Included in the elite list of UNESCO world heritage sites, you need not be an archaeology buff to enjoy this place. Colonized by the son of King of Athens (Androclos) in 10 BC, this historic city is located in Selçük, the province Izmir, Turkey.

Escaping from an invasion in Greece, Androclos followed an Apollon oracle’s prediction for the location of settlement of his migrating convoys. In mid 6 BC it was ruled by a Lydian King and the city reached ‘the Golden age’ and got recognition for its culture and art. The Persians ruled it next. Afterwards, it was also dominated by Alexander the Great. The river silted up and its lifeline, the great harbor, and epidemics spread so the residents were forced to settle elsewhere and the city was abandoned. It is an amalgam of many ideological beliefs and systems of ruling. As you wander around imagining the thousands of inhabitants of Greek and Roman descent that thrived on its streets, romanticizing their life becomes inevitable.

One of the seven wonders of the ancient world, it once stood tall and magnificent with 56 feet high marble pillars, around a hundred in number making its measurements about 418’by 239’. This wonder earned Ephesus the title of ‘‘servant of the Goddess”. Archaeologists believe that it took 120 years to complete. Even in the form of ruins at present, this structure does not cease to fascinate the visitors.

Remnants from all the above mentioned places are put on display here. A video animation on Ephesus is also run in 3 different languages- Turkish, English and German. 8 different exhibition halls categorically place the artifacts from Prehistoric, Mycenaean, Archaic, Classical, Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine, Seljuk and Ottoman periods. This museum is a must recommendation for art and history lovers. Those who are not specifically fond of the subject need a good guide and we guarantee that they’ll fall in love with the historic cultures as well!

A structure rumored to bear both love and war, located on an islet at the southern entrance of Bosporus, off the shore of Istanbul, on the Asian side, Kiz Kulesi and its legends are astounding. A very romantic, fancy restaurant graces its first floor (live musicians and everything) and a café is present upstairs to chill. As one sits to take in the beautiful view and watch ships as they pass by, all legends come to mind that surround this wonderful antiquity.

There is considerable evidence that it was first constructed by the Greeks some 2500 years ago and used as a watch tower with a near-complete view of the Black sea. Legend has it that an oracle prophesized death of the emperor’s beloved daughter from a venomous snake bite on her 18th birthday. To fight this fate, he sent her off in seclusion to live at the tower, where she would be kept safe until the time of the prophecy passed. When the day came and she was very much alive, the emperor, joyous as never before, took a basket of fruits to celebrate his daughter’s life. Alas, a snake had snuck into the basket and bit her, leading to her demise. This is how the Maiden’s tower got its name. 

It is also known as Leander’s tower over a Greek myth that fascinates visitors. This popular legend claims that a priestess of Aphrodite, called Hero lived in the tower to stay pure and Leander, her spellbound lover, was a boy who lived across the strait. She’d lit fire (in some versions - a lantern) on top of the tower every day and Leander would swim through the water, light guiding his way towards his love. A fateful day came when winds were so strong that they blew out her fire. Misguided and lost, Leander drowned. And when Hero came to know about this, she jumped off the tower to meet him eternally.

The Byzantine emperor Komnenos converted this tower into a fortress in the 12th century. Practically securing the strait of Bosporus, it was used as a station to collect custom duties from ships that sailed inside and anchored in the land. During this period, it was evidently converted into a prison as well and then back to a watch-tower. The Turks came over and took charge of it, by the time it needed renovation so they erected a wooden structure that unfortunately caught fire. Present- day stone masonry was built during the reign of Ahmet III in 1719.