The Western Shores of Turkey

The Western Shores of Turkey is the distillation of a succession of journeys that John Freely made along this coast - an odyssey spanning a quarter of a century.
The Western coast of Turkey has captivated travellers for centuries. With its dramatic mountains and idyllic bays and promontories, scattered with ancient ruins, it is not only one of the most beautiful parts of the country, but is also of great historical interest.
Resting on two continents, Turkey reflects and absorbs the cultures of both East and West and nowhere is this more evident than along its Aegean and Mediterranean coasts. This is a land immersed in history and mythology: it is where Anthony met Cleopatra, where Herodotus, the 'father' of history, was born and where legendary battles were fought - from Alexander the Great to Gallipoli.
By bus, car and caïque, on foot and post boat, from Istanbul to Antakya (Antioch) on the Syrian border, Freely discovered both the charm of modern Turkey and the wonders of its past. The result is both an informative guide and a remarkable travelogue for all who follow in his footsteps.

John Freely was born in New York and joined the US Navy at the age of seventeen, serving with a commando unit in Burma and China during the last years of World War II. He has lived in New York, Boston, London, Athens and Istanbul and has written over thirty travel books and guides, most of them about Greece and Turkey. He is the author of Strolling Through Athens (also Tauis Parke Paperbacks) and the bestselling Strolling Through Istanbul.

Illustrations
Acknowledgements
A note on Turkish spelling and pronunciation
Introduction
1 The Hellespontine Shores
2 Troy and the Trojan plan
3 The Troad
4 The Gulf of Edremit
5 Pergamum and the Attalids
6 The Aeolian shore
7 Izmir, the ancient Smyrna
8 Ancient Lydia: the Hermus valley and Sardis
9 The northern Ionian shore
10 Ephesus and the Mother Goddess
11 The Maeander valley and Aphrodisias
12 Miletus and the vanished splendours of Ionia
13 The Carian hills
14 Bodrum, the ancient Halicarnassus
15 The Ceramic Gulf
16 Cnidus and the southern shore of Caria
17 From Caria to Lycia
18 The Xanthus valley and the Tomb of Bellerophon
19 The western Lycian shore
20 The eastern Lycian shore
21 The Pamphylian plain
22 The Cilician shore
23 To the 'fair crown of the Orient'
Chronology
Turkish glossary
Architectural glossary
Bibliography
Index