Flying over Turkey and around the Syrian border - Feb. 2014

Cliff_Emerson

Yesterday's Lufthansa (LH) flight from Frankfurt to the Middle East brought me over some snowy Turkish mountain ranges at sunset... I was fascinated by the vastness of the landscape.

Additional web pages on this website to visit:
Additional links on this website:
Click here to go back to my first Web entry for Side: "Visit to Side #1"
Click here for:  "Paul's First Journey - Part 2: Traveling from Cyprus to Southern Turkey"
Click here for:  "Siege of Constantinople 1453 - Part #1"

Click here for:  "Flying from Istanbul (IST) to Antalya"

The on-board LH flight monitor (pictured below) showed that our path cut across eastern Turkey toward Syrian and Iraqi Airspace.  

We left Turkish airspace and then turned south over Iraq and Kuwait - reaching the Persian Gulf.

A close-up view - above - showed the following cities: 

• Jerevan = in Armenia;
• Tabriz = in Iran
• Mosul + Kirkuk = in Iraq
• Aleppo + Homs = in Syria.

Also take note of the Turkish cities Diyarbakır, Trabzon, and Erzurum. I'll share pictures of them below.

The map above shows Kurdish-inhabited area.Below, a map shows you how we flew "through the corridor" between Syria and Iran. The red line marks the long flight; the blue line marks the connecting 50-minute flight between Muscat, Oman (home) and Abu Dhabi. 

http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/middle_east_and_asia/middle_east98.jpg

Allow me to fantasize here, and show you four touristic sites far from Western Turkey that we flew over - places I would love to visit.

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About 40 minutes inland from the Black Sea coastal city of Trabzon, we passed close to a fantastic Greek Orthodox monastery... 

www.fazturkey.com

...the Monastery of the Black Virgin at Sumela - in the far reaches of an uninhabited forest high on an embedded rock outcropping.

http://byztex.blogspot.com/2010/08/turkey-allows-orthodox-to-pray-in-their.html

Hidden away from civilization.

http://romeartlover.tripod.com/Trebiso1.html

This enormous seven-story structure perches dramatically on a ledge...

 ...halfway up a sheer rock face above a forest and roaring stream. Sadly, the monks were deported to Greece along with the rest of the Greek community in 1923, so it now sits empty...

de.wikipedia.org

...except for all the tourists that come.

Scroll the map above to help you see the eastern part of the country.

A nearby bridge called Camlihemsin Ayder, at Rize, looks quite old and intriguing - probably built in the Middle Ages.

Further south-east near Lake Van, Hosap Castle stands in an arid desert:

trekearth.com

This area - and all the way down to Iran and Iraq - is Kurdish territory, and could be potentially dangerous for Westerner travelers - from attacks and kidnappings. That's why I only dream of them, and don't visit them!

www.turkeyforholidays.com

Entrance to the castle.

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hosap-castle_(10).jpg

Straight south, near the Syrian border, there's a fascinating city: Diyarbakır.

www.turkeyvacationplaces.com -

Diyarbakır is surrounded by a dramatic set of high walls of black basalt forming a 5.5 km (3.4 mi) circle around the old city. It has four gates and 82 towers. The wall was built in antiquity, and expanded under the Roman emperor Constantius II in 349 BCE.  (Wikipedia)

www.turkeyvacationplaces.com -

Diyarbakır sits on the the Tigris River in Upper Mesopotamia in an area called Al-Jazira (Arabic: الجزيرة) - the name used for the highlands and large sedimentary plain of NW Iraq, south-east Syria and south-east Turkey. [It's the same word used for the ALJAZEERA broadcasting company based in Doha, Qatar.]

bmhdiyarbakir.com

Following is a first-hand account of the siege of the city when it was in Roman hands:

Roman Historian's Account of the Siege of Amida (Diyarbakır) by the Persians (Sassinids)
Ammianus Marcellinus, Res Gestae, 18.7

>>As news of the Persian invasion spread, the civilian population of the region began to panic. Dispatch riders were sent at once with orders to compel the farmers to move with their families and livestock to places of safety. The whole country was set on fire to deprive the enemy of a source of food (scorched earth). In the panic which followed, several Roman legions narrowly escaped the Persian advance by rushing to the safety of the walled city.

It appears the Persian plan was to bypass the stalward fortress and march straight into Syria. When the forces approached Amida, the Sassanids were provoked into attacking the city when the son of the commander, while inspecting the defences of Amida, was killed with an arrow shot from the city. Ammianus described how the leader, outraged at his son's death, demanded revenge from the Romans. The Sassanids began the attack with siege towers, but were unsuccessful.

www.diyarbakirdefterdarligi.gov.tr

The king himself, Shapur II, mounted on a charger, rode before the whole army, wearing a golden image of a ram's head set with precious stones instead of his normal diadem. He was accompanied by a great retinue of men of the highest rank and of various nations. But, it was clear that he was only trying to impress the defenders of the walls.<<

http://www.ntvmsnbc.com/id/25407073/

Ammianus Marcellinus continues with the account of how he reached the safety of the city just as the Sassanids were descending on the city: >>I myself, having been separated from my comrades, was looking around to see what to do, when Verennianus, one of the guard, came up with an arrow in his thigh. While I was trying to pull it out, I found myself surrounded on all sides by the advancing Persians. I quickly aimed my horse toward the city, and could approach it only by a single very narrow ascent - made still narrower by towers which had been built or the cliffs. Here, we mingled with the Persians, who were rushing toward the wall, and remained motionless until sunrise of the next day, so crowded together that the bodies of the slain, held upright by the throng, could nowhere find room to fall...<<

http://www.dooyoo.co.uk/destinations-international/diyarbakir/

Every time Shapur II attempted to capture the city, it ended with disaster. Siege towers were set on fire by the Romans. A plague broke out in Amida but ended after ten days by a light rain. (Next picture: Shapur II and his son)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Taq-e_Bostan_-_High-relief_Shapur_II_and_Shapur_III.jpg

>>The siege took 73 days. After capturing the city, Shapur II advanced further and took Singara and some other fortresses in the following years.

http://upload7.ir/imgs/2014-09/12065185900434297444.jpg

In 363, Emperor Julian, at the head of a strong army, advanced to Ctesiphon, but was killed in a battle. His successor Jovian signed a treaty of peace, by which the five Roman provinces on the Tigris and Nisibis were ceded to the Persians, and the Romans promised to interfere no more in Armenia. (Note: A day before capture of the city, Ammianus Marcellinus [the Roman historian who wrote this account] escaped to Melitene, and thence returned to Antioch.)<< (Wikipedia.com - edited)

http://www.enuygun.com/galeri/diyarbakir-da-gezilecek-yerler

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I took the following photo as we flew over the city of Kirkuk, Iraq, with its concentric circles of roads, on the way to Baghdad. Then, we flew down the middle of the Persian Gulf, staying at some distance away from the Iranian side. 

Cliff_Emerson
On later flights, however, we flew from Turkey right into Iranian airspace, avoiding airspace over Syria and Iraq.

cliff_emerson

Often, as we would cross the Persian Gulf coastline, we would look down at refineries on the Iranian side. 

Looking out into the darkness through a right-side window... Iranian cities and oil refineries flaring gas.

In my earlier days, this is how I flew from Oman to Frankfurt.

Cliff_Emerson

This is the 747-400 I flew on from Frankfurt to Denver.

Cliff_Emerson

Here are two 747's at the new Concourse Z in Frankfurt Airport:

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Back to the subject of special sites in Turkey.
One city on the flight monitor,  Erzurum, closer to the Black Sea coast, is another place I'd like to visit. A bit of history: "Between 1828 and 1918 alone the region was the scene of at least four wars between the Ottoman Empire and Russia... 

www.furkanhacamat.com 

in the winter of 1914, the last of Turkey's imperial dreams came to grief as least 60,000 soldiers under (General) Efnver Paşa froze to death or were killed in military action in the Allahuckber Mountains near Sankamis LINK, a  melancholy tale commemorated by a monument outside of that town."[Insight Guides, Turkey] 

My video shows a full moon over an icy landscape in the mountains of eastern Turkey.

To conclude, I'm posting a map and links to two pbs articles about the fighting in Syria. It was hard to get credible news about the war in those days. 
[I put the red line on their map to show the approximate path of my Lufthansa flights.] [Click on it to enlarge.]

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/foreign-affairs-defense/syrias-second-front/map-syrias-shifting-battle-lines/

MAP: SYRIA’S SHIFTING BATTLE LINES
February 11, 2014, 6:42 am ET by Evan Wexler and Sarah Childress
"Since the uprising began nearly three years ago, the war in Syria has become increasingly diffuse. The high security risk for journalists and the fluid nature of the conflict make it difficult to mark boundaries with certainty. Areas of control are constantly shifting as armed groups claim, and lose, territory."

This map, above, assembled from data shared with FRONTLINE by researchers who have consulted extensively with Syria’s armed groups, shows the best available information about the main military areas of control as of early February 2014.

The Syrian government still maintains the broadest swath of territory. In the southern region, its troops have surrounded pockets of rebel fighters who are now cut off from aid and supplies. The opposition, meanwhile, has fractured into more than 5,000 armed groups with shifting alliances. And the Kurdish forces in the north fight only for themselves, at times seemingly on the side of the government, and at others in support of the rebels.

A new actor, ISIS, or Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (the Levant), emerged in April 2013. It’s composed of a few thousand foreign militants, battle-hardened from waging an insurgency in Iraq. ISIS has quickly become the most radical group in Syria, battling other rebel groups and imposing a strict interpretation of Shariah law. Last week, Al Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri publicly disowned the group, after previously encouraging ISIS and the other rebels to fight President Bashar al-Assad, not each other.<<

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/foreign-affairs-defense/syria-arming-the-rebels/for-syrians-fleeing-violence-scant-refuge-or-relief/

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20-June-2014
The political map of Iraq has changed this week (click to enlarge):

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2662272/This-similar-Nazi-occupation-Europe-says-Iraq-chief-ISIS-burn-cigarettes-Sharia-law-Britain-warned-militants-target-UK.html

21-June-2014
U.N.: ISIS committing war crimes in Iraq
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hAclQLHNjmc

ISIL Attack Military base and take Tanks | ISIL iraq war | VIDEO
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cIa77o73Yvg

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Here are some additional web pages on this web site:
Click here for:  "Visit to Side #1"
Click here  for:  "Paul's 1st Journey - Part 2: Traveling from Cyprus to S. Turkey"
Click here for:  "Siege of Constantinople 1453 - Part #1"
Click here for:  "Flying from Istanbul (IST) to Antalya"

Lystra - Site in south-central Turkey Where Paul Visited

According to the New Testament Book of Acts 14:5-20, Paul and Barnabas visited the ancient city of Lystra on their first Missionary Journey to Asia Minor (Turkey) around 50 CE. 

https://ferrelljenkins.wordpress.com/2011/11/29/illustrations-from-lystra/

Believe it or not, the city is located under this mound, and has never been excavated by archaeologists!  However, an important carved stone that was located on the surface was taken to the archaeological museum in Konia. Its inscription provides proof that the city of Lystra was indeed built upon this exact spot.

Derbe

Derbe is one of the three unexcavated biblic

al sites with a tell (Turkish

höyük) in Turkey. (Lystra and Colossae are the other two.) In 1888 Sterret,

later followed by Ramsay, proposed that Derbe’s location was southeast of

Lystra at Gudelisin. However, epigraphic and numismatic evidence was

lacking

. In 1956 M. Balance discovered an inscription at Kerti H

öy

ük

northeast of Karaman that mentions Derbe. In 1967 B. Van Eldersen

discovered another inscription nearby that names a bishop of Derbe named

Michael. These important discoveries allowed the site o

f Derbe finally to be

established. The two inscriptions are now displayed at the archeological

museums in Karaman

A few stones from the hill have also been removed and built into some of the structures of a nearby town - Hatun Saray. (One reliable source tells me that these are no longer available for viewing.)

http://deeperstudy.com/link/first_journey_all.html

Quick Review: In the beginning of this trip (see map, above), Paul, Barnabas and John Mark left Antioch of Syria and traveled over a hilly area to the coastal town, Selucia, before sailing across to Cyprus, landing at the eastern coastal city of Salamis. 

Then, they crossed the entire island of Cyprus east-to-west by foot and reached Paphos, where they experienced some significant events in Acts 13:6-12 before sailing north-northwest to Perga, on Turkey's south-central coast.

At Perga, Acts says that John Mark decided to return to Jerusalem for reasons that are not fully elucidated, but nevertheless greatly hurt Paul and were the source of a serious argument between him and Barnabas before the Second Missionary Journey (see Acts 15:36-ff).

(Click here for a visit to the ancient city of Perga.)

Barnabas and Paul then tramped northward for perhaps two weeks over the rugged Taurus Mountains and reached the ancient city of Antioch of Pisidia. (Midway in their journey they probably encountered a small city called Adada. More on this place later.) Then, they went to Antioch (Pisidia) and Iconium.


Below is an over-sized satellite photo that extends from Konya (top right corner) to the site of Lystra (red triangle). (Notice: This map should scroll top-to-bottom, and left-to-right.)

If you look in the bottom, right corner of this map (try clicking on the photo), the village of Madenşehri -  at the base of an extinct volcano, Karadağ on its north side - has several ancient church structures dating back to the 300's. Can you imagine how old that is! Click on this  LINK  to see one of the churches.

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Lystra is located under the mound called Zordula Huyuk just north of the Turkish village of Hatun Saray (red triangle on map, above) - about 21 miles (35 km.) south of Konya - top, right corner of map). The mound is clearly visible on this satellite photo, below. (Red words, top right.)

Paul and Barnabas visited Lystra twice on this trip - on their way out to Derbe, and on the return. 

https://www.karnbibeln.se/bibel-plats/?pi=841#prettyPhoto

A view from the top of Lystra, looking down on the fertile countryside. When driving across central Turkey, I noticed a lot of productive agricultural land, due to volcanic soil.

Lystra was most likely Timothy's hometown, and he had a good reputation in the surrounding area, including among the believers at Iconium. 

Paul asked Timothy to accompany him when he came through the area some years later on his Second Missionary Journey.

As mentioned above, Lystra has never been formally excavated by archaeologists. Other Biblical cities in Turkey that have suffered a similar fate: Derbe and Colossi. 

kenschenck.blogspot.com 

This is a view from the top of the mound:

kenschenck.blogspot.com 

The only visible artifacts from the ancient city are broken pieces of ceramics, stones and soil located on the mound and larger rocks displayed in the nearby village of Hatursay. These are built into some modern walls and a bridge, and sitting on a vacant lot. Look for them in the following video:

This YouTube video (in German) shows you what the actual site looks like today. A Swiss couple made the recording on a walking journey from Basel, Switzerland to Jerusalem. They are shown near the mound, and then later in the nearby village.

I've transcribed the man's YouTube description here - 

First, I typed the script in German.

Then, I translated it into English and typed the text below.

First, the German, if you're able to read it while you watch the video:

#1. Hinter mir sieht man das Tell von Lystra. Paulus und Barnabus sind hierher gekommen, als sie merkten, dass die Leute in Ikonium sie steinigen wollten. Diese Leute folgten ihm aber, wie auch Leute aus Antiochien von Pisidien, und sie stachelten die Leute von Lystra auf, damit sie Paulus steinigten. Paulus überlebte aber diese Steinigung, stand dann wieder auf, und ging mit seinen Leuten nach Derbe. Auf seiner Missionsreise kam er wieder hierher nach Lystra, und er nahm dann Timotheus mit. Er war der Sohn einer jüdischen Mutter und eines griechischen Vaters. Timotheus und Paulus seien treue Mitarbeiter, und er schrieb auch zwei Briefe an Timotheus, die wir im Neuen Testament finden, und Timotheus wirkte bei verschiedenen Briefen von Paulus mit. 

[Traktoren beim Pflugen]

#2. In diesem Brunnen sind Steine vom alten Lystra eingebaut. Hier sieht man einen, und auf der anderen Seite (einen). 

#3. Hier sieht man verschiedene Funde aus Lystra... 

[Schaffe blöken]

1. Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yi87zS8CAC8

Youtube translation into English:

#1. Behind me you can see the tell of Lystra. Paul and Barnabas came here after they noticed that the people of Ikonium wanted to stone them. These people, as well as those from Antioch of Pisidia, followed them and riled the people up so they would stone Paul. Paul survived this stoning, stood up, and went with his people to Derbe. On his second missionary journey, he came back here to Lystra, and took Timothy with him. He was the son of a Jewish mother and a Greek father. Timothy and Paul were faithful workers, and he also wrote two letters to Timothy, which we find in the New Testament. Timothy also assisted with several of Paul's letters.

[tractors plowing a field]

#2. Stones from the old Lystra have been built into the wall of this well. Here you see one, and on the other side.

#3. Here you can see a variety of rocks recovered from Lystra.[sheep bleating]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/brianmorley/2161331746/in/photostream/

A carved stone from the ancient city of Lystra, lying on the hilltop.

Acts 14:5-20 shares the account of Paul and Barnabus healing a lame man in Lystra. As a response to this miracle, the local people thought they were the gods Zeus and Hermes in human form, and attempted to make a sacrifice to them. They barely persuaded the people not to do this, and immediately thereafter, some hostile Jewish people arrived from cities previously visited by Paul and Barabus (Iconium and Antioch of Pisidia) and turned the people against the them. They stoned Paul and drug him out of the city, leaving him for dead. A day later, Paul and Barnabas shared the Good News in the surrounding countryside before moving on to Derbe, about 75 km. to the east, traveling first on the Roman road through Laranda (Karaman).

After this first journey, Paul visited Lystra on two subsequent missionary journeys, coming through from Antioch (Syria) in the direction of the west.

This stone's inscription, dating from the first century AD, was found at Lystra, and reinforces the historical validity of the site. It is on display at the museum in Konya, 35 km. north of Lystra.

Translation:  

"The colony of Julia Felix Gemina Lystra consecrated (this statue of) the Deified Augustus. By decree of the decurions." (Mark Wilson, Biblical Turkey)

http://ferrelljenkins.wordpress.com/2007/06/01/iconium-pisidian-antioch-attalia/

Click here for a link to the archaeology museum back in Konia  (ancient city of Iconium).

Bishops from Lystra attended several historic church councils in Asia Minor (Turkey), including 

• Nicea (325 AD)
• Constantinople (381)
• Chalcedon (451), and
• Constantinople (879). 

This evidence substantiates the presence of a viable church here for several centuries. After Moslem Arab invaders started to raid Turkey in the 700's, this city would have fallen prey, and been destroyed. Perhaps it was then rebuilt on the ruins, and destroyed repeatedly - creating a mound.
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To get a broader perspective of events and areas in the Near East, click on this link.

FYI. Following is a list of New Testament passages - primarily in the Book of Acts -with their corresponding sites in Turkey:

Sites in Turkey found in the New Testament 

	(with modern Turkish names)
Adramyttium (Edremit)	Acts 27:2
Antioch (Antakya)	Acts 6:5; 11:19-30; 13:1-3; 14:26-15:3; 15:22-35; 18:22-23
Asia	Acts 2:9; 6:9; 16:6; 19:10, 22, 26, 27; 20:4, 16,18; 21:27; 24:19; 27:2; Rom 16:5; 1 Cor 6:19; 2 Cor 1:8; 2 Tim 1:15; 1 Peter 1:1; Rev 1:4
Assos (Behramkale)	Acts 20:13-14
Attalia (Antalya)	Acts 14:25-26
Bithynia (Nicomedia [Izmit]; Nicea [Iznik])	Acts 16:7; 1 Peter 1:1
Cappadocia (Caesarea Mazaca [Kayseri])	Acts 2:9; 1 Peter 1:1
Cilicia	Acts 6:9; 15:23, 41; 21:39; 22:3; 23:34; 27:5; Gal 1:21
Cnidus	Acts 27:7
Colossae (Honaz)	Col 1:2
Derbe (Ekin?z?)	Acts 14:6-7, 20-23; 16:1
Ephesus (Selçuk)	Acts 18:19-21, 24-26; 19:1-20:1; 20:16-17; 1 Cor 15:32; 16:8; Eph 1:1; 1 Tim 1:3; 2 Tim 1:18; 4:12; Rev 1:11; 2:1-7
Euphrates River (Firat Nehri)	Rev 9:14; 16:12
Galatia	Acts 16:6; 18:23; Gal 1:2; 3:1;- 2 Tim 4:10; 1 Pet 1:1
Haran (Harran)	Acts 7:2, 4
Hierapolis (Pamukkale)	Col 4:13
Iconium (Konya)	Acts 13:51-14:5; 16:2
Laodicea (Denizli)	Col. 2:1, 4:13-16; Rev 1:11; 3:14-22
Lycaonia	Acts 14:6
Lycia	Acts 27:5
Lystra (Hatunsaray)	Acts 14:6-23; 16:1-5
Magog (Lydia?)	Rev 20:8
Miletus (Milet)	Acts 20:15-38; 2 Tim 4:20
Myra (Kale; Demre)	Acts 27:5
Mysia	Acts 16:7-8
Pamphylia	Acts 2:10; 13:3; 14:24; 15:38; 27:5
Patara (Ova)	Acts 21:1
Perga (Perge)	Acts 13:13-14; 14:25
Pergamum (Bergama)	Rev 1:11; 2:12-17
Philadelphia (Alasehir)	Rev 1:11; 3:7-13
Phrygia	Acts 2:10; 16:6; 18:23
Pisidian Antioch (Yalva?)	Acts 13:14-50; 14:19, 21-23
Pontus (Amisos [Samsun])	Acts 2:9; 1 Pet 1:1
Sardis (Sart)	Rev 1:11; 3:1-6
Seleucia (Samandag)	Acts 13:4
Smyrna (Izmir)	Acts 20:1(?); Rev 1:11; 2:8-11
Syria	Matt 4:24; Luke 2:2; Acts 15:23, 41; 18:18; 20:3;21:3; Gal 1:21
Tarsus	Acts 9:11,30; 11:25; 21:39; 22:3
Thyatira (Akhisar)	Rev 1:11; 2:18
Troas (Dalyan)	Acts 16:8-11; 20:1(?), 5-13; 2 Cor 2:12; 2 Tim 4:13
Trogyllium	Acts 20:15(KJV)

Source: http://www.ephesustoursguide.com/must-see-places-in-turkey/turkey-and-the-new-testament.html

Additional topics found on this website:

Click here for: Table of Contents
Click here for:  "Paul's First Journey - Part 2: Traveling from Cyprus to Southern Turkey"
Click here for:  "Siege of Constantinople 1453 - Part #1"
Click here for:  "Flying from Istanbul (IST) to Antalya"
Click here for:  "Visit to Side #2 - Museum"  -  Sept. 2019