這周末去了兩個地方，一個是阿拉伯語普遍的哈泰省，位於土耳其最南與敘利亞交界處，曾經獨立為哈泰共和國，二戰時與土合併以抵禦。多元的宗教和平共存，從猶太, 天主, 東正, 伊斯蘭教各支派, 到亞美尼亞村落一應俱全。只有猶太教堂無法參觀。地中海的藍與壯觀的古代渠道也值得一看。
Gaiziantep則是個南部美食大城，到處是充滿新鮮開心果仁的千層餅。壓軸的是去年才開，世界最大的馬賽克博物館，西元二世紀的巨幅馬賽克，修復完整，包含維納斯的誕生，宙斯，及吉普賽女孩等驚世之作。
自由讓人意識自我存在價值，沉思讓人領會生命的薄與厚實，最真實
This weekend we went
to two places:
1. Hatay Province, located in south of Turkey bordering Syria, where Arabic is commonly spoken. Republic of Hatay was once independent until World War II. Diverse religions peacefully coexist, the population included: Turks, Arabs of various religious denominations (Sunni Muslims, Alawites, Greek Orthodox); Greek Catholics, Syriac-Maronites; Jews; Syriacs; Kurds; and Armenians.Only the Jewish synagogue is not available for tourists. The vast blue Mediterranean and the spectacular ancient tunnel are also worth visiting.
1. Hatay Province, located in south of Turkey bordering Syria, where Arabic is commonly spoken. Republic of Hatay was once independent until World War II. Diverse religions peacefully coexist, the population included: Turks, Arabs of various religious denominations (Sunni Muslims, Alawites, Greek Orthodox); Greek Catholics, Syriac-Maronites; Jews; Syriacs; Kurds; and Armenians.Only the Jewish synagogue is not available for tourists. The vast blue Mediterranean and the spectacular ancient tunnel are also worth visiting.
2.
Gaiziantep is a large city of cuisines and full of fresh pistachio pastry:
baklava. The world's largest mosaic museum features huge mosaics mostly from
2-3 A.D. amazing works including The Birth of Venus, Zeus, and the Gypsy Girl.
When we visited the Armenian villages in the mountains, we missed the last bus
and had to walk 40 minutes down after sunset which was scary. Fortunately the
villagers in Samadag helped us chase the last dolmus back to city center in the
end. :)
Roman Mosaic in Antakya Archeology museum
St. Peter's Church : one of the oldest church in the world
Harbiye Waterfall, Hatay
Orthodox church in Antakya, Hatay
Hot Kunefe with cheese and pistacchio icecream/cream
Peter and Paul in orthodox church of Antakya, Hatay, Turkey
Mediteranean ocean, Cevlik
Cheery blossom
Armenian church in Vakifli , the only remainly Armenian village in Turkey
Gaziantep İmam Çağdaş Baklava since 1887 
(Oceanus &Tethys, Roman mosaic from Zeugma, 2nd AD)
Gypsy Girl (eyes follow you when you walk around)
