Since making agreements with Talsi, Trakai, and Keszthely in 2006, Alanya increased its number of sister cities to eight, seven of which are located within the European Union. Previously in 2005 Alanya had applied with Sister Cities International for an additional sister city located in the United States. The most significant tie is with the city of Nea Ionia, where many of Alanya’s Christians were resettled in 1923 after the Treaty of Lausanne. Gladbeck, Wodzisław Śląski, Schwechat, Fushun, and Alanya form a “family” in that each is partnered with the others.
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Sister Cities
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Sports In Alanya
Alanya is home to a woman’s basketball team, Alanya Belediye, which started in the first division but was relegated after the 2002 season. The city hosts a second level soccer team, Alanyaspor, though soccer fans in the city are mostly divided between the three major Istanbul teams. The city is currently constructing a new soccer facility with the intention of hosting winter competitions between major teams.
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Transportation To Alanya
The D400 Turkish Highway connects Alanya from the east and west, and runs through the city center as Atatürk Bulvarı. Antalya Airport, is 75 miles (120 km) away and connects internationally. The still unopened local Antalya Gazipaşa Airport, completed in 1999, is only 9 miles (15 km) from the city, and is currently constructing an international terminal. The international terminal will be completed by mid-2008. There are bus and dolmuş systems out of Alanya’s two bus depots, but buses are usually limited to the major roads, and inside the city transportation is by car, taxi, or foot, as many roads in the old town are closed to traffic. The harbor includes cruise ship piers, and also seasonal ferries and hydrofoils depart for Kyrenia in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.
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Demographics In Alanya
From only 87,080 in 1985, the district has surged to currently hold a population of 384,949. The city itself has a population of 134,396, of which 9,789 are European, about half of them from Germany and Denmark. The European population tends to be over 50 years old.During the summer the population increases due to large numbers of tourists, about 1.1 million each year pass through the city. Both Turks and Europeans, these vacationers provide income for much of the population. The city includes many migrants from the Southeastern Anatolia Region, people of Kurdish, Turkish, and Armenian heritages. In the 2000s, the town has seen a surge in illegal foreign immigrants from the Middle East and South Asia, both to stay and to attempt to enter European Union countries. Currently 1,217 migrants claim residence in Alanya while working abroad.
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Architecture In Alanya
On the peninsula stands Alanya Castle, a Seljuk era citadel dating from 1226. Most major landmarks in the city are found inside and around the castle. The current castle was built over existing fortifications and served the double purpose of a palace of local government and as a defensive structure in case of attack. The city is currently renovating various sections of the castle area, including a Byzantine church, which is intended to be used for a Christian community center. Inside the castle is the Süleymaniye mosque and caravanserai, built by Suleiman the Magnificent. The old city walls surround much of the eastern peninsula, and can be walked. Inside the walls are numerous historic villas, well preserved examples of the classical period of Ottoman architecture, most built in the early 19th century.
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Climate Of Alanya
Though promoting itself as “where the sun smiles,” Alanya has a relatively moderate continental Mediterranean climate. The Mediterranean Basin ensures that most rain comes during the winter, leaving the summers long, hot, and dry. Storm cells sometime bring with them fair weather waterspouts when close to the shore. The presence of the Taurus Mountain in close proximity to the sea causes fog many mornings, in turn creating visible rainbows many days. The height of the mountains creates an interesting effect as snow can often be seen on them even on hot days in the city below. The sea at Alanya has an average temperature of 70.5°F (21.4°C) annually, with an average August temperature of 82.2°F (27.9°C).
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Geography Of Alanya
Located on the Gulf of Antalya on the Anatolian coastal plain of Pamphylia, the town is between the Taurus Mountains to the north and the Mediterranean Sea, and is part of the Turkish riviera, occupying roughly 43.5 miles (70 km) of coastline. The Pamphylia plain between the sea and the mountains is an isolated example of Eastern Mediterranean conifer-sclerophyllous-broadleaf forests. The town is divided by a rocky peninsula which is perhaps the most distinctive feature of the city. The harbor and Keykubat beach, named for Sultan Kayqubad, are on the east side of the peninsula, and Damlataş beach, named for the famous “dripping caves,” and Cleopatra beach are to the west. Legend and locals claim the name Cleopatra Beach in Alanya derives from either the Ptolemaic princess’ visit here or the area’s inclusion in her dowry from Mark Antony. Regardless, the area was indeed under some Egyptian hegemony in the early centuries BC.
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Alanya
Because of its natural strategic position on a small peninsula into the Mediterranean Sea below the Taurus Mountains, Alanya has been a local stronghold for many Mediterranean based empires, including the Seleucid, Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman Empires.