| Şanlıurfa | ||
 | ||
| State | Turkey | |
|---|---|---|
| Region | Southeastern Anatolia | |
| Altitude | 549 m a.s.l. | |
| Inhabitants | 2.031.425 (2018 estimate) | |
| Prefix tel | 90 414 | |
| POSTAL CODE | 27x xx | |
| Time zone | UTC 2 | |
Position
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| Institutional website | ||
Şanlıurfa (most commonly Urfa) it's a city Turkish located in the region ofSoutheastern Anatolia.
To know
Geographical notes
Şanlıurfa is located on a fertile plain washed by the Euphrates River. It is 55 km from the border with the Syria (Akcakale border crossing).
Background
Urfa is the ancient Edessa founded in 304 BC. by Seleuco I Nicatore. Towards the end of the 2nd century BC, Edessa became the capital of an Aramaic state ruled by the Arab dynasty of the Nabataeans but under the protection of the Parthians. It was annexed to Rome for the first time by the emperor Trajan in 114-117 and became a Roman colony under Caracalla. Its position on the eastern frontier of the Empire meant that it was disputed for a long time between Romans and Sassanids first and later between Byzantines and Arabs. In 1098, the crusader Baudouin of Flanders induced Theodore, the last Armenian ruler to adopt him and to appoint him as his successor, thus establishing the first Eastern crusader state known at the time as the county of Edessa. Baudouin imposed Catholicism on the population who mostly professed Christianity of the Greek Orthodox and Armenian rites.
In 1144 the county of Edessa fell into the hands of the Seljuk Abassid Zengui who had most of the Christian inhabitants killed together with the Catholic archbishop. The Second Crusade failed to retake the city. The Ottomans took Edessa in 1516 and assigned it to the Vilayet of Aleppo. Under them Urfa became an important trading center that sorted cotton, skins, jewels and pistachios. The trade was in the hands of a small Jewish community established in Urfa as early as the 1st century AD. In the city there were three Christian-Syriac, Armenian and Catholic communities. According to Lord Kinross, 8,000 Armenians were massacred in Urfa in 1895. At the outbreak of World War I, Urfa had an estimated population of around 75,000. Of these 45,000 were of the Muslim faith, 25,000 Armenians and 5,000 of the Christian-Assyrian rite. There was also a Jewish presence in the city. During the war, genocides of non-Muslim communities took place. The survivors were forced to flee or go into hiding. The last Christian communities abandoned Urfa in 1924 to settle in Aleppo, at the time under French protectorate.
The British occupation of the city of Urfa actually began on 7 March 1919 and lasted until 30 October of the same year. French forces took over the next day and withdrew on 11 April 1920, two weeks before the official declaration of the Republic of Turkey. The withdrawal of the French troops had been agreed with the local authorities and was intended to take place peacefully but the pacts were not respected and the French were ambushed along the road to the Syria, which claimed 296 lives for them.
As of 2018, Urfa appeared as a stronghold of the ruling Justice and Development party that year. However, in the 2009 local elections, the city elected an independent mayor, Ahmet Eşref Fakibaba.
How to orient yourself
Şanlıurfa: full screen map.How to get
By plane
- 1 [link previously not working]Şanlıurfa GAP Airport (Şanlıurfa GAP Havalimanı). The airport is located 34 km northeast of the center. The connection from with the center is ensured by Turkish Airlines buses as well as by taxi. The airlines operating there in 2018 were the following:
- AnadoluJet - from the new airport of Istanbul.
- Turkish Airlines - from the new airport of Istanbul.
- Pegasus Airlines - from Ankara, Istanbul–Sabiha Gökçen, Smyrna.
By bus
- 2 Suburban bus station (Şanlıurfa Otogarı). Inaugurated in 2009, the suburban bus station is a modern structure that is spread over 2 floors and occupies an area of 60 thousand square meters. Inside there are about thirty ticket offices and as many platforms. On the lower floor of the building the minibuses from the center and from the suburbs of Urfa terminate, while the upper floor is used as a terminus for interurban buses. There are also snack bars, eateries and a shopping center. Among the bus lines that operated there in 2018 Turizm Metro is Star Diyarbakir.
How to get around
What see
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Şanlıurfa has a large number of old mansions with characteristic architecture. The windows do not face the street but an internal courtyard to ensure better privacy. Many houses were equipped with elaborate aviaries placed under the roof.
- 1 Balıklıgöl (Fish tank). An artificial pond of about 150 × 25 m. associated with the legend of Abraham. The prophet would have been condemned to the stake but saved by a miracle (Sura 21: 68-69). The complex includes the Gölbaşı Garden and the Halil Rahman and Rizvaniye Mosques. Over a million Muslims from all over Turkey and other countries visit Balıklıgöl every year
- 2 Citadel of Urfa (Urfa Kalesi). Very old, the citadel of Urfa is a panoramic point over the city. On the top, reachable both by stairways and a tunnel dug into the rock, are a couple of Corinthian columns from the Roman era.
- 3 Ulu Camii. The mosque was built on a Byzantine church of which there are sections of walls, columns, capitals and the bell tower converted into a minaret. It has similarities with the mosque of Aleppo also obtained from a Byzantine church.
- 4 [link not working]Archaeological Museum, 2372 Sk, ☎ 90 414 312 53 32.
Tue-Sun 08: 00-17: 00. inaugurated in 1969, the museum consists of three pavilions where more than 70,000 artifacts from nearby archaeological sites are exhibited. The most interesting ones come from the Neolithic-era settlements of Göbekli Tepe and Nevalı Çori. The latter is no longer visible having been submerged by the waters following the damming of the Euphrates river. - 5 Aleppo Garden Mosaic Museum (Haleplibahçe Mozaik Müzesi), 2372 Sk, ☎ 90 414 313 15 88. Tue-Sun 08: 00-19: 00.
- 6 Culinary Museum (Mutfak Müzesi), 1334. Sk. Tue-Sun 09: 00-17: 00. Nice museum set up in a patrician house of the end of the 19th century where objects of the time of daily use are exhibited. Mannequins of diners in period costumes make the performances more alive The explanations are in Turkish only.
Tue-Sun 08: 00-17: 00. inaugurated in 1969, the museum consists of three pavilions where more than 70,000 artifacts from nearby archaeological sites are exhibited. The most interesting ones come from the Neolithic-era settlements of Göbekli Tepe and Nevalı Çori. The latter is no longer visible having been submerged by the waters following the damming of the Euphrates river.Events and parties
What to do
Shopping
- 1 Bazaar of Urfa, Atatürk Blv. Mon-Sat 09: 00-17: 00. A maze of covered and uncovered streets where it is possible to find everything from handicrafts and souvenirs to live animals and clothing that is not really seductive. It is above all a place to hang out rather than shop.
- 2 Gümrük Hanı. A place obtained from a suggestive stone building from the time of Suleiman the Magnificent to serve as customs and also as a refreshment post (han) for caravans traveling the silk road. Gümrük Hanı has retained an authentic traditional atmosphere although tourists, even passing by, do not omit a visit. In the inner courtyard there are restaurants that mostly serve tea and pastries to customers intent on playing card games or playing a chessboard. The building is in the area of the ancient covered market (Tarihi Kapalı Çarşı) .
How to have fun
Where to eat
hygiene in Şanlıurfa restaurants does not meet western standards. Especially in the summer months you can experience indigestion or serious intestinal disorders if you do not take elementary precautionary measures such as avoiding drinking tap water, soft drinks with ice cubes and eating cold foods, ice cream and kebabs offered by street vendors or various stands. present in the bazaars.
Average prices
- 1 Çulcuoğlu Baklava & Restaurant, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Blv., ☎ 90 414 312 95 95. Probably the best restaurant in Urfa, especially appreciated for the lamb kebab, the aubergine dishes, the pistachio desserts and, last but not least, the sweet baklava.
- 2 Cevahir Han, Vali Fuat Cad. 5, ☎ 90 414 215 93 77. Set up in an old mansion that was the residence of the Ottoman governor of Urfa.
- 3 Gulhan Restaurant, Ataturk BulvarI, ☎ 90 414 313 33 18. Home cooking restaurant popular for kebabs and Lahmacun (Turkish pizza) accompanied with ayran and rolled around pickled cucumbers. Hygiene is taken care of unlike many other restaurants in Urfa. The restaurant is suitable for both vegetarians and carnivores. It is always very busy but the service is fast also because most of the dishes have already been prepared and well displayed on the counter.
Where stay
Average prices
- 1 Hilton Garden Inn Sanliurfa, 11 Nisan Fuar Cd. No: 5 (Near the suburban bus station), ☎ 90 414 318 50 00. 4 star hotel
- 2 Hotel Manici, ☎ 90 414 215 99 11.
- 3 El Ruha Hotel, Haleplibahçe Cd. 155 / A, ☎ 90 414 215 44 11.
- 4 Harrann Hotel, Ataturk Bulvari, ☎ 90 414 313 28 60. 4 star hotel. Swimming pool in the company of many pigeons.
- 5 Grand Urfa Hotel, İpekyol Blv. 48 / A, ☎ 90 414 313 13 11.
High prices
- 6 Dedeman Şanlıurfa, Hastane Caddesi, ☎ 90 414 318 25 00.
- 7 Nevali Hotel, Abide Parkı, ☎ 90 414 318 80 00. 5 star hotel
Safety
Şanlıurfa is about 50 km from the border with the Syria, a country afflicted by a civil war that broke out in 2014 and by ISIS raids. In the past there have been bombings on Turkish villages close to the border, therefore excursions to Harran and Sumatar, detailed below, should be avoided.
Şanlıurfa falls within the area of action of the PKK, an organization labeled as terrorist. Abdullah Öcalan, the founder of the PKK, arrested in 1999, is from Ömerli, a village 100 km from Sanliurfa. Although the situation has greatly improved after the arrest of PKK militants, new Kurdish uprisings were reported in 2017 in villages in southeastern Anatolia where law enforcement is not very present.
In the city there is not much to fear, just apply elementary rules such as not showing off jewels or technological marvels on the street to avoid muggings. Women traveling alone cannot go out at night and during the day they should not go to bazaars and other crowded places if they want to avoid sexual harassment, the most innocent of which is the classic "dead hand". Couples should avoid public affection.
How to keep in touch
Around
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- 3 Göbekli Tepe (12 km) - An archaeological site dating back to the beginning of the Neolithic, definitively abandoned around 8000 BC. Excavations in 1963 by a group of Turkish-American archaeologists unearthed the remains of the oldest stone temple ever built by humans. Its construction dates back to 9500 BC. about.
- 4 Harran (44 km) - Ruins of a city built in the Assyrian period and flourishing in the Roman and Byzantine periods known respectively as Carrhae and Hellenopolis. At the time of the Islamic rule it took the ancient Assyrian name of Ḥarrān. In the 13th century, historian Abu al-Fida described Harran as a city in ruins. Today, sections of the walls and brick constructions in the form of a beehive still remain, rare in Turkey but widespread in neighboring Syria. Although suggestive, these constructions are recent: the oldest date back to the 18th century.
- 5 Ruins of Sumatar (Sumatar Harabesi) - Located on the Tek Tek mountains established as a national park (Tek Tek Dağları Milli Parkı), Sumatar was an oasis inhabited by semi-nomadic Semitic people but today it appears completely deserted. It features temple ruins probably dedicated to Sin, the moon god of Babylonian mythology, as well as several sculptures carved from the rock and inscriptions dating from the 4th century BC. The temples are clustered around a 50m high rock formation. There is also a natural cave decorated with horn-shaped pillars, a symbol of the Babylonian moon god. The presence of Semitic populations in the area south of Urfa is confirmed in Roman times by the writings of Pliny the Elder.
