Lycian Way

We had a lovely day out today, 12 of us from our original group booked a day trip via St Nikolas church - I hadn't known he was born in Antalya region, in Demdre which was where he had his ministry and was buried. This would be followed by a trip in a glass bottomed boat and a sea swim from the boat - which is one of my favourite things to do .
We set off at 8. 30am and at 9.30 stopped for drinks and a visit to Lymra on the Lycian Way. There were over 150 rock tombs in the area, mainly the cave type cut into the rock and then sealed which were used for multiple occupancy. There were also a few of the sarcophagus type (extra) designed with what looks like an upturned boat on top, ready for when the world flooded and the dead came back to life (the simplified version). There is a shot of one in water and one on a hilltop. We hadn't expected to see these and were delighted. The burial area was used from the 4th century BC onwards and belonged to the small village. Some of the tombs were beautifully decorated and still had clear inscriptions in Aramaic, Greek and Lycian.
Our next stop was at a beautiful amphitheatre which seated around 2000. Apparently you can calculate the population of an area by multiplying the seating capacity of the amphitheater by three. Nearby is the Cenotaph memorial for Gaius Caesar, grandson and heir of by the Emperor Augustus who died here on 21st February 4 AD. He was on his way back from a military campaign were he had been wounded. His body was taken back to Rome but a memorial created here.
We decided not to go into St Nikolas church, unusual for me, admission was £14 and we would only have 15 minutes, which at this stage of our holiday seemed rather too expensive, there was a huge icon shop nearby, again catering for the tourists. The number of Russian visitors to the area has greatly increased in recent years.
We stopped at several other sights along the way and had lunch in one of the local cafes. In my extra there is also a picture of the ruins of a beautiful church in a river bed, so peaceful and calming.
The highlight for many of us though was the boat trip. The glass bottomed boat was underwhelming but that didn't really matter. We travelled past so many more, historical, sights, tombs, deserted villages, sunken buildings etc. Quite beautiful with the stunning blue water of the eastern Mediterranean. We stopped in a deserted bay and swam from the boat for around half an hour. Just perfect.
The journey home took just over an hour, lots to see on the way back too. I spotted a couple of flamingos in a river, very unexpected!
What a way to spend a day in early November I can highly recommend it.


As an additional bonus, here is this month's delayed art quiz. I was pleased to score 9 this month, good luck.
https://nationalgalleries.typeform.com/to/RGeK8yLm?fbclid=IwAR1YUFeIjgjqvowwWOcGHuzQ2tAgzrZmkx_rmigXQ_UJM0UEmHMsxDOajYo&typeform-source=lm.facebook.com