"BODRUM, TURKEY" Top 5 Page for this destination Bodrum by Lyndra

“I have travelled the whole world but found nothing in heaven or earth as beautiful as the Aegean” Herodotus

Merhaba fellow VTer's!

I absolutely love Turkey and Turkish people. I have had 16 holidays to Turkey and 13 of these have been to Bodrum. "Get a life"- I'm sure you are thinking but wait... Bodrum really is brilliant and offers me everything I need for a relaxing summer get away. It is hot, inexpensive, has kind and friendly people, has Efes (in copious amounts and very cheap!!), has great archaeology and history, did I mention the cheap beer? I spend 2 - 5 weeks here every summer to unwind (I have a fairly stressful job!).

For culture and learning I probably have done Bodrum to death but I just love the place. I hope to find a house there this summer and eventually I will retire to Turkey, can't wait! (To live in Turkey that is - not to get old!).

Bodrum has planty of bars and clubs to satisfy the party animal and every visitor who likes a drink and some people watching should get off the beaten track and visit some bars that Turkish people spend their free time in - try Lodos, Fora and Korfez, each has a range of music (rock, pop, Turkish) and I always think you get a better feel for a place when you actually stop being a tourist and start to be a traveller (very philosophical but true). Halikarnas is supposed to be the largest open air night club in "Europe" (I know Bodrum isn't in Europe!!) however it is very expensive and frequently very quiet - tourists don't always want to pay 35YTL to get into a club. Look out for any international DJ's and then it might be worth the effort. It is an experience and should be tried once!

Food in Bodrum is a pleasant surprise and if you look you can find some quality restaurants. For cheap food go to the bar street area in the day (Like Goldenplate which has a lovely view of the water as you eat and the staff are friendly) but for nicer food explore some of the fish restaurants the town has to offer (Bodrum was a fishing town before it ever became a holiday resort and the fishermen still do their stuff!). It's really not about who shouts at you the loudest to get you in there. Once you have eaten a real kebab in Turkey you may not want to eat the ones from the local chip shop anymore! Warning however, eat kebab where the locals do and inspect the cleanliness to avoid dodgy tummy!!

One of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World is right in the middle of Bodrum - the mausoleum (for Mausolus). You need to use your imagination to imagine what this unique structure may have looked like... but if you pop to Ephesus too, you will have done the second wonder to be found in Turkey (the Temple of Artemis). Who said its all about the Efes??

Oh just as another bit of culture ;-) The Seven Churches of Asia Minor (mentioned in the Book of Revelation) are all in Western Turkey! One of these was Ephesus too.

Bodrum Castle (Bodrum Kalesi: Castle of St Peter) makes a great day out if you are interested in archaeology and history (Bodrum is a world leader in underwater archaeological techniques and many wrecks have been explored off the Aegean coast, which was a centre of trade for many ancient civilisations!!!).

For those of you with a burning desire to find out more about Bronze Age shipwrecks: the ULUBURIN was discovered fully laden off the Turkish coast. It was most likely a trading ship between the many civilisations in this area. Turkey was surely at the hub of Ancient buying and selling (nothing changes!).

The Amphitheatre is on the outskirts of the town and is an open air concert venue as well as being a significant historic site. Look out for boards and posters advertising the events - there was an opera staged there last summer. It is free to get into this site and while not on the same scale as the great Roman amphitheatres found across Europe, it is worth a look.

There is also the Myndos Gate to be seen, the best remnant of an original city wall (it is called the Myndos Gate because it faces the ancient town of Myndos - it's called Gumusluk now ;-)

"Have you got a bigger glass please?"

This is a Turkish proverb and so true. No holiday to Bodrum would be complete without my trusty side kick - my sister (affectionately known as Bob and she is bob75 on VT too)! She is a great travel companion (when we can get her out of bed that is!!) and loves the Efes nearly as much as me ;-).

I've managed to get my brother Rob on the Turkish band wagon too and he has had his first visit to Turkey this August (a chance for me to experience it through his fresh eyes). He had a great time in Bodrum but the relentless Efes drinking was even a little too much for him!! Who knew that the baby in the family would struggle to keep up with his big sisters :o)

This year we are going to bite the bullet and start to look for a nice house or apartment to buy. There are still some great bargains to be had in the area. We attended a holiday homes exhibition recently and this has just made us more positive to invest in Turkey while there are bargains to be had. We did find this summer that if you mention that you are going to buy a house everyone knows an estate agent or someone who has a house to sell - you need to be wary!

One viweing trip done, to Kusadasi in May 2008, but it may not be the city for me! Gorgeous houses, beautiful national park and amazing beaches. Cheap houses but...it's not Bodrum!

The entire peninsula is outlined by delightful fishing villages and towns that are now holiday destinations in their own right - Yalikavak, Torba, Gumusluk etc. It will be hard to choose with so much nice land to consider but I have a dream of building my own place on a hill between Bodrum and Gumbet, and waking up to the glorious Aegean every day...I can only hope :o)

"The land of eternal blue." (Homer on Bodrum)

Lyndra and the Aegean (from St Peter's Castle)

"The heavenly bliss of life in Bodrum is better than any eternal bliss that may await us." (Cevat Sakir)

Modern Bodrum sits on top of the ancient city of Halikarnassus and around Bodrum you can still see evidence of the original city (some of these sites are in my tips). The word Bodrum means "Dungeon".

The oldest signs of habitation have been found on the site of St Peter's Castle, which was once an island next to the mainland.

Bodrum was home to some significant people in the history of Turkey and in some cases the world:

* Herodotus, also known as the Father of History, was born in Bodrum (some people have called him the Father of Lies due to his slight bias in writing)
* King Mausolos was the ruler of Caria and had a massive mausoleum built to house his remains (this is where the word mausoleum comes from)
* Artemisia II, sister and wife of King Mausolos and was a warrior in her own right (she conquered Rhodes)
* Alexander The Great battled ferociusly in Bodrum, damaging the city walls and Myndos Gate in the process
* Anthony and Cleopatra stayed over in Bodrum on their travels
* Dionysius - the historian who wrote a 20 volume history of Rome came from Bodrum
* Cassius (who helped to murder Ceasar with Brutus) fled and lurked in Myndos harbour after the murder and ransaked the supplies of the people of Myndos - much to their disgust!!
* Scylax was an explorer who travelled extensively around the middle east
* Suleiman the Magnificent conquered Bodrum for the Ottomans in 1522
* Turget Reis was an Ottoman admiral and he was born near Bodrum - the town of Turgetreis just along the coast is named after him as is the main road in and out of Bodrum.
* Cevat Sakir Kabaagaçli also known as "The Fisherman of Halikarnassus" was outcast in Bodrum and ended up loving the town so much that he stayed and wrote about the place. His grave is just outsde the town.
* Neyzen Tevfik, a Turkish poet and musician, was born in Bodrum (one of the main streets in town is named after him - down by the marina)

Here are some web addresses for anyone considering a visit to Bodrum who might like a little more information, just in case my tips are not informative enough:
Weather:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/5day.shtml?world=0143
General :
http://www.bodrum-museum.com/
http://www.bodrum-airport.com
http://www.bodrumhotels.net/
http://www.bodrumtour.com
http://www.turkeytravelplanner.com/
http://www.bodrumlife.com/
http://www.miltabodrummarina.com
http://www.guidebodrum.com
http://www.yesbodrum.com

My Bodrum Tips include all excellent archaeology or places of interest within 50km of Bodrum as these places are the easiest to get to by car and bus when you visit the Bodrum Peninsula.

If you are going to Bodrum and want some advice, give me an email :o)

• Pros:Sun, bluest sea, friendly people, inexpensive, history, culture - what else do you need?
• Cons:None for me!!
• In a nutshell:The St Tropez of Turkey - Apparently!