Continents

Yesilirmak River Area

The ancient town of Amasya lies in a mountainous gorge off of a pretty river valley that leads to the drier Anatolian plateau. There is a pleasant small hotel at the entrance to the town, the Amasya Turban, part of the same chain as the one in Samsun. Tel: 90-378-1-4054.

Amasya lies on either side of the Yesilirmak River, and is tightly hemmed in by high, rocky crags. On the left bank are the remains of vast and ancient Pontic (Black Sea shore) fortifications that must have been impregnable in their day. They rise from the river to the crest of the mountains. Within the area enclosed by the walls and quite high up, are large rock-tombs carved into the face of the mountain. You must be in good physical condition to reach them.

Along the river bank on the Pontic side is a row of charming 19th-century wood-and-plaster houses with enclosed balconies overhanging the river and incorporating the old walls as foundations. When you cross the river, you reach the right, or Islamic, bank of Amasya. This bank has an attractive tree-shaded esplanade, and beyond that a fine mix of Seljuk and Ottoman monuments that are architectural gems.

The first of these are the 13th-century Turumtay Turbesi (tomb) and the adjoining Gok Medrese (religious school), both fine Seljuk structures, notable for their vigorously individualistic carving.

Nearby is the late 15th-century Bayezit II Cami, built when the Sultan-to-be was governor of Amasya. This is a very handsome Ottoman mosque-medrese-hospice complex, set in a garden of trees, some very old. The mosque has a lovely interior that is now somewhat spoiled by unnecessary neon lighting.

Continuing on downriver and alongside it, you come to the Bimarhane, an early 14th-century general hospital with fine Ilkhanid carving at its entrance. Beyond that is a functioning hammam (Turkish bath) for both men and women.

Farther down the river is the early 15th-century Bayezit Pasa Cami, a Dervish mosque, and, finally, the Buyuk Aga Medrese, a late 15th-century mixture of Seljuk and Ottoman styles. (The Buyu Aga was the chief white eunuch). By now, you have made a two-to-three-hour circuit of the town on foot. It's time to recross the river and return to the hotel. Don't bother with the bazaar in Amasya; it contains nothing of interest.