Amazing Tour: Road to Konya

Saying goodbye to the coastal city of Antalya, which bears the ancient cultural imprint of Türkiye, the members of the Amazing Tour group, including the "hot" couple in showbiz today, actor Binh An and 1st runner-up Miss Vietnam 2018 Bui Phuong Nga, two "hot travel bloggers" Hoang Le Giang and Ly Thanh Co, photographer Le The Thang, photographer Ngo Tran Hai An (Quy Coc Tu), YouTuber Ngo Huy Hoa (Hachi 8)... set off for Konya, a city famous for its Sejuk architecture that many people admire.

VISIT THE "CITY OF ROSES" ISPARTA

In order not to waste the long travel time to Konya, the tour group stopped at the "rose city" Isparta to see the Damark rose valley with their own eyes and directly watch the rose essential oil production process.

Only 25 liters of essential oil are produced here each year, but it brings great value, 1 milligram of essential oil costs an average of over 2,000 dollars. The members of the delegation could not hide their excitement when visiting this famous essential oil factory in its homeland.

Not only that, members also witnessed and experienced the simple, ordinary but wonderful working life of the gentle and lovely indigenous people.

Locals in Keçiborlu, Isparta gather at the market every Wednesday, bringing their “homegrown” produce to the market. Oranges, apples, bell peppers, lemons, dozens of olive varieties… all organic, at very cheap prices, 10 Lira, or only about 42,000 VND for 1 kilogram of fresh strawberries.

What’s even better is that even in obscure places, Türkiye can still provide you with breathtakingly beautiful photos. It’s easy to see why the team members are constantly updating their social media accounts with excitement.

Impressive views on the way to Konya

SLOW LIFE IN KONYA

After nearly 5 hours of traveling from Antalya, the group finally arrived in Konya. Of course, no one in the group wanted to miss the opportunity to visit the Mevlana Museum, also known as the Mevlana Monastery, the Blue Mausoleum, or the Blue Dome. This place is the shrine of the greatest monk, theologian, poet, and philosopher of Turkey, Mevlana Celaleddin Rumi.

Located on Aslanlı Kışla Cd Street, Karatay District, Konya City, Mevlana Museum was built in 1274, has Seljuk-style architecture with a dome placed on pillars and a conical spire covered in turquoise.

Through the main door is a marble courtyard. Inside there is a gallery displaying items Mevlana used such as clothes, prayer rugs, a worn brown hat… In particular, his beard is carefully preserved in a metal box placed in a glass cage, many Muslim women often lean their heads on this to pray for protection.

More specifically, the whole group had the opportunity to attend a prayer session at Mevlana Kültür Mer. The religious atmosphere combined with unique cultural imprints in the architecture makes this place even more attractive.

Continuing on to Sille, a small village near the town of Konya, the group was quite surprised to learn that this was one of the few villages where Cappadocian Greek was used until 1922.

The Greeks lived peacefully with the Turks in nearby Konya for more than 800 years. For that reason, Sille was once a Christian village.

Walking through every corner of this small village, the thing that lingers most clearly in each person is probably the "natural" and "unforced" feeling it brings. Not trying to follow the flow of tourism, Sille has a quiet, peaceful and romantic look... even when what we see before our eyes is a cemetery - which is often associated with sadness. The graves of the Turks are often high hills near the village with many almond and apple trees in bloom. Each grave has a different stone attached, no flashy colors or distinction between rich and poor. Gentle and peaceful in the spring sunshine. Standing here, life seems to slow down a bit so that we can appreciate every moment of life more.

It can be said that the cities of Antalya, Isparta, Konya, although each place has its own charm, they all have the same thing in that the people are very friendly, gentle and always open to visitors from afar. Ignoring the unreal images of war, instability or danger in the media, what the group experienced throughout the journey was simply a beautiful, peaceful and friendly Türkiye.

As NAG Ngo Tran Hai An (Quy Coc Tu) shared: "Muslim women smiling gently under their mysterious scarves, men willing to leave their meals or work to put their hands on their chests and bow to strangers, children shyly hiding their faces behind their mother's shirts but also timidly waving their tiny hands. That's Turkey, what more could you ask for..."

Stay tuned for more articles about the exciting Amazing Tour journey in Türkiye on Travellive or the official fanpage ofAmazing Tourokay

AMAZING TOUR 04

Amazing tour 04 with the theme “Türkiye - Real Legend”, initiated by Travellive magazine, sponsored by Nokia brand and Turkish Airlines. Starting from 2013, Travellive initiated the Amazing Tour program and coordinated with the tourism administrations of countries to carry out promotional trips to destinations such as “Busan - Ulsan - Jeju, Korea”, “Sabah - Land of Wind” and “Manila and Cebu, Philippines”.

This journey will take 20 members through the old town of Antalya, the ruined city of Termesso, the ancient village of Sille, overnight stay in a cave hotel in Cappadocia, the Underground Cistern, cruise on the Bosphorus Strait, see the blooming tulips or stroll around the world famous Grand Bazaar...

Learn and follow information about the trip to Türkiye at fanpage:Amazing Tour

After the end of Amazing Tour 4, there will be a Türkiye tourism information exhibition from May 3 to 5 at Saigon Center (HCMC) and the release of a travel photo book about the "land of flying carpets".

PV