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BODRUM |
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In the eyes of its devotees, BODRUM ( www.bodrum-info.org ) -
ancient Halicarnassos - with its whitewashed houses and subtropical
gardens, is the most attractive Turkish resort, a quality outfit in
comparison to its upstart Aegean rivals. And it is a pleasant town in
most senses, despite having no real beach, although development has
proceeded apace over the last couple of decades, spreading beyond the
town boundaries into the until recently little-disturbed peninsula. The
centrepiece of Bodrum is the Castle of St Peter (daily 8.30am-6pm; $5),
built by the Knights of St John over a Selçuk fortress between 1437 and
1522. The castle was subsequently neglected until the nineteenth century,
when the chapel was converted to a mosque and had a hamam installed,
though the place was not properly refurbished until the 1960s, when it
was turned into a museum. Inside, there are bits of ancient masonry
incorporated into the walls, coats of arms, and a chapel housing a local
Bronze Age and Mycenean collection. The various towers house a Museum of
Underwater Archeology which includes coin and jewellery rooms, classical
and Hellenistic statuary and Byzantine relics retrieved from two wrecks,
alongside a diorama explaining salvage techniques. The Carian princess
hall (daily 10am-noon & 2-4pm; $2 extra) displays the skeleton and
sarcophagus of a fourth-century BC Carian noblewoman unearthed in 1989.
There is also the Glass Wreck Hall (daily 10-11am & 2-4pm; $2 extra)
containing the wreck and cargo of an ancient Byzantine ship, which sank
at Serce near Marmaris.
Immediately north of the castle lies the bazaar , most of which is
pedestrianized along the main thoroughfares of Kale Caddesi and Dr Alim
Bey Caddesi and given over to souvenir stores and the like. From here,
stroll up Türkkuyusu Caddesi and turn left to the town's other main
sight, the Mausoleum (daily 8.30am-6pm; $3). This is the burial place of
Mausolus, who ruled Halicarnassos in the fourth century BC, greatly
increasing its power and wealth. His tomb, completed by Artemisia II,
his sister and wife, was regarded as one of the Seven Wonders of the
Ancient World, giving rise to the word "mausoleum". Decorated with
friezes, it stood nearly 60m high, though its present condition is
disappointing, with little left besides the precinct wall, assorted
column fragments and some subterranean vaults - the bulk of it being in
London's British Museum. By way of contrast, the ancient amphitheatre,
just above the main highway to the north, has been almost over-zealously
restored and is used during the September festival. Begun by Mausolus,
it was modified in the Roman era and originally seated thirteen thousand,
though it has a present capacity of about half that.
Dolmuses from Bodrum's main bus station head to nearby AKYARLAR , which
offers the combination of the best sandy beach around and some quiet
pansiyons and restaurants, as well as one of only two campsites on the
Bodrum peninsula.
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