13 Day Anatolian Silk Road Culinary Expedition

Gaziantep Arrival. Known by the locals simply as Antep, this bustling metropolis in Southern Anatolia is an eclectic mixture of Kurdish, Arab and Turkish influences and it has the kitchen to match; it is the gateway to an Anatolian kitchen that few outsiders see.

You will be collected from the airport and will be brought to your hotel for dinner and a chance to meet us and your fellow gastronauts. Overnight: Gaziantep

(Breakfast and Lunch included)
Antep: City centre sightseeing before lunch at a selected city centre restaurant for your first experience into the culinary world of this ancient city. The blend we’re offering you for your introduction will be savoury soups and spicy meat dishes. Your sweet course will come later, after a visit to the Zeugma Mosaic Museum which houses an outstanding collection Roman period mosaics recovered from the now flooded city of Zeugma. From the Mosaic museum we will visit one of Antep’s premier makers of Baklava to see how it is made and to taste Antep’s signature sweet dish.   After, pause for a brief period of rest and reflection, we will go to the Mutfak Sanatlari Merkezi, Antep’s College of Culinary Arts, for a master class* in one of Antep’s famous dishes. Overnight: Gaziantep

(Breakfast and Lunch included)
After a hearty breakfast we will leave Gaziantep and head across the great River Euphrates and on to the even more ancient city of Şanlıurfa to visit the archaeological site of Göbekli Tepe. This site, dated to around 10,000 years BC, is the earliest example of monumental architecture yet discovered. In a country full of superlatives, this site is truly extraordinary.   From Göbekli Tepe we will go to Urfa in time for a light lunch before visiting the Archaeological Museum and the covered bazaar with its central Gümrük Hanı, built by the great Ottoman Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent in 1563 as a Customs Post and distribution point for goods on this section of the Silk Road. It’s the ideal place to sit and enjoy the shade and the goings on of market traders and passers-by. In the evening we will enjoy gardens and fountains of the Pools of Abraham followed by dinner. Overnight: Şanlıurfa

(Breakfast and Lunch included)
After breakfast we head north to Mt. Nemrut stopping for a light picnic lunch at the Ataturk Dam. At the summit of Adiyaman’s Mt. Nemrut, with the giant statues erected as part of King Antiochus’ funerary monument, we will watch the sun setting. Coming off the mountain we will stay in a mountain village pension and learn how to make Turkish pide*, a traditional savoury Turkish flatbread dish somewhat like pizza. This is something you’ll definitely be taking home with you. Overnight: Nemrut Mountain.

(Breakfast and Lunch included)
From Nemrut we head to Diyarbakir across the Euphrates again, just past the Karaca Dag shield volcano and on into Diyarbakir, surrounded by its giant 2,000-year-old, five-and-a-half-kilometre black basalt defensive walls made of stone from Karaca Dağ.   Diyarbakir is known for rich dishes of spicy lamb and for its liver kebabs. The most famous specialty dish from Diyarbakir is Kaburga Dolması which is a dish of slow baked lamb’s ribs stuffed with rice, almonds and many spices. Diyarbakir is also known for its watermelons, celebrated by a monument and an annual Watermelon Festival.
On arrival and after a light lunch we’ll start our city tour including the walls, the 16th century Hasan Paşa Hanı and the Great Mosque and central square which exactly replicate the ancient Roman Forum and Basilica, both in form and layout. We will visit the Sülüklühan Assyrian Winery and we’ll follow that by going to a famous local restaurant to see the preparation of Diyarbakir’s famous kaburga* before tucking in. Overnight: Diyarbakir

(Breakfast and Lunch included)
Before departing Diyarbakir, we will head back to Hasan Paşa Hanı (in front of Ulu Camii) for a traditional Diyarbakir breakfast of roasted egg and ciğer………or even soup, if you prefer. After breakfast we head south to Mardin.

Mardin is known it is known for the Turkomen/Artuklid architecture of its old city, and for its strategic location on a rocky hill near the Tigris and overlooking the plains south towards Syria. Mardin is a visual feast as well as a culinary and cultural one.  We will explore the backstreets and markets, visit the Great Mosque, the Kasimiye Medresesi before going on to visit the Syriac Saffron Monastery and the 1,000-year BC Temple of the Sun hidden beneath it. On our return to Mardin we will visit one of Mardin’s top restaurants for a feast of traditional local meze and Syriac wine tasting. Overnight: Mardin

(Breakfast and Lunch included)
From Mardin we will head east across the Tigris at Hasankeyf where we will enjoy a boat ride on this iconic river and then up to Batman for lunch, then up the Bitlis Gorge into the Eastern Anatolian high lands to Tatvan on the western shore of Lake Van. On the way we will stop to visit the El Aman Hanı, one of the many Caravanserais along Anatolia’s Silk Road. This restored 16th century Caravanserai now serves the local community as an arts and recreation centre. Overnight: Tatvan

(Breakfast and Lunch included)
From Tatvan we head east along the southern shore of Lake Van stopping at the village of Reşadiye for a hearty village breakfast and a cooking demonstration* in the essential skills for making the iconic Anatolian flatbread. From here we continue on to the regional capital of Van where we will visit the Citadel of Van to watch the sun set over Lake Van. Built on a large lozenge shaped outcrop the fortifications, started in around 850 BC by the Urartians, the citadel has been adapted and added to almost continually ever since by Assyrians, Persians, Romans, Byzantines, Armenians, Turkomen, Seljuks, Ottomans and for a brief period during WWI, the Russians. This fortress is possibly the oldest continuously used military fortification in the world. Overnight: Van

(Breakfast and Lunch included)
After breakfast, we head to Gevaş for a traditional local feast in a local country garden where everybody will participate in food preparations*. We will, however, take a break, and while the ladies of the house stir the pots and turn the meats, we will head to the lake for a boat ride to visit the beautiful island of Akdamar with its exquisite 10th century Armenian Church. Once souls and spirits have been refreshed, we will return to Gevaş to replenish our bodies. Overnight: Van

(Breakfast and Lunch included)
After a breakfast we will visit Annemin Vefa Sofrasi to prepare our lunch* under the expert and fun filled guidance of the ladies at this local family eatery, where mother definitely knows best*. While lunch is cooking, we will visit Urartu Carpets where beautiful carpets and kilims are woven by members of a local Women’s Collective. After lunch there will be free time for relaxation or shopping but there will be an optional tour to Van’s new Archaeological museum. Overnight: Van

(Breakfast and Lunch included)
After another hearty Van breakfast, we depart Van and head north along the eastern shore of Lake Van and then past Mt. Suphan, across the Tendurek Shield Volcano and into Doğubayazıt where we will have a light lunch before visiting the pleasure Palace of Ishak Paşa overlooking the Plains of Ararat. From Doğubayazıt we will continue north around the eastern flank of Ararat and on to the city of Kars. Overnight: Kars

(Breakfast and Lunch included)
After breakfast we will head east to visit the ruins of the medieval Armenian city of Ani, protected on its western side with huge city walls and on its eastern flank by a bend in the Arpaçay River gorge which is the border with Armenia. In the afternoon we will return to Kars for a city tour and a break. In the evening we will prepare our supper which will be Piti Kebab*, a version of this international dish specific to Kars and as a final reminder that a kebab is not just meat on a stick. Overnight: Kars

(Breakfast included)
After breakfast you will have free time in Kars. Today we depart for Kars Airport for our domestic flight to Istanbul and then back to home. We hope your tour was a memorable one and we would like to see you in the future in one of our tours again. Have a nice trip back home and thanks for choosing TravelShop Booking.