Antalya

Antalya is the fifth most populous city in Turkey. The city is bounded by Burdur and Isparta to the north, Konya to the northwest, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, Muğla to the west, and Karaman and Mersin to the east. The region of Antalya has hosted many civilizations in its territory from prehistoric times to today. This city also is the area where the biggest number of ancient cities in Turkey is located. Antalya has chronologically hosted the communities under the domination of Lycians, Lydians, Pamphylians, Pergamon, Romans, Byzantines, Seljuks, the Ottomans and finally the Republic of Turkey. Trade, agriculture and tourism form the basis of Antalya’s economy. As the region is quite rich in groundwater, these resources are used to meet the water needs of the city and irrigation. Antalya has a Mediterranean climate. Therefore, summers are hot and dry; winters are warm and rainy. The inner parts of the city have a continental climate. Because of the climatic conditions, vegetation mainly consists of scrubs.

We can list the unique local tastes of Antalya as follows: Arabası soup (chicken soup with pasta), keskek (wheat porridge with lamb), tahinli piyaz (white beans salad with sesame butter), topak kızartması (dish made of fried lamb and potatoes), nohutlu kelle paça (meat dish with chickpea), cive yemeği (a dish made of cracked wheat and vegetables), tarator kızartması (fried potatoes, eggplant and pepper with sauce), hibeş (sesame butter sauce), kulaklı çorba (soup with pasta and chickpea), tahinli kabak tatlısı (oven baked pumpkin in syrup), citrus jam, okra dish, stuffed squash blossom, haluska (a local type of ravioli), tömeken salatası (purslane salad), sarı burma tatlısı (a kind of baklawa), hamur dolması (stuffed and fried dough), yanık dondurma (local ice-cream), meatball on skewer, kabuklu ( a dish made of beans), tarhana (traditional soup made of dried tomatoes), göleviz (callaloo), incir kak (dried fig), ülübü piyazı (a type of beans salad), araka yemeği (a dish made of large-size peas), pişi (fried dough), balaca (local pastry made of semolina), kuzu göbeği mantarı (a local type of mushroom-yellow morel), demir tatlısı (fried dough in syrup), flour halva, çiğirdik (sesame halva), bumbar (stuffed mutton intestines).