Hatay – Turkey’s hidden gem

Hatay is a southern Turkish province nestled in the Nur mountains and blessed with the Mediterranean coastline bordering Syria on the south and the east. It thus has an interesting cultural amalgamation of Turks, Arabs with a majority of Syrians, Jews, Greeks, and Kurds among other ethnicities. It is also famous for its cheesy sugary dessert, Kunafeh while its neighboring Gaziantep province is known for its Baklava.

Picture postcard-perfect view of the Mediterranean sea and Nur mountains

Hatay’s favous dessert – Kunafeh

What excited me the most about my trip to Hatay is its 6000-year-old history which makes Hatay a live excavation site and a treasure trove of Roman and Byzantine mosaic, artifacts, and architecture. The Archeology Museum in its cosmopolitan capital, Antakya, has thousands of excavated Roman mosaics depicting mythological figures and stories, marble sculptures, earthen wine storage pots, and artifacts from the Paleolithic, Bronze, and Iron ages and so much more.

Statue of King Šuppiluliuma I (14th century BC)

Cranial Deformation – Head binding during infancy was practiced to distinguish individuals belonging to certain ethnic groups since 5th century BC thus resulting in elongated skulls

Most of these massive mosaics looked like flawless paintings from afar. I stood there exhilarated just imagining the effort, time, precision, and vision of mosaic artists back in the day.

Looking over these ginormous mosaic artworks

‘Mr. Skeleton chilling in the Roman baths’ mosaic

Hatay Archeological museum

The famous wall-mounted mosaic with 3D effect

Birds and animals were popular subjects for mosaic art

If there’s one thing you can’t miss in Antakya it is The Museum Hotel. A 5-star property built on and around Roman remnants of mosaic, baths and piazzas dating back to antiquity. It also houses 199 hotel rooms, cafes, fine-dining restaurants, and the world’s largest single-floor mosaic dating back to the 4^th century!

That incomparable feeling of standing over the world’s largest single-floor mosaic spread across 1050 sq. meters!

If you look closer, you can observe the uneven surface that resembles a carpet

A fine-dining restaurant overlooking 5th century Roman baths

As soon as you step inside the swanky hotel lobby, you are treated to the Pegasus Mosaic – the Greek mythological winged horse including Nine Muses. Dating back to the 2^nd century, this mosaic features 162 different color tones of natural stones. I stood there in awe at the 2o centuries of history that greeted us.

Pegasus mosaic at the Hotel lobby

A closer look at the masterpiece (painting?)

Very few places in the world would let you walk over a glass floor and marvel at the genius of intertwining ancient and modern art and architecture. The Museum Hotel of Antakya is one of them. Our Turkish friend jokingly mentioned how every time the Government tries to build infrastructure, they find ancient ruins and must either abort or change the entire architectural plan. This hotel is indeed benchmark-worthy in not just overcoming that challenge but in turn paying homage to history and heritage.

Another unique place to visit nearby was St. Peter’s Church. Perched upon a hill, it is one of the oldest churches in Christianity. Water dripping from the ceiling was stored and used for drinking and baptism. What remains inside is a marble figurine of Saint Peter (one of Christ’s 12 Apostles), a stone altar and remnants of frescos and mosaic.

St. Peter’s Church

Inside the cave church

We’ve also thoroughly enjoyed strolling through the old cobblestoned alleyways of Antakya, trying out the local brew, and exploring cafes, local clothing stores and trying our luck with haggling for a good bargain. Although most residents didn’t speak English, they were extremely warm and friendly.

Old town Antakya

Our favourite beer cafe

This is what makes off-beat travel destinations special – you don’t have a list of touristic hotspots to tick off your list, you learn new foreign words or simply use your body language better, and you tend to slow travel, enjoying every bit of that spontaneity.

Until next time, the Land of Legends.