As the centre of a region with beautiful beaches, verdant mountains, and a mindblowing number of ancient ruins, Antalya is Turkey's biggest sea resort and ranks as the 3rd most visited city in the world (by international tourist arrivals) behind Paris and London.
Night in Antalya
Sunday, July 27th
See Hierapolis en route to Pammukale; Aspendos; Perge
Aspendos was an ancient city founded around 1000 BC by Greeks who may have come from Argos. It is known for having the best-preserved theatre of antiquity. The theatre was built in 155 by the Greek architect Zenon, a native of the city. It was periodically repaired by the Seljuqs, who used it as a caravansaray, and in the 13th century the stage building was converted into a palace by the Seljuqs of Rum.
Ancient Perge, one of the chief cities of Pamphylia is today an archaeological site. Its ruins include a theatre, a palæstra, a temple of Artemis and two churches.
The ancient city of Hierapolis, the original site of Pamukkale, was known as a Holy City in archaeological literature because of the abundance of temples and other religious structures in the area. Although there is limited information on the founding of the city, it is known that Eumenes II, king of Pergamon (or Pergamum (197-159 BC)), founded it and named it after Bergama's mythical founder, Hiera, who was the wife of Telephos. It was an important center during the Roman and Byzantine periods, and a center of Christianity since the 4th century. 28-
Night in Antalya
Monday, July 28th
Pammukale Cottenfields, hot springs Pamukkale, meaning "cotton castle" in Turkish, is a natural site in Denizli Province in southwestern Turkey. The city contains hot springs and travertines, terraces of carbonate minerals left by the flowing water. Visit the petrified waterfalls/travertine (a UNESCO World Heritage site) and bathe in the mineral hot springs.
Night in Pammukale
Tuesday, July 29th
Ephesus, House of Mary According to ancient inscriptions, Ephesus is thought to have been inhabited since around 3000 BC. When the Romans made Ephesus their provincial capital, it became a busy town with great commercial, trading and political importance, and a population that grew to around 250,000. A significant Christian community grew, and the city was visited by St John the Evangelist in the 1st century, then by St Paul, who was there between 51-53 AD and wrote some of his epistles. It was also the venue of two Ecumenical Councils.
The house of the Virgin Mary, about 7 km from Selcuk, is believed to have been the last home of Mary, mother of Jesus. It is a popular place of pilgrimage which has been visited by three recent popes.
Night in Izmir
Wednesday, July 30
Troy and Pergamon (Acropolis, the Asclepion and the Red Basilica)
Troy, with its 4,000 years of history, is one of the most famous archaeological sites in the world. The first excavations at the site were undertaken by the famous archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann in 1870. In scientific terms, its extensive remains are the most significant demonstration of the first contact between the civilizations of Anatolia and the Mediterranean world. Moreover, the siege of Troy by Spartan and Achaean warriors from Greece in the 13th or 12th century B.C., immortalized by Homer in the Iliad, has inspired great creative artists throughout the world ever since.
Pergamon was an ancient city connected to the Caicus river valley which provided access from Pergamon to the Aegean coast. Pergamon reached the height of its influence during the Hellenistic period becoming the capital of the Attalid kings and the Pergamon Empire from the 3rd to 2nd century BCE and in the Roman period it was the first capital of the Asian province until this was moved to local rival Ephesus. The archaeological site of Pergamon has provided many fine works of Hellenistic and Roman art but perhaps the most impressive is the altar which now resides in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin.
Night in Izmir
Thursday, July 31st
Depart Izmir and fly home
Istanbul Arrival
Day at leisure
Dinner at Hamdi Restaurant
Night in Istanbul
Sunday, July 20thIstiklal Street, Galata, Galata Tower, Çukurcuma
Dinner at Leb-i Derya Restaurant
Monday, July, 21st
Hagia Sofia, Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, Chora Church, Basilica Cistern
Night in Istanbul
Tuesday, July 22nd
Dolmabahce Palace, Istanbul Modern, Unter (Lunch), Karakoy, Karakoy Lokantası (Dinner)
Night in Istanbul
Wednesday, July 23nd
Grand Bazaar
Lunch: Kilisli Ali Usta
Spice Market, Eminonu
Dinner: Cibalikapi Balikcisi in Balat
Party: Zelda Zonk
Night in Istanbul
Thursday, July 24th
Early flight to Cappadocia (Kayseri - Airport Code: ASR)
Night in Capadocia
Friday, July 25th
Ballon ride, Sultanhani Silk Road, Underground City, Selcuklu Camii
Night in Capadocia
Saturday, July 26th
Fly from Cappadocia, visit ruins, relax on beach
As the centre of a region with beautiful beaches, verdant mountains, and a mindblowing number of ancient ruins, Antalya is Turkey's biggest sea resort and ranks as the 3rd most visited city in the world (by international tourist arrivals) behind Paris and London.
Night in Antalya
Sunday, July 27th
See Hierapolis en route to Pammukale; Aspendos; Perge
Aspendos was an ancient city founded around 1000 BC by Greeks who may have come from Argos. It is known for having the best-preserved theatre of antiquity. The theatre was built in 155 by the Greek architect Zenon, a native of the city. It was periodically repaired by the Seljuqs, who used it as a caravansaray, and in the 13th century the stage building was converted into a palace by the Seljuqs of Rum.
Ancient Perge, one of the chief cities of Pamphylia is today an archaeological site. Its ruins include a theatre, a palæstra, a temple of Artemis and two churches.
The ancient city of Hierapolis, the original site of Pamukkale, was known as a Holy City in archaeological literature because of the abundance of temples and other religious structures in the area. Although there is limited information on the founding of the city, it is known that Eumenes II, king of Pergamon (or Pergamum (197-159 BC)), founded it and named it after Bergama's mythical founder, Hiera, who was the wife of Telephos. It was an important center during the Roman and Byzantine periods, and a center of Christianity since the 4th century. 28-
Night in Antalya
Monday, July 28th
Pammukale Cottenfields, hot springs Pamukkale, meaning "cotton castle" in Turkish, is a natural site in Denizli Province in southwestern Turkey. The city contains hot springs and travertines, terraces of carbonate minerals left by the flowing water. Visit the petrified waterfalls/travertine (a UNESCO World Heritage site) and bathe in the mineral hot springs.
Night in Pammukale
Tuesday, July 29th
Ephesus, House of Mary According to ancient inscriptions, Ephesus is thought to have been inhabited since around 3000 BC. When the Romans made Ephesus their provincial capital, it became a busy town with great commercial, trading and political importance, and a population that grew to around 250,000. A significant Christian community grew, and the city was visited by St John the Evangelist in the 1st century, then by St Paul, who was there between 51-53 AD and wrote some of his epistles. It was also the venue of two Ecumenical Councils.
The house of the Virgin Mary, about 7 km from Selcuk, is believed to have been the last home of Mary, mother of Jesus. It is a popular place of pilgrimage which has been visited by three recent popes.
Night in Izmir
Wednesday, July 30
Troy and Pergamon (Acropolis, the Asclepion and the Red Basilica)
Troy, with its 4,000 years of history, is one of the most famous archaeological sites in the world. The first excavations at the site were undertaken by the famous archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann in 1870. In scientific terms, its extensive remains are the most significant demonstration of the first contact between the civilizations of Anatolia and the Mediterranean world. Moreover, the siege of Troy by Spartan and Achaean warriors from Greece in the 13th or 12th century B.C., immortalized by Homer in the Iliad, has inspired great creative artists throughout the world ever since.
Pergamon was an ancient city connected to the Caicus river valley which provided access from Pergamon to the Aegean coast. Pergamon reached the height of its influence during the Hellenistic period becoming the capital of the Attalid kings and the Pergamon Empire from the 3rd to 2nd century BCE and in the Roman period it was the first capital of the Asian province until this was moved to local rival Ephesus. The archaeological site of Pergamon has provided many fine works of Hellenistic and Roman art but perhaps the most impressive is the altar which now resides in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin.
Night in Izmir
Thursday, July 31st
Depart Izmir and fly home