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It's known as the 'Turkish Delphi', but one of the great things about Arykanda is that it's right off the beaten track, so you don't get the huge crowds you do in Greece. The ruins and setting are equally beautiful and impressive.

We were lucky enough to go there with an archaeologist, Peter Sommer, who knew the site and truly brought it alive for us. We were on a gulet cruise, visiting ancient cities along the way. I had no idea there were so many ruins in Turkey - and so well preserved! But it was Arykanda that really shone out.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17860 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/16893
Objects from his reign form one of the most spectacular displays in the Cairo Museum but few ever visit his short lived capital city at Tell el-Amarna (which gives its name to the period and the artistic style of the times). Little remains of the city itself (although the setting is highly atmospheric) but the tombs of the king and his courtiers in the cliffs and wadis to the east are among the finest in the country, and mercifully free of marauding tourists – I was the only person at the site the day I visited.

A visit requires several hours and is probably best arranged as part of a stop-over in the nearby city of el-Minya (150 miles south of Cairo) which has several comfortable hotels. A military escort is required to travel through this part of the country although there is no real threat – it’s more like getting the VIP treatment.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/16893 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/16891
Here, you get to see the earliest pyramid – the so-called ‘Step Pyramid’, which is still impressive in size and is set in a partly-restored ‘complex’ of buildings. Various other pyramids in more or less romantically-ruinous states are scattered around the site, together with some of the most wonderfully decorated private tombs in Egypt.

With these, though, as with lots of sites in Egypt, it’s almost impossible to say what will be open and what won’t, because that information seems to change rather haphazardly. Get here under your own steam by a taxi from Cairo to make sure you can wander around the many acres of ruins without worrying about getting back on to a coach.

One thing not to miss is the pyramid of Unas – start at his pyramid and then walk down its ‘causeway’, which has private tombs built all around it.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/16891 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/16862
Arriving at Tell Basta, now a suburb of Zagazig) provides an idea of how the ruins across the whole country may once have looked (a true Ozymandias moment). This monumental site (once the home of a huge temple structure dedicated to the cat goddess Bastet) accommodated religious festivals that numbered hundreds of thousands of participants, now it is little more than a field of rubble.

However, if you have been to any of the great temple structures (Luxor, Karnak etc) you will be able to see the layout and structure of the site through the debris. The lack of tourists, combined with the thrill of identifying key elements within the site, as well as coming across the scattered remains of monumental statues, secured this as one of the most unique parts of our Egyptian trip. There is also an interesting cat necropolis on the site.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/16862 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/15414
It was a very convenient way of doing it for us as we only had a few days in Istanbul but this is somewhere we really wanted to visit as well.

Ephesus itself is only about 1 hours' drive away from Izmir airport and the flights take about an hour each way. We arranged it through a local tour company and found it very convenient as everything was included from the tour to flights and transfers. It was all very well organized so that we didn't find it too rushed or tiring, just as a very interesting day out.

You can see the day trip we did with them and some others here: www.toursistanbul.com/day-trips.htm

Even though it was just for a day, we found it very worthwhile and the city beautifully preserved.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/15414 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/15312
Two large sacrificial pits discovered from July to September 1986 at Sanxingdui constitute one of the most important archaeological finds of the twentieth century.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/15312 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/13217 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/13217 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/11990 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/11990 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/11523 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/11523 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/11482 However, Ephesus has many buildings including Celsus Library, Roman latrines and an ampitheatre among many other ruins.

There is a very special atmosphere there and on one section of the road, you can see the ancient worn-in tracks of Roman chariot wheels. A carved effigy of Nike the ancient goddess can also be viewed there. The city is inland and it gets incredibly hot there, so bring plenty of sun lotion and water and remember to wear your hat.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/11482 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/11425
Bit busy in the centre (though not in a Costa del Sol-type way), quiet places to stay on the edges of the village or inland towards Armeni. Really friendly people that make you more than welcome. Enough to do nearby without having to explore - though amazing archaelogical sites nearby.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/11425 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/8689 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/8689 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/5076
The space still retains the long shape of the chariot racing track which was famous in antiquity and was the site of a famous riot. The fans of the racing teams were as obsessed as modern day football fans.

In the centre, the late Roman and Byzantine emperors displayed numerous antiquities hauled to Constantinople from all over the empire, including Egyptian obelisks and the serpent column from the sanctuary of Delphi in Greece, which was set up to commemorate victory over the Persians by the Greeks in 480 BC. Only the column is there now, but it used to support a giant tripod (bowl on three legs) - a fitting symbol to put in the Hippodrome since tripods were, like modern 'cups', the usual prize in athletic games.

The Egyptian obelisk is from Karnak, brought to Constantinople by Theodosius I, and placed on a relief-decorated base. The base shows the imperial court and Hippodrome scenes, and around it is the original ground level of the Hippodrome.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/5076 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/3268 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/3268 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/1592 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/1592 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/8993 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/8993 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/5640 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/5640