Winter in Turkey impressions #10: Derinkuyu is famous for its underground city. My camping neighbor told me about it. And since it started to snow i gladly took his invitation for the ride there in his comfortable heated van. Beside exploring this fascinating underground city, it was also nice having a nice pal to talk to.
The next morning I returned to the old city centre of Akko/Acre.
Some remains in the old town are still witnesses from the past centuries. A combined ticket for the most interesting, historical sites brought me across the city.
Most fascinating for me was the Templar Tunnel, which leads 150 meter long under the old city and was used from the crusaders. It was only recovered in the 1990′ by coincidence.
But most surprising was the citadel of the crusaders, with its knights halls, hospice and many more buildings. The remains are nowadays under the later build city. So, a self guided tour brought under the streets and opened up ancient streets, walls, churches and so on.
There was also a museum about a Turkish bath, known as hammam. In the different room are statues and video explanations to show the history of this particular hammam and how these bathrooms works in general.
The Ramhal synagoge is famous for its earlier Rabbi Moshe Chaim Lozato, who’s a very important religious leader and academic.
In the city wall is one more museum. It exhibits a collection of everyday objects, tools, but also clothes and jewelry from the begin of modern Israel.
By BRT, the brandnew city bus system, we get to Kariakoo. Ferdinand, my guide, leads me trough many street market to a remarkable building, with funnel type roof. It was built by the Germans as an exhibition and market place, he explains me. The roof was constructed to collect rainwaters and drain it to tanks. While traveling trough Africa, i was wondering so many times, why no one got the idea to collect rainwater, but going long ways to muddy wells or to rivers. And although the Germans brought this idea decades ago, there’s still hard to find areas, where rainwater get collected. Inside and around this building are market as found all around Africa. But there’s a big concrete way leading under the halls. It remains me at entrance for military bunker. Once inside the black hole, the eyes needs time to adapt on the dark. Some torches were lit to show customers the vegetables, fish and other goods sold by women sitting in the darkness. Keep your stuff tight on you, reminds me Ferdinand, while i try to follow his voice. From a few windows light breaks in and lays over the piles of tomatoes. In the darkest corners candles shows the way to the potatoes and fishes. It feels weird and thrilling to wander trough those halls, hearing strange sounds and whispering people. From far comes bright light trough a big gate, the exit. I step into sunlight, heat falls on my head and i’m back into hustling Daressalam.
rene bauer photography 