Melikler Plateu: An Extraordinary Travel

by Derya Özkılıç (Turkey)

A leap into the unknown Turkey

Hello people who like to travel. Today, I would like to present you something out of the ordinary. It is a festival that I went to in the past weeks and got one of the best experiences of my life. Observation Festival organized by Isparta Yenişarbademli Municipality. The observation event, which is first for me, is an event that everyone should experience if they want to know the light pollution deprives us from such a great view. We went to Melikler Plateau in Yenişarbademli to make sky observation. We set off from İzmir to go to Isparta. After getting off at Isparta bus station, we went to the village garages to go to Şarkikaraağaç (you can reach the village garage by bus services). We passed the edge of Eğirdir Lake on the road to Şarkikaraağaç. I gaze at the lake in astonishment because I have never seen such a big lake. When we arrived in the district, the organizers picked us up by shuttle. However, you can easily find Melikler Plateau’s location with navigation. Yenişarbademli district is a place that you can call neither village nor district, near Beyşehir Lake. For those who can go with their own car, Beyşehir Lake is a stop where you can sit and watch the view. I kept myself hard not to stop the bus. Let me share a small historical anecdote with you: When Alaeddin Keykubat saw Lake Beyşehir, "Heaven is here or below here." said. He also built a palace overlooking the lake. Let me continue with a story narrated among the local people: There is a building in the middle of the lake built by Alaeddin Keykubat based on Byzantine architecture. According to the story, Alaeddin Keykubat would send the womans in his harem to this palace to keep them in safe before going to the expedition. That's why they call it Maiden’s Tower among the people. I think that historical gossip is enough. The mountain you will see when you go to the plateau is the Dedegöl Mountain, the highest mountain in Isparta. Also this mountain has the Pınargözü Cave which is the longest cave in Turkey. I could not enter the cave because of the harsh weather conditions. Meanwhile, harsh weather conditions are valid only in the cave. We could not go beyond the entrance of the cave because we were dressed thinly. I think it is time to pass on to observation, which is our main subject. Firstly, solar observation was carried out at noon. It is my purity to think that I will see the sun, which I don not know how many kilometers away from the World, as in science fiction movies. But seeing a little red round was also a bit disappointing. Fortunately, nighttime observation quickly pulled me out of this frustration. The billions of stars, I saw when I lifted my head, made me forget to walk by looking in front of me. Thanks to the astronomers in the field, we were able to choose the constellations, which were theoretically described during the day, with our own eyes at night. We looked at Jupiter and then Saturn the telescopes installed in the observation area previously. What impressed me the most was the Milky Way Galaxy with its unique appearance and splendor. I was able to catch the birth of the Moon on my second day in the camp. Because the first day I was too tired and the Moon seemed to us later because the plateau was surrounded by high mountains. The campground has a breathtaking view during the day as well as at night. It is an area where you can sit all day reading a book or just lie down with the scent of wild flowers and thyme. We are at the end of my three-day camping adventure. I may not have been able to convey everything in this writing, but if you are interested in astronomy, my advice is definitely go to the Melikler Plateau and fill the gaps with your own adventure. See you ☺