About Antalya :
Situated on a steep cliff over the Mediterranean, Antalya is a picturesque city surrounded by mountains. Developments in tourism, starting in the 1970s, have transformed the city into an international resort. With its airport and central location, Antalya is "the capital of Turkish tourism", a gateway for the Turkish riviera and many historical sites. Furthermore with its palm-lined boulevards, its prize-winning marina, preserved historical neighborhood of Kaleiçi, and the modern developments along the coast, the city of Antalya is a major attraction in its own right. Antalya and its surroundings are a very important part of Turkish tourism. In 150 BC Attalos II, king of Pergamom, founded the city of Attalia (present day Antalya) to base his powerful naval fleet. The city grew and prospered in the Ancient Roman and Byzantine periods. Christianity started to spread in the region after the 2nd century. Antalya was visited by Paul of Tarsus, as recorded in the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 14:25-26), where Antalya is referred to as Attalia. St. Paul and St. Barnabas went to Antalya and sailed from there to Antioch after preaching in Pisidia and Pamphylia. The city later became a naval base for the Christian Crusades against the Muslims in the Levant and in Cyprus. By the second half of the 17th century Evliya Çelebi gathered the records of narrow streets. (Containing 3,000 houses in twenty Turkish and four Greek neighborhoods.) The town had grown beyond the city walls and the port could hold up to 200 boats. In the 18th century, its lord was the family of Tekke Oglu, resided near Perge, though reduced to obedience in 1812 by Mahmud II. He continued to be a rival power to the Ottoman governor until the present generation, surviving by many years the fall of the other great Beys of Anatolia. The records of the Levant (Turkey) Company, which maintained an agency here till 1825, contain information as to the local Dere Beys. In the 19th century the population of Antalya increased as Turks from the Caucasus and the Balkans moved into Anatolia. By 1911 it was a city of about 25,000 people, including many Christians and Jews, still living in separate quarters. The port was served by coasting steamers of the local companies only. Antalya (then Adalia) was an extremely picturesque, but poorly constructed and reserved place. The main attraction in the city is the city wall, outside of which runs a lovely, clean boulvarde which survives to this day. The government offices and the houses of the upper class were outside the city wall. The population of the city today is 2,4 million (2007). Antalya is an attractive city, at an altitude of only about 50 meters. The picturesque old quarter called Kaleiçi which has narrow, winding streets and charming wooden houses next to the city walls is one of the main attractions.
MORE INFORMATIONS : http://www.antalya.com/
