"TRABZON" Trabzon by RUMISABUNCU

Trabzon - Uzungöl Natural Park
Location: The park is in the Cankara district, 99 km from Trabzon and 25 km from Cankara.

Transportation: The park can be reached via the 010 state highway from Trabzon, then from Caykara for another 19km.

Highlights: The 1625 hectares of the park were designated a Nature Park in 1989 because of the rich plant life, wildlife and sightseeing potential. The dominant tree species is Eastern spruce, and there are also badger, bearded, alder, horn-beam, hazelnut, oak, mountain elm and silver birch trees. Species of animals include mountain goat, roe deer, bear, wolf, wild boar, marten, badger, lynx, jackal, fox, rabbit, squirrel, wild ducks, birds of prey, trout and various kinds of reptiles.

The most important river in the area is the Demirkapi, and the Uzungol Lake was formed as a result of the rocks closing the mouth of the river. 10km south of the lake is the Norizca mountain, with an altitude of 300m. The best time to visit the park is between April and October.

Facilities: There is accommodation in the park.

SUMELA

The ruins of a monastery can be seen on the slopes of the Zigana Mountains to the south of Trabzon and at the foot of the mountain at the bottom of a wooded valley flows one of the tributaries of Deðirmen Creek, which terminates at Trabzon. This place is known as “Meryem Ana”, or “the Virgin Mary” by the local people. Its old name is “Sumela Monastery”. Many people consider its origins to be extremely old, and this opinion is widely held among the Byzantine Greek community of the Black Sea coast. According to legends about the foundation of the monastery in books about Trabzon printed in Greek, the monastery was originally founded in the reign of Theodosius and rebuilt in the sixth century in the reign of Justinian by Belisarios, one of his commanders. However, foreign experts who have conducted on-site investigations consider that there is nothing to substantiate this hypothesis. The Monastery's main source of income is an icon of the Virgin Mary, which is reputed to be of great age and believed by many to possess miraculous properties. According to the legend, the icon is the work of Saint Luke, one of the disciples of Jesus Christ and it was sent to Athens after the death of Luke. However, in the reign of Theodosius (4th century) the icon declared its desire to leave Athens and was borne to this hollow in the mountains around Trabzon by angels and placed upon a stone. It was at that time that two hermits by the name of Barnabus and Sophronius, who were then travelling from Athens to Trabzon, happened to find the icon in this deserted spot. Thus, buildings which are the subject of such legends are automatically regarded as being exceptionally old. Sumela is not the only example of this type, it is only one of a number.