Aspendos, Perge and Kursunlu Waterfall

Since we still hadn’t had enough of excavations, the very next day we drove to Aspendos, an ancient city once inhabited by Greeks and Romans.

Despite the centuries, many structures have survived the test of time and are today in remarkably good condition. You can visit an aqueduct, a basilica, and the agora, the city’s marketplace.

Most of these buildings are situated high on a hill; the climb itself was not difficult, but there was hardly any shade on the way and the sun was blazing mercilessly from the sky, even in October.

All these relics from a long-gone era were simply beautiful.

But when we entered the amphitheater, my breath caught in amazement.

Tall before us rose the tiers with the seats; the entire building is so perfectly preserved as I have never seen in my life.

When you climb the steps up, you reach a corridor from which you can walk a semicircle around the impressive building.

Along the way, you are repeatedly rewarded with the most beautiful views down below.

What is especially fascinating is how this imposing building was constructed with the means available almost 2000 years ago — a masterpiece of ancient engineering.

You almost believe you can hear the murmur of the Roman spectators during a performance.

Rarely in my life has something impressed me so deeply.

Perge

The journey continued to Perge, another ancient city only a few kilometers from Aspendos.

Here too you find many very well-preserved buildings, although the theater is much less impressive than the one in Aspendos.

Behind the remains of the city wall lie a very well-preserved agora, as well as a temple and baths.

You can also visit the ruins of a palace.

Perge offers a good insight into what a Roman city looked like nearly 2000 years ago.

Kursunlu Waterfall

As it had become almost unbearably hot by then, we decided to head to a nearby recreation area, the Kursunlu Waterfall.

We parked the car on the large parking lot and continued on foot.

Just behind the entrance to the waterfalls are some shops and restaurants offering simple regional dishes. Since we hadn’t eaten anything since breakfast, we were quite hungry.

So we settled into one of the restaurants, from where we had a nice view of the surroundings, and ordered a dürüm each and cold drinks.

The food tasted very good, although the price was relatively high compared to similar eateries.

Well fortified, we set off towards the waterfall. We kept descending until we stood before the impressive masses of water.

There was a circular path around the small lake into which the large waterfall poured.

Along the way, there was also the chance to stand directly under the cascading water — a blessing given the still prevailing heat.

The hiking trail continued over narrow paths to the small waterfall, which lay picturesquely amid tree-covered rocks.

Above the waterfall was an idyllic small café, where of course we stopped.

We enjoyed our ice-cold drinks at our spot, from which we had a dreamy view of the natural spectacle.

Afterwards, we made our way back. Crossing a bridge over the pond formed below the waterfall, we then climbed narrow paths uphill until we finally reached the starting point of our tour.

An hour and a half later, we were back at our hotel, where we enjoyed another delicious dinner and, as always, ended the day at the bar.