Hays Travelogue

Our first day in Antakya, or Antioch, was a Monday, a day off for many of the the city sights, so we decided to drive to the sea coast. On the way we stopped at the Monastery of St. Simeon. Among the turbines of a brand new wind farm at the top of the Hill of Wonders are the ruins of three churches and the remains of the pillar upon which St. Simeon the Younger lived and died. In the early days of Christianity and especially in Syria (of which Hatay was a part) it was the practice of some hermits to live atop a pillar. Some of the minarets in Antakya are modeled on St. Simeon’s pillar.

From here we drove back down the mountain and on to the ancient port of Antioch, Seleucia Pieria. Not much remains, but a necropolis and a flood control tunnel cut through the rock are interesting.

We returned to Antakya through the town of Harbiye. This – how do they know? – is where Daphne was turned into a laurel tree (defne in Turkish). It’s a beautiful place, full of springs and waterfalls, tea houses, restaurants, and souvenir shops where you can buy laurel soap. We had lunch up in the town and tea down at the water.

More photos here.

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