Urfa to Antakya

Urfa is a beautiful little city. It was so nice to be out of Kurdish country and into a more Turkish town. The town has taken their major tourist attractions and surrounded it by gardens filled with trees and flowers. On a Saturday, it was filled with Turks picnicking and enjoying their day off.

We visited Prophet Abraham’s Birth Cave- with separate entrances for men and women. Inside it was like peering into someone’s unfinished basement…with a few women praying on rugs facing the cave walls.

Prophet Abraham's Birth Cave:



Then, we climbed to the Kale (fortress) to get a view of the city and see the two columns where local legend has it that King Nimrod, unhappy with Abraham, had him flung from a slingshot off the cliff. God intervened and created a pool for Abraham to fall into, thus saving his life.

Throne of Nimrod:

The pool today is filled with “sacred carp” (who look as if they may turn to cannibalism shortly due to serious overpopulation. The locals consider it a sin to kill or eat the carp).

Pool of Abraham:

In the market, we bought a pair of pants for John and Martin- hard to describe the cut – with a huge swath of cloth hanging between the legs. Not sure what problem this solves.

Then it was off to Antakya (Antioch). The city has a definite Arab feeling (and was once a part of Syria). The museum has a collection of Roman mosaics, unfortunately poorly marked.

We also drove out to the Cave-Church of St. Peter.

Tradition has it that this cave was the first Christian church- used by St Peter and Paul when they lived in Antioch. It’s also believed that Antioch was the first place the term “Christian” was used.

Inside the Cave-Church of St. Peter: