We loved Dubai’s southernmost district, brimming with luxurious beachfront resorts, restaurants, and some of the city’s most glamorous see-and-be-seen nightclubs. Daytime, we strolled along the Dubai Marina waterfront; we enjoyed The Walk at JBR and, of course, The Beach at...
We arrived at the coastal village of Al Ashkharah just before sunset. It is known for its mild climate and beaches with brutal tides inhabited by birds and turtles. Al Ashkharah is also an essential source of Omani fish, such as Al-Sharkha, shrimp, Al-Sahwa, Al-Shaari, and Al-Safi. It is...
Salalah, the capital of the Dhofar region, is a colorful, subtropical city that owes much of its character to Oman’s former territories in East Africa. Our first stop was the newly completed Sultan Qaboos Mosque. This single-dome mosque with two minarets was a gift from His Majesty...
We planned to drive from Catalina Seaplane Wreckage on a scenic coastal road toward Georgios G. Shipwreck. However, just a few kilometers before the shipwreck, we hit a checkpoint created by Special Forces for Environmental Security (SFES), and that was the end of our plan. They did not...
We spent the whole afternoon alone on the long stretch of white sand beach Al-Nuhud near Al-Birk. Someone put a lot of money into building a 3-lane road around the beach, parking bays, and every hundred meters toilets with showers. So it’s the perfect spot to relax after some long...
It is a group of more than 170 coral islands in the Red Sea located 40 kilometers off the coast of Jazan. The climate in the Farasan archipelago is characterized by a long hot season (April–October) and a short, mild one (November–March). We had a bearable average temperature of 36°C with...
Our second stop at the Black Sea coast was Ordu, a center for hazelnut processing and exporting (1 kg / 140 TRY). It lies at the mouth of the Melet River on the eastern slopes of Boztepe (550 m), a high hill that protects it against storms from the northwest. Ordu was the site of ancient...
We drove slowly through the Pontic Mountains to reach the Black Sea coast. We arrived late in the busy town of Ünye, and we couldn’t find any suitable parking place near the center. It was getting dark, so we decided to overnight at Shell. The history of Ünye goes back to the Hittite...
Our next stop was Kızkalesi, where we visited its fortress rising from an island 250m offshore. Kızkalesi Castle (🎫 20 TRY) has mosaics of birds and trees in the central courtyard, where there are the remains of two chapels side by side and a vaulted gallery with 13 arches. The castle was...
We spend an hour at the little village Narlıkuyu, built around a placid cove lined with seafood restaurants. A Roman benefactor, Poimenios, built a bathhouse here in the 300s AD. A small museum on the village square houses its mosaics of the Three Graces Aglaia, Thalia, and Euphrosine...