Journey east, in the region of Mount Ararat Noah’s ship looking for. Turkey’s eastern Igdir place over a residential’re going to Dogubayazit. I came in many years ago, as if there was no big change. So it’s missing what it should be. We are visiting the Mayor of Doğubayazit, what is the situation here, let’s find out. At the door people welcome you by shaking the hands of everyone lined up in the queue, among them there is a well-dressed young smiling lady. First you thought he was in charge, but he was mayor. Dogubayazit mayor Hdp li. We are in the meeting room, the chairman did not want to sit at the table on the raised platform in the hall took his chair and came to our seat. I think he did it on purpose, instead of being in a high place, sitting with us. If you want to be underestimated from the traditions of Anatolian civilizations, to sit it down at a lower level, or to sit on a high place to look like a light hill or respect or we are all together message. The Kurds are known to be of Assyrian origin. First he gave information about himself and the region. Issues such as heavy feudal traditions, marriage of young girls, oppression of women, child abuse, increasing drug habits and struggles with them, women’s employment as much as possible, girls’ reading and education. President Yıldız is a tribal member at the age of 15, forced to marry at 18 despite all the resistance, forced to marry at the age of 18, can read the university under difficult conditions, “western people” between the speeches that we do not understand this region, the conditions of existence is increasingly aggravated, Ankara is a different He stated that they do not give help and support because they are political parties and therefore there are serious impossibilities.

There is a serious problem of terrorism in the region, but it excludes and marginalizes the people who live here, is it sociologically correct if everyone is seen as terrorists or sympathizers?

We talk with the environmental tradesmen, the country is as longing to be with all of the people and integration as much as we are, at least what we talk about. Doğubayazit, the only job here is smuggling, agriculture, livestock, industry and so on. If half of what was done to the Syrians were done to the people of this country and development goals were set here, everything would be very different. Perhaps you should look at it from another angle, is the problem really wanted to be solved? Or is it that accounts keep things warm and maintain different interests? Our thorny garden, which we are afraid to enter, we avoid to see the facts that we will resist to not understand or listen. We are really looking for a solution, it is not clear whether the efforts are sincere in this direction. Or is it the heavy pressure of the charlatan imperialists who created the tale of world peace that we cannot cope with? Is it a game like America’s disintegration of Iraq and Syria under the pretext of creating the ISIL terrorist organization and then fighting it? The answer is yes. The expression that attracts my attention in the conversation is that the West always despises us and insults us.

As a municipality, a full-time public meeting is held once a week and they listen to their problems. No political statements were used anywhere in the conversation, all they wanted was a better recognition of these places, more tourists coming.

I think they have a lot to say to anyone who has a good mind.

We are going to Ishak Pasha Palace.

Ishak Pasha palace in 1784 from the Cildiroglu II. It was built by Ishak Pasha on a steep slope on three sides for security reasons. Due to the slope of the palace built on an area of ​​7600 m², it is one of the rare asymmetrical architectural structures that have been built in the Ottoman period and have survived to the present day. One of the richest works of Ottoman architecture, the palace, the western influence of Baroque-Rococo and North Caucasus and Iranian influences, as well as the architectural structure of the Seljuk art was very prominent.

Regional tourism and culture manager accompanied us, told us about the work done, contributed with valuable information. Restoration work in such a place is not easy. Considering the conditions of the region, very serious work has been done and as a result of the efforts it has made it is becoming more and more known.

According to the mythological myth, which is similarly expressed in the holy books of all three celestial religions; The Prophet Noah pleads with Allah to find a solution in the face of increasing perversions on earth, and upon this demand, God asks him to build a great ship and set an example of all living things. Then the Prophet Noah built the ship, gathered a sample of all living creatures on the earth, and embarked with enough food and water. As a result of the uninterrupted rains that start suddenly, the ship begins to swim and all living things except those on the ship die. Over time, the water is drawn, and Noah’s Ark sits ashore around Mount Ararat, and it is said that all the creatures on the earth begin to multiply. The world begins to live again.

Why did God decide to kill all humans, the animals living underground, the earth, and the animals in the sky, except for a single example, and there is nothing clear about it, perhaps all living things were indefinable evils ahlak I wonder if it would be more difficult to bring them on the road. The reason is evil and immorality, and heresy has not peaked as much as it is today. Very soon all people have come to the end without being sampled.

In other words, black, white, yellow and all other living things spread from this land to the earth.

If that’s the case, we thought we’d go to the place where Noah’s ship was supposed to be.

Climbing from the slope between the villages of Telçeker and Üzengili, you will touch the top of the mountain, just opposite Ağrı Mountain, if you will touch it.

In 1959, Ihsan Durupınar, a survey engineer, worked on the geographic and topographic maps of Eastern Anatolia in the Ankara General Staff, one of the maps of the Doğubayazıt region. Here, there is a distinctly different shape, which is clearly evident, and which it does not think is occurring under unnatural conditions. As a result of his studies and researches on the possibility that this may be the ruins of Noah’s Ark, the subject is reflected in the internal and external press. Some foreign scientists remains of Noah’s Ark really comes to Turkey to determine whether the Ihsan stand here and be appointed as the head of the observer delegation from foreigners. The scars of the remains are like the necks that are written in the holy book. However, studies do not yield any results.

After supporting such a finding in the photographs taken by Ara Güler, documentary producer Cem Sertesen makes his documentary film and receives an award with this documentary. In the area where frequent landslides occur, the shapes are largely lost.

Considering all of this and looking from a distance, if you force your dreams in this direction, if you transfer something from your heart, I wonder if something like that can happen here!

As a result, the mythological legend written in blessed books, no matter what level you believe, this is a place where such an acceptance has been formed, it can be turned into a tourist attraction center. It can even be adorned with some mythological stories, with slight landscaping. There are so many places in the world, broken branches of the tree, the stones are not known what the historical artifacts we saw to sell and visit. If someone from the top level comes here, shows interest here, believe me, it’s a potential pilgrimage site. What bragging places there are in the world, a couple of folks are going from the word advance. Tourism is also a dream sell.

Doğubayazıt, which is one of the oldest settlements in Anatolia, still has its cultural values. Documentary producer Coşkun Aral and the shooting team are with us. We are going to the home of one of the old families here to document the almost disappearing “see abdi” dinner. With ten cameras already prepared, we start shooting a brief chat of traditional Turkish hospitality. Meat calf taken from the right calf of the calf, from the region called mez day invisible sinir and being lean and fat-free, is beaten to a circle for a few hours until it becomes almost paste-like. Shaking a gavel for a few hours is not an easy task. When the meat is adequate consistency, continue to spin with the addition of finely chopped onions, the meat is really soft dough consistency. Medium-sized balls are thrown into the boiling hot water and the meat is literally cooked in ten minutes. Served with rice made from meat broth. Super flavor. Since Abdi Gör meatballs are laborious, they are made in very few houses and will probably disappear after ten years. Then I will be one of the historical people who know how to do this and enjoy it. The food has an interesting story. Abdi Pasha, the father of İshak Pasha, who gave his name to the historical palace, is known for his fondness for meat. When this is the case, he meets the Reverend Gout and is told not to eat any more. Every day, the meat-eating pasha wants to find a cure for the last days without meat. In time, someone from there hears this and says that the meat dish will do no harm and makes this dish and puts the name “see abdi”.

It is one of the beautiful towns of my country with its own values. Where we’re torn to avoid understanding.

We are in a beautiful hotel above expectations.

**

We are on the road to Van early in the morning, a small break at Muradiye Waterfall over Çaldıran. Really nice places, morning coffee accompanied by the sound of the waterfalls flowing from four arms. These places where the -30s-40s live in the winter, the waterfall freezes in block form, you can even come to see it.

We are in Van, a city developed on the shores of Lake Van, the pearl of the east. Van is much more beautiful than most of our cities in Central and Southeastern Anatolia.

Lake Van has a history dating back 150 000 years. Volcanic Nemrut Mountain, 4400 meters in height when it was split with a big explosion and the height of half has fallen. The lava flowing as a result of this explosion obstructs the Van basin and flows from outside into the Murat River, rivers accumulate in the basin and form the world’s largest soda lake with a depth of 3,700 km² and 400 meters.

Big city with huge buildings and roads. A little unplanned and uncontrolled growth is remarkable.

One of the most important places here is Akdamar Island in Lake Van and the Holy Cross Church or Holy Cross Cathedral located on this island.

It was built by Architect Monk Manuel in 915-921 on the order of King Gagik I to house a part of the Genuine Cross, which was rumored to have been brought to the Van region in the 7th century after he was kidnapped from Jerusalem to Iran. As a result of the restoration in 2007, it was put into service as a Memorial Museum.

The plan has a central domed, four-leaf clover-shaped cross plan. The dolphin Prophet thrown into the sea, Hz. Mary and Jesus in her arms, Adam and Eve expulsion from Paradise, Hz. Various scenes from the Bible and the Torah, such as the struggle between David and King Goliat, were embroidered on the facade of the church as relief. In addition to religious and worldly scenes, these figures also include animal figures.

Inside the church in general Hz. Matters about Jesus were covered, but these frescoes were largely corrupted.

Renovated in 1462, the church was damaged during the earthquake in 1703 and 1712-1720 underwent repairs again. Yaşar Kemal, who was a young journalist at the time, started a demolition work in 1951 for the Akdamar Church, which has been standing for about 1100 years, by chance and becomes aware of the incident and intervenes and prevents the collapse of the church.

And here’s a story of legend that sounds nice.

According to legend, the Armenian monk on this island has a beautiful daughter named “Tamar”. A young shepherd in the villages around the island falls in love with this beautiful girl. The young man swims to the island every night to see Tamar; Tamar waits for the shepherd with a lantern in his hand to show his place in the darkness. After a while Tamar’s father becomes aware of this situation and gets very angry. In order to separate them on a stormy night, he takes the lighthouse and descends to the shore of the island and constantly replaces it with a lantern, causing him to swim in vain. The shepherd who is tired of swimming drowns and “Oh Tamar!” He gives his last breath. Tamar hears the scream of his beloved and then leaves himself in the lake.

According to this legend, which has been told for many years, it is thought that the island, which started to be known as “Ah Tamar”, came to our day as “Ahtamara” and finally “Akdamar”.

On the shores of Lake Van, the well-known endemic fish, pearl mullet, is on our menu as lunch, it’s like a nice light-bred but delicious animal.

We’re going to Sergeant Hill castle. Its name was later changed with the inspiration of a nearby village.

Uncle Mehmet, our guide, tells himself first.

He entered as a guard at an early age instead of the ruins here, the archaeologists next to the curiosity here civilization, wanted to learn, you are ignorant can not learn, they were persistent in the end learned a lot. So much so that at that time all the museums related to civilizations went to the conclusion, read books; today he became one of the few people who read Urartian graffiti. Well done to Uncle Mehmet. Anyone interested in civilizations living in these lands between 10 and 7 BC, curious, interested or academic level knows Uncle Mehmet. Uncle Mehmet, who likes to talk, has his own style of narration, the necklace around his neck when he is asked what is the attention of everyone, he doesn’t care at all, he doesn’t even see the better ones. We went around the whole area, gave a lot of information about the Urartians, read the graffiti and told us serious things.

We’ve finally seen better ones than the necklace around your neck! Urartian on the basalt stones, necklaces, bracelets, small tablets where gods, kings or some inscriptions are written on a stone. Since nobody knows Urartian, he does not understand what is written, everyone asks what he writes, he reads and explains what is written on it. We believe that what is written is true.

Uncle Mehmet ‘well done a thousand times. Be an example of the miserable beggars in the streets.

Let us come to the Urat;

The Urartians were a nation that founded an important state in and around Lake Van at the beginning of the first millennium BC and influenced the civilizations there. There is not much information about the Urartians. Some information was obtained from the sources of Assyrians who lived in the same period. Since Urartu, the capital of Van, today’s Van region, is surrounded by impassable mountains, the tribes first lived in detached settlements and later joined forces against external attacks and presumably established their kingdom in the early ninth century BC. 810-730 BC is known as the most powerful period of the Urartians. During this period, today’s Eastern Anatolia region, northwestern Iran, a small portion of Iraq and the north were within the boundaries of the Aras Valley. They spread to the Assyrian country in the south and Hatti country in the west. The weakening of Assyria during this period also facilitated the work of the Urartians. With the strengthening of the Assyrians in the 730s BC, the Urartu State began to lose land and as a result of defeats in the wars it entered, it withdrew from the stage of history at the end of the seventh century BC.

The Urartians created an important civilization in the region and the art of metalworking had an impact on the surrounding cultures.

Urartian civilization is something like this.

We want to evaluate today to the end, we go straight to Hoşap Castle.

In 1643, in the Gürpınar district of Van today, Süleyman Bey of Mahmudi State, affiliated to the Ottoman Empire, built a fortress in four levels in accordance with the land structure. Hosap Castle, which takes its name from the south of Hosap River, has survived to the present day as it was built.

Over the centuries, the eastern walls of the castle have been partially destroyed and the western ones largely destroyed due to wars and natural conditions. Some of the towers supporting the walls have survived to the present day, and the eastern and western gates have been completely destroyed.

In addition to the complex structures known as the Mahmudi Palace, the ruins of a mosque and village houses, masjid, dungeons, bakeries and cisterns, as well as social places, Hoşap castle, features from the foundation to the top layer of an Ottoman period. XIX. Abandoned in the middle of the century, the castle is one of the important values.

The weather was dark, we’re pushing so much to do in less time, we reached the hotel with the last effort.

The training continues uninterrupted, after dinner Coşkun Aral’s documentary about Noah’s Ark, talks about the region and civilizations.

**

We’ve come all the way here, since, let’s have Van breakfast in Van, we went to the most known place. Actually, I think the expectation is a bit too much, there is nothing very special here. Those who say so much about food, all that comes is over.

We’re going to Van Castle. It is an important defensive place built by the Urartian Kingdom on the steep rocky shores of Lake Van to protect the Urartian capital, Tuspa.

Urartian King I. Sardur by BC. Built on steep rocky shores of Lake Van in 840-825 and bearing the Urartian traces, the castle is one of the most important monuments in the region. The fortress, which is on the temporary list of Unesco World Heritage, is built on a rock of 1345 meters long, 200 meters wide and 100 meters high. The inscriptions found here, rock tombs, temples, city walls, mosques, and the works uncovered during excavations shed light on the history of 2700 years. 5 km from the city center. at a distance of the castle carries traces of past civilizations here. It’s an important place, but it’s like there’s no work around.

Madur (Sardur) bastion from Urartians, Analı-Kız Open Air Temple, I. Argisthi, founders Menua and II. Sarduri rock tombs, thousands of stairs and carved into the bedrock are fortifications.

The castle was finally used by the Ottoman Empire for military purposes, and after 1915 it was destroyed without any work and has survived to its present state.

he Van Castle, which has been turned into a museum, is the most important work done in the recent past, just rebuilt the Suleyman Khan mosque. Today’s craftsmanship and skill! rebuilt with. The people of the Muslim community coming for the morning prayer in the dark, winter, minus how many degrees of ice-cold weather can climb to the end of the steep slope of the rock, probably “each person intention” call to reach the martyrdom and funeral prayer hitam, the journey begins to heaven. The mosque was rebuilt, but probably the last prayer, the first is made. Would it be wrong if this budget was used more accurately? I don’t know what to say.

We look down on Van, really beautiful city.

I’m astonished, the Van Museum is an amazing museum. Walking has changed, in Gaziantep Turkey, in settings such as museums Antakya, very new fully opened yet incomplete. The museum, where valuable artifacts from past civilizations are exhibited, would require many hours even if it is to be visited in detail. I think it’il make a sound when it’s done. I shared with the authorities, lighting in such a place was a bit wrong, one side of the objects are shaded, lighting error, in fact, not too difficult to solve.

You should go to these places.

One of the known values ​​of this place is Van cats with different color eyes. The cat house was built and protected by 100. Yıl University. Here, serious studies are carried out for the continuation of their generations and results are obtained. The most important characteristic of Van cats is that their eyes have a different color due to genetic disorder. The eyes of each nature are not different, they are on sale .. Another feature is that their feathers are white.

Eastern Anatolia is the land inhabited by different civilizations.

There are quite a lot of historical monuments and relic archaeological artifacts. Most of them were plundered, devastated by neglect, those who were worthy were kidnapped, some were destroyed by different beliefs. If they are revived, the color, the air and the bad image of the region will change. Even if you start somewhere, there is life water, it gives life. It is hard to understand who prevents it and why not.

Van has been home to many civilizations and cultures in addition to Urartu, Hittites, Assyrians, Sargons and Sumerians.

Although Van is not known enough, the necessary attention has not been shown, but it is a place of historical importance that includes all the past civilizations.

My beautiful country, we neglect you.

 

yours affectionately

Hayrettin KAGNICI

September 2019