EAST ANATOLIA

MARDİN

Mardin is one of the Southeast region’s poetic cities with rich architectural, ethnographical, archeological, historical and visual wealth giving the impression of a city where time stood still. Mardin’s culture carries traces of civilization which has been established for many centuries and the city boasts important historical and cultural architecture. In recent years Mardin has being attracting attention from all over the world as well as Turkey itself and its history and culture has made it a candidate for the UNESCO “City of World Heritage List”. Visitors flock to the city and, according to official records, 48.852 passport-holding tourists have visited Mardin in 2001 alone.

Archeological excavations in the area show that Mardin has been a site of ancient settlements since 4500 B.C. It is practically an outdoor museum with its blend of structures dating back to eras such as the Subaru, Hurrian, Sumer, Akkad, Mitanni, Hittite, Assyrian, Urartian, Babylonian, Persian, Makkadonian, Abgar, Roman, Byzantium, Arab, Seljuk, Artucian and Ottoman. With a history traced back to 4500 B.C. Mardin is also significant for its position on the Silky Way route.
The name Mardin has been used in different forms over the centuries such as Marde by the Persians, Mardia by the Byzantine, Mardin by the Arabs, and Marde, Merdo and Merdi by the Syriac. Merde or Merdo means fortress (es) in Syriac. According to some scholars the word mede comes from the Merde clan who settled in the area.

PALANDÖKEN

In recent years, the Palandöken Mountains surrounding south of Erzurum like an arch attract people with their long and natural ski tracks. Getting more and more attractive with its facilities established on about 2200 - 3100 meters, Palandöken advances with sure steps on the way of being one of the most prestigious ski centers in the world. At 5km distance from downtown, Palandöken is only at 1.5-hour distance from Istanbul by air flight.

Gondol-lifts sponsored by Erzurum Governor's Office ensures easy and quick transportation to the skiing points on the mountain via ski tows owned by Polat Renaissance Erzurom Hotel. With its world-famous tracks of 14km at service of the winter sport fans, Palandöken waits for its guest 6 months of the year with its tracks above the world standards. Furthermore, traditional Alpine Discipline Skiing Races held each year imparts a special feature to the region.

VAN

Tuşba, a long since capital of Urartu State, was supposed to be the first settlement in Van... Urartus were said to name the city as Van. From 9 BC onwards, Urartus called here Biani land whereas Asuris called Nairi land. Biani was spelled as Waini, which is supposed to become Van in the course of time.

Hurri people used to live in the region in 3000 BC. They were the majority of citizens in Urartu State. Med people ended Urartu Rule. The Byzantine Empire later invaded Van in AD 395. Mid 7th century marked the beginning of Arabian Rule in Van, which continued until AD890.

Anatolian Seljuks ruled Van in AD 2. It was in 1534 that Suleyman, the Magnificent, invaded Van, which was later invaded by the Russian and Armenian in 1915. Van was regained in April 7, 1918.