27-06-2009
Cappadocia – Konya – Antalya 535 kms.
Sultanhan Caravanserai – Konya
In the morning, we started our journey through the plain of Konya, the granary of turkey, en route, stop at the Sultanhan Caravanserai built during the Seljuk period in the 13th century and which is the largest in Anatolia.The Seljuk Turkish history is significant in that they are regarded as the ancestors of the Western Turks – the modern Turks of today. The Seljuk Turks were the first people to invade Anatolia completely. With the establishment of the Anatolian Seljuk State as part of the Great Seljuk Empire began the Islamic period in Turkey. The Seljuks played a major role in the Middle Ages in defending the Islamic world against the Crusaders, and conquering large parts of the Byzantine Empire. They also did a service to Europe by providing a barrier between them and the raiding Mongols. Finally their importance lay in the fact that they paved the way for the Ottoman Turks.
Upon arrival in Konya, the capital of the Sultanate of Rum and the Holy city of the Seljuk Turks, visit the museum of Mevlana, the famous mystic and poet who founded the Sufi Order of the Whirling Dervishes in the 13th century. Crossing the Taurus Mountains, drive to Antalya, overlooking the Turquoise depths of the Mediterranean.
