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A nature festival: Kemaliye



 
 
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  #1  
Old May 26th, 2009, 01:09 AM posted to rec.travel.budget.backpack,rec.travel.europe,soc.culture.turkish,rec.travel.asia
T.R.H.
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 30
Default A nature festival: Kemaliye

[See more on this subject by visiting the pages
selected for you by Anita Donohoe:
http://www.turkradio.us/k/kemaliye/ ]

x0x A nature festival: Kemaliye

By MELIH USLU

Kemaliye, a candidate for one of Turkey's leading
centers of eco-tourism, is up and ready for the
2nd Nature Sports Festival, starting on 14 May.
How about you? Anatolia possesses a number of
regions which are ideal for nature sports owing to
their geographical structure and plant cover but
whose touristic attractions are insufficiently
well-known. And Kemaliye, the southernmost
township of Erzincan province, is one of them.

The Kemaliye Valley, formed by erosion over
billions of years of the limestone rock of the
Karasu, one of two branches of the Euphrates,
harbors a rich diversity of habitat and climate
due to a sharp rise in altitude over a short
distance. While the over 1000-meter-high mountain
steppes exhibit an Alpine ecology based on a harsh
land climate, a Mediterranean climate reigns along
the length of the valley. What's more, owing to
its location on the Silk Road which joins Anatolia
and Central Asia, the township boasts not only a
rich history but a long-standing traditional of
hospitality.

With its profusion of rare wildlife, it is a
candidate for soon becoming one of Turkey's
leading centers of ecological tourism and nature
sports.

CITY OF TERRACES

Inspired by Ataturk, whose middle name was Kemal,
the new name of the township, which had been a
small town by the name of 'Egin' in the Ottoman
period, was conferred in 1922 by a decision of
parliament.

Guidebooks for the region refer to it as the 'city
of terraces', which were leveled out by the local
people to make more productive use of their very
limited farmland. Turks, Armenians and Greeks who
built houses on the terraces exhibiting the
architectural features of their own cultures,
formed a highly multi-cultural community here
where they lived together in harmony for
centuries.

The door knockers with vegetal motifs that adorn
Kemaliye's traditional houses are among the
township's unique treasures.

In a tradition going back to the Ottomans, each of
the door knockers, which are forged from red-hot
iron, is decorated by the home owner with his
favorite floral motif. Today Kemaliye is one of
seven settled areas in Anatolia that have been
proposed as world cultural heritage sites by the
Foundation for the Protection and Promotion of
Environmental and Cultural Values (CEKUL).

NINE FULL DAYS

The late Erzincan governor Recep Yazicioglu worked
hard to open up the region for tourism in the
1990s and was a pioneer of nature sports in the
township. The Kemaliye Nature Sports Festival is
being held 14-22 May with the purpose of
acknowledging a debt of gratitude to, and honoring
the memory of, this governor, who won the hearts
of the local people with his successful policies.

At the first festival, which was held last year,
this township of normally two thousand people
swelled to four thousand with an influx of
sportsmen, musicians, photographers, journalists,
scientists, folklore ensembles and nature lovers
from all over Turkey.

Anticipating even greater interest in this year's
festival, the people of Kemaliye started their
preparations weeks in advance. The frequency of
bus and minibus connections from Malatya, the
township's nearest airport, has been increased,
the final touches have been put on the
restaurants, hotels and bed&breakfasts, and
posters have been hung at the entrance to the
village declaring visitors 'Welcome to the 2nd
Kemaliye Nature Sports Festival'.

ON THE GROUND OR IN THE SKY, YOUR CHOICE

The festival, which will run for exactly nine
days, will begin with picking of the region's
unique morel mushrooms on the mountain slopes. A
mountain bike race then follows the opening of a
joint photography exhibition. The first stop on
the walking tours that will be organized
throughout the festival to around 20 neighboring
villages that preserve the traditional
architectural texture is Apcaga.

This village, which provided the inspiration for
the poem, later set to music, entitled 'The
Village in the Distance' by Ahmet Kutsi Tecer, one
of the masters of early Republican literature, has
a large panel at its entrance with lines from the
poem:

"Over there in the distance is a village
That village is none other than our own.
Even if we never go for a visit
Our village it always will remain."

In the village, which receives visitors in its
library, social room, printshop and guesthouse,
there is also a small rustic coffeehouse lurking
in the shade of the walnut and mulberry trees
overlooking Kemaliye Valley.

The first day of the festival culminates in a
traditional 'henna night'. But the program is full
to the brim on the other days as well. The
15-km-long, 500-m wide Karanlik Canyon, whose
steep walls of rock narrow to 10 meters at the
bottom, is ideal for boating safaris, canoeing,
water skiing, and speed boating.

The Kirkpinarli Kirkgoz area, reminiscent of an
eagle's nest with a view of Kemaliye Valley, is a
favorite with hang gliding buffs.Over a hundred
bikers are expected to take part in the 17-km
mountain bike race to be held in separate men's
and women's categories by the Bicycle Federation
of Turkey.

Spectators may also enjoy the 'jereed'
competitions, organized by riding clubs from
various regions of Turkey. The 8-km-long Tasyolu
Tunnels, which were hollowed out over a period of
exactly 135 years from the mountain slope that
runs parallel to Karanlik Canyon, has matchless
trails for jeep safaris, motocross, mountain
biking and trekking.

Among the hundreds of hiking trails in the
township, the experienced local guides recommend
especially the stream known as Sorak. An
approximately four-hour hike awaits sports
enthusiasts here at Sorak, where you can see the
Kocan waterfall, the village of Venk, Davar Yatagi
cave, and the Sorak church and castle as well as
an historic fountain and graveyards along the
forested trail that follows the streambed.

EVERYTHING FROM SPORTS TO HISTORY

Surrounded by mountains up to 4000 meters high,
the Kemaliye Valley with its slopes of varying
degrees of difficulty, its limestone rock
structure, its opportunities for camping, and its
rich nature and wildlife is also suitable for
mountaineering and rock climbing. The aged forest
ecosystem that covers the Munzur Mountains where
Kemaliye nestles is a perfect place for observing
the indigenous wildlife as well.

In addition to sports events, the festival has
been further enriched by cultural activities. The
hundred-year-old school building at the township
center, which has been converted into the Ataturk
Culture Center, will host photograph and
documentary showings, exhibitions, theater plays
and panel discussions throughout the festival.

But the township's touristic treasures are of
course not limited to these. Others include the
historic Armenian church at the entrance, which
has been modified as an ethnographic museum and
cafeteria; Zincirlikaya in the district of
Tasdibi, a massive rock that was chained to the
slope in Ottoman times to prevent it from crashing
down over the town; the 150-m-high waterfall at
Kocan; and the Tasdibi mosque at Kirkgoz, an
Ottoman structure built in 1635. Not to mention
some ten other Ottoman mosques just waiting to be
discovered in the township.

Whether it's adventure you're seeking or simple
peace and quiet, Kemaliye promises visitors both,
with its adrenaline-pumping sports festival, its
unique historic sites, its natural beauty and its
warm, friendly people.

-----

  #2  
Old May 26th, 2009, 07:12 AM posted to rec.travel.budget.backpack,rec.travel.europe,soc.culture.turkish,rec.travel.asia
Runge15
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 36
Default A nature festival: Kemaliye

Wow someone has selected some pages for me !
....and the poster apparently cannot decide if Turkey is in Asia or Europe,
so let's happily crosspost !


"T.R.H." a écrit dans le message de
...
[See more on this subject by visiting the pages
selected for you by Anita Donohoe:
http://www.turkradio.us/k/kemaliye/ ]

x0x A nature festival: Kemaliye

By MELIH USLU

Kemaliye, a candidate for one of Turkey's leading
centers of eco-tourism, is up and ready for the
2nd Nature Sports Festival, starting on 14 May.
How about you? Anatolia possesses a number of
regions which are ideal for nature sports owing to
their geographical structure and plant cover but
whose touristic attractions are insufficiently
well-known. And Kemaliye, the southernmost
township of Erzincan province, is one of them.

The Kemaliye Valley, formed by erosion over
billions of years of the limestone rock of the
Karasu, one of two branches of the Euphrates,
harbors a rich diversity of habitat and climate
due to a sharp rise in altitude over a short
distance. While the over 1000-meter-high mountain
steppes exhibit an Alpine ecology based on a harsh
land climate, a Mediterranean climate reigns along
the length of the valley. What's more, owing to
its location on the Silk Road which joins Anatolia
and Central Asia, the township boasts not only a
rich history but a long-standing traditional of
hospitality.

With its profusion of rare wildlife, it is a
candidate for soon becoming one of Turkey's
leading centers of ecological tourism and nature
sports.

CITY OF TERRACES

Inspired by Ataturk, whose middle name was Kemal,
the new name of the township, which had been a
small town by the name of 'Egin' in the Ottoman
period, was conferred in 1922 by a decision of
parliament.

Guidebooks for the region refer to it as the 'city
of terraces', which were leveled out by the local
people to make more productive use of their very
limited farmland. Turks, Armenians and Greeks who
built houses on the terraces exhibiting the
architectural features of their own cultures,
formed a highly multi-cultural community here
where they lived together in harmony for
centuries.

The door knockers with vegetal motifs that adorn
Kemaliye's traditional houses are among the
township's unique treasures.

In a tradition going back to the Ottomans, each of
the door knockers, which are forged from red-hot
iron, is decorated by the home owner with his
favorite floral motif. Today Kemaliye is one of
seven settled areas in Anatolia that have been
proposed as world cultural heritage sites by the
Foundation for the Protection and Promotion of
Environmental and Cultural Values (CEKUL).

NINE FULL DAYS

The late Erzincan governor Recep Yazicioglu worked
hard to open up the region for tourism in the
1990s and was a pioneer of nature sports in the
township. The Kemaliye Nature Sports Festival is
being held 14-22 May with the purpose of
acknowledging a debt of gratitude to, and honoring
the memory of, this governor, who won the hearts
of the local people with his successful policies.

At the first festival, which was held last year,
this township of normally two thousand people
swelled to four thousand with an influx of
sportsmen, musicians, photographers, journalists,
scientists, folklore ensembles and nature lovers
from all over Turkey.

Anticipating even greater interest in this year's
festival, the people of Kemaliye started their
preparations weeks in advance. The frequency of
bus and minibus connections from Malatya, the
township's nearest airport, has been increased,
the final touches have been put on the
restaurants, hotels and bed&breakfasts, and
posters have been hung at the entrance to the
village declaring visitors 'Welcome to the 2nd
Kemaliye Nature Sports Festival'.

ON THE GROUND OR IN THE SKY, YOUR CHOICE

The festival, which will run for exactly nine
days, will begin with picking of the region's
unique morel mushrooms on the mountain slopes. A
mountain bike race then follows the opening of a
joint photography exhibition. The first stop on
the walking tours that will be organized
throughout the festival to around 20 neighboring
villages that preserve the traditional
architectural texture is Apcaga.

This village, which provided the inspiration for
the poem, later set to music, entitled 'The
Village in the Distance' by Ahmet Kutsi Tecer, one
of the masters of early Republican literature, has
a large panel at its entrance with lines from the
poem:

"Over there in the distance is a village
That village is none other than our own.
Even if we never go for a visit
Our village it always will remain."

In the village, which receives visitors in its
library, social room, printshop and guesthouse,
there is also a small rustic coffeehouse lurking
in the shade of the walnut and mulberry trees
overlooking Kemaliye Valley.

The first day of the festival culminates in a
traditional 'henna night'. But the program is full
to the brim on the other days as well. The
15-km-long, 500-m wide Karanlik Canyon, whose
steep walls of rock narrow to 10 meters at the
bottom, is ideal for boating safaris, canoeing,
water skiing, and speed boating.

The Kirkpinarli Kirkgoz area, reminiscent of an
eagle's nest with a view of Kemaliye Valley, is a
favorite with hang gliding buffs.Over a hundred
bikers are expected to take part in the 17-km
mountain bike race to be held in separate men's
and women's categories by the Bicycle Federation
of Turkey.

Spectators may also enjoy the 'jereed'
competitions, organized by riding clubs from
various regions of Turkey. The 8-km-long Tasyolu
Tunnels, which were hollowed out over a period of
exactly 135 years from the mountain slope that
runs parallel to Karanlik Canyon, has matchless
trails for jeep safaris, motocross, mountain
biking and trekking.

Among the hundreds of hiking trails in the
township, the experienced local guides recommend
especially the stream known as Sorak. An
approximately four-hour hike awaits sports
enthusiasts here at Sorak, where you can see the
Kocan waterfall, the village of Venk, Davar Yatagi
cave, and the Sorak church and castle as well as
an historic fountain and graveyards along the
forested trail that follows the streambed.

EVERYTHING FROM SPORTS TO HISTORY

Surrounded by mountains up to 4000 meters high,
the Kemaliye Valley with its slopes of varying
degrees of difficulty, its limestone rock
structure, its opportunities for camping, and its
rich nature and wildlife is also suitable for
mountaineering and rock climbing. The aged forest
ecosystem that covers the Munzur Mountains where
Kemaliye nestles is a perfect place for observing
the indigenous wildlife as well.

In addition to sports events, the festival has
been further enriched by cultural activities. The
hundred-year-old school building at the township
center, which has been converted into the Ataturk
Culture Center, will host photograph and
documentary showings, exhibitions, theater plays
and panel discussions throughout the festival.

But the township's touristic treasures are of
course not limited to these. Others include the
historic Armenian church at the entrance, which
has been modified as an ethnographic museum and
cafeteria; Zincirlikaya in the district of
Tasdibi, a massive rock that was chained to the
slope in Ottoman times to prevent it from crashing
down over the town; the 150-m-high waterfall at
Kocan; and the Tasdibi mosque at Kirkgoz, an
Ottoman structure built in 1635. Not to mention
some ten other Ottoman mosques just waiting to be
discovered in the township.

Whether it's adventure you're seeking or simple
peace and quiet, Kemaliye promises visitors both,
with its adrenaline-pumping sports festival, its
unique historic sites, its natural beauty and its
warm, friendly people.

-----


 




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