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Showing posts with label alanya. Show all posts
Showing posts with label alanya. Show all posts

17 October 2015

Dim Cave, Alanya, Turkey

Images from Dim Cave, Alanya, Turkey. September 2015.


          









           








17 September 2015

Mahmutlar Attacks On Kurdish Businesses - 8 Sept 2015

While the world watched progress of refugees across Europe, my resort in Mahmutlar, Alanya was subjected to terrorist attacks on Kurdish businesses, several being burnt out last week, or otherwise ransacked and trashed. Notes from my diaries.

8 September 2015
Location: Mahmutlar, Alanya, Turkey Map


3am this morning I heard gunshots in the street. Quietly at first, and then, closer and closer, louder and louder followed by sound of car horns and screech of tyres. I understand they are protesting about Turkey's involvement in Syria, and the loss of life on the Turkish side. Some young Turkish soldiers were killed in north eastern Turkey the other day (see http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-34183797) , by terrorists, they say, and blame Kurdish businesses for supporting those terrorists. I don't know the truth of that, but my inclination is to believe only that these business retail people were doing only what any other business retail people do, and that is to struggle to make a not-easy living.

https://youtu.be/kbjaXWLFWTA this video by Alanya Tv, caption reads translated from the Russian, , "Published on 8 Sep 2015
Some of emissions in Mahmoud's neighborhood was burned by an angry crowd and the Duo." :


8 September late evening.
About 10 mins ago a march of people waving Turkish flags, cars flashing indicators, and tooting horns just went past the apartment. 21:44 local time. They were making a lot of noise peeping horns, shouting slogans, and heading off in direction of centre of Mahmutlar.




9th September
This video below has the caption, "Published on 9 Sep 2015
9th September at 2am . In a sign of the eviction of Kurds from Turkey. From Alanya to Mahmutlar all facilities owned by the Kurds were ..." , appears to have been filmed sometime after the motorcade, and the marchers that preceded the motorcade, went passed our apartment:


Walking about the area later in the day I saw these sights:

Jasmin's Garden restaurant burnt out here in Mahmutlar, near Alanya. Across the road from that an electrical shop has been smashed up.

Walked further down to Barbarossa Street, and to the left, a shop and restaurant both destroyed by fire, by the side of "Dostlar" restaurant.



Over the road a clothing shop and general goods store trashed, later seen advertised for sale. Moving down Barbarossa towards the central gardens, evidence of intermittent shops and restaurants smashed up or that had been put on fire. JJs popular restaurant was OK, but clothing shop opposite, 'Melisa Bazaar' stock was destroyed. Brothers restaurant OK, but general knick knack and gift shop next door attacked and a lot of stock damaged.


It was  suggested to me that about 10 restaurants in Alanya and same number in Mahmutlar were attacked last night, in a reprisal against Kurdish run businesses in retaliation for the killing of several young Turkish army/policemen near Azerbaijan border.

Windows smashed in. This is off one of the roads down from Ataturk Cad.  Slogan translated reads: "The brotherhood stubborn. Stubborn to Peace"
Nearby, in Baris Cad, a couple more shops smashed up (unphotographed).





10th Sept
A dozen or so vehicles went past the flat about 11:30pm last night in Kargicac direction, beeping horns etc. Later, while I slept, about 1:30 this morning some 50 vehicles collected between the school road and the road by the former Jasmin Garden Restaurant. All flashing lights and beeping horns. Dad said he watched it all. Then when they were all collected up they went off in centre of Mahmutlar direction.

Cycled further down town this morning. A furniture store (image below from video) and a few smaller shops I hadn't seen before, had been trashed/ destroyed, presumably the other night. Some signs of clear up operations. Almost certainly all Kurdish businesses.






Stills, taken from a Russian video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvFA9klNCYs of a drive through the town. Caption reads, translated, "Published on 10 Sep 2015
Morning, September 10, specifically prokatilispo Mahmutlars and made a video. It's not so bad, as many wrote."





Footnotes:
What newcomers will see will be intermittent damaged businesses. Maybe they will wonder what happened there. Maybe they will just blink and just pass by enjoying the sunshine. A few will start searching for more information, and find other videos on YouTube of troubles in this region for many months previous.







15 September 2013

In Mahmutlar 2013

Mum and Dad on the balcony and lounge at their apartment in Mahmutlar, Alanya area, Turkey, in 2013.


       


       







05 June 2013

Castle at Mahmutlar is Being Left to the Cows

Mahmutlar Turkey, pictured by me in May this year. 

I'm a regular visitor to this area and I've long thought that something more should be made of these ancient castle(?) walls. I actually know very little about them. But I do feel that they should be a feature to be proud of, not left to wildly growing shrubbery, and the neatly planted cow pats from the random cows staked to the ground to prevent them wandering away (poor things).

It's in an area near to Alanya in the south of Turkey, an area increasingly enjoyed by people from many different countries, all looking for something to do, and somewhere to walk on a nice summer's day. So why not tend the area as a public garden, put up information plaques, and really make something of it?

Above: Taken in 2008, and here, below, is virtually the same angle in 2013  ...


This is a disgrace. Dumped, broken aquaduct. It is not the enticing family friendly entrance to the area that it should be.


Junked aquaduct piping that once brought water to irrigate the nearby orange groves and banana plants.


Builders rubbish is allowed to be tipped on the site of this ancient monument.

A cow staked to the ground bars the way of an intrepid archaeologist.


No explanation.

Someone is actually proud of their flag. But are they proud enough to care about their heritage?

Weeds and overgrown wild bushes disgrace the historical asset.

Banana plants and runner beans are allowed to run along the edge of what could be part of the castle ruins.





Year by year the surrounding banana plantations get smaller and smaller and the rapidly built high rise apartment block developments get closer and closer. It's just plain criminal to leave a heritage asset like this.


It's a shame.







29 May 2013

Alanya's Pirate Bay

If you walk around Alanya Bay you're sure to encounter friendly pirates, beckoning towards you, for you to come on board for a trip to sea. You decide to go on board. You are charged a princely sum, and when they're ready to go ... "we go in 5 minutes", they'll tell you ... an hour later and they're off. You find that they're all in it together and they just take you around the headland where you can ... walk the plank and swim in the sea (like you couldn't do that from the beach?) ... anyway I'm sure it's all jolly good fun.





Skirmishes!


Selavi - aptly named. 
Shortcut to this page http://is.gd/alanya

See more pictures from this area.
http://flickriver.com/photos/tags/alanya+bay/








30 October 2005

Mahmutlar, Alanya, Development in 2005

I took the following photos in and around Mahmutlar area, 5-8km east of Alanya, in October 2005, and wrote the notes below for another website I was involved with at the time.

With a journey time from the UK to Antalya airport at around four hours, plus an onward journey time of 1.5 to 2 by taxi, a trip to Alanya on the Turkish southern Mediterranean coast is not for those who dislike travel. Once you are there this suburb of Alanya, known as Mahmutlar, has a lot to offer.

These photos taken in October 2005 show that there is a great deal of construction work underway, transforming what were banana plantations, into a haven for international holiday makers out to soak up the sun, for people retiring from the north European countries, and for those who are looking for a bargain.

New apartments in this area were being offered from 28,000 Euros for a one bedroom lower floor unit, to 128,000 Euros for a grand penthouse suite on the top floor. And that already represents a substantial improvement in prices for those who bought earlier in 2005.

On my visit I was able to book a three day coach tour to Capadocia for just £28 pounds per person; the price included 2 nights bed and breakfast with evening meals in a hotel, value for money you could not possibly get in the UK. A UK pensioner would find it quite easy to live a “comfortable life” in this area.

Mahmutlar's beach is not sandy, it is gritty, but that will not deter sun worshippers from laying out and soaking up the year-round sun. Apartments are being bought by northern Europeans, and Turks. Alanya has been growing steadily over the past 20 years, and now offers the tourist a plethora of shops, boutiques, tour boats, sights, bars, and discos. The local authorities in Alanya town are even tackling noise by linking discos and bars into a noise-control computer. One decibel over the limit and they could be closed down. How would I sum it up? Best thought of as Turkey's answer to Costa del Sol - but much cheaper with it!

I spoke to Mehmet Kaymaz of RAMAY CONSTRUCTION CO. LTD. and asked him, "What are the reasons people buy in Alanya and Mahmutlar?

Mehmet: “Alanya's wonderful and unique climate, its history, and lower prices are the top three reasons why people choose Alanya and Mahmutlar. People can enjoy the sunlight almost 300 days a year and I think people find the services satisfactory.”

Do you see prices rising?

Mehmet: Of course the prices will rise in the future because the construction market is on demand and it's likely to rise the rate of demand in the future.

Is there an earthquake risk?

Mehmet: Be sure that Alanya has no earthquake risk, the entire complexes have air pressure tank , generator and so on

Who is buying in Mahmutlar?

Mehmet: Especially retired people buy properties from Mahmutlar but there are also people at middle age. There are a lot of people from Netherlands, Ireland, Denmark, Germany, Finland, Sweden, Norway and a few from Russia are living in Mahmutlar.

FOOTNOTES
Although the nearest international airport is a two hour drive there is a former military airport nearby, and the potential for it to be changed into a civilian airport. If that happens, this particular part of Turkey will see prices soaring.

Both Euros and New Turkish Lire are in common use