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If you want to attend the ceremonies
in
Konya,
Turkey,11-13 December
2009 commemorating
the 734th anniversary of the death
of Mevlana
Jelaleddin Rumi (and
the 801st anniversary of his birth),
here's the best way: this Argeus
Tourism & Travel 3-day
(2-night) tour
includes hotel,
meals, sightseeing
tours to the places and
institutions Rumi would have known
and visited, tickets
to the Mevlevi sema in
the Konya's Mevlana
Cultural Center, and transportation
in Konya.
It can be difficult to
obtain hotel rooms and sema tickets!
This tour is the
easiest way.
IMPORTANT
NOTE:
Because of the high demand for travel
services, (flights,
hotel rooms, etc.) places on these
travel programs are
limited. Please reserve
your place as soon as possible to
avoid disappointment.
This short version shows you only
Konya.
If you want to see more of Turkey,
look at the Constantinople & Konya
of Rumi Tour,
and the Cappadocia
& Konya of Rumi Tour.
Also keep in mind that Argeus
Tourism & Travel can
combine this short tour with any
other arrangements
you may wish to make to visit other
places in Turkey on your own.
The Konya of Rumi (3
Days/2 Nights)
Day 1 (Friday,
Dec 11): Konya
of Rumi (LD)
Our driver transfers you from the train station or
the
airport to our hotel in the very heart
of the
city.
After settling in at
our hotel, we stroll the streets
of Konya, visiting first the Tomb
of Rumi in the glittering Mevlana
Museum, an important place
of pilgrimage for Muslims and indeed
all lovers of Rumi.
Next door, we visit the Ottoman-era Sultan
Selim mosque before having
lunch in a traditional Turkish restaurant.
We drive along Mevlana Caddesi,
Konya's main avenue, to reach the
age-old Alaettin Hill (a
prehistoric tumulus) to
visit the 1000-year-old Alaaddin
Mosque, where Rumi often
prayed. In its courtyard are the tombs
of many of the Seljuk Turkish sultans who
ruled during Rumi's lifetime, and
who consulted him for spiritual guidance.
Walking down the north side of the
Alaettin Hill we pass the remains of
the Seljuk sultan's palace,
then cross the street for a view of
the elaborate portal of the medieval Great
Karatay Medrese theological
college (the interior is currently
closed for restoration), after which
we return to our hotel for dinner and
the night.
Day 2 (Saturday, Dec 12): Konya
of the Whirling Dervishes (BLD)
Today we visit some of the wonderful Seljuk
Turkish monuments that Rumi would
have known and visited: we drive to the north side
of the Alaettin Hill to visit the Seminary
of the Slender Minaret (Ince Minare
Medrese, 1264), a 13th-century theological college
that's been beautifully restored and now serves as
Konya's Museum of Stone and Wooden Inscriptions,
with works of art from the 1100s and later.
A short drive takes us to the Sahip
Ata Mosque Complex (1283),
including a school, a travelers' inn,
Turkish bath, and the tomb of its founder,
the Seljuk grand
vezir who also built the Seminary of
the Slender Minaret. A few steps away,
we visit the Konya's Archeological
Museum to see the marble
high-relief sarcophagus "The Trials
of Hercules" and many items from
Konya's ancient past (up to 7000 years
ago).
A short walk takes us to Konya's Ethnographic
Museum to see cultural artifacts from
1000 years of Turkish culture in Anatolia,
including several 700-year-old carpets from
Seljuk times.
Lunch at a local restaurant introduces
us to more Konya culinary specialties,
including many cooked slowly in a tandir ("tandoori," clay
pot buried in hot coals).
After lunch we walk to the Mosque
and Tomb of Sems-i
Tebrizi, Rumi's
closest companion, spiritual mentor,
and inspiration for many of his
poetic works, then continue on
foot past many shops to our hotel.
In the evening, the climax
of our adventure: the spellbinding Mevlevi
sema performed in Konya's
grand Mevlana
Cultural Center in honor
of Seb-i Aruz, Rumi's "wedding
night with the Divine," witnessed
by thousands of devotees and pilgrims.
Day 3 (Sunday, Dec
13): Departure (B)
Our driver takes us to Konya's airport or train station
for your onward journey.
2008 Tour fee: USD
600 per person double occupancy
• Single Supplement: USD 170
• 0-2 Child: Free
• 2-12 Child Reduction: 50%
• Student Reduction: 10%
What's included in your tour:
• 2 nights' accommodation,
2 buffet breakfasts, 2 à la
carte lunches (ie, choose as you like
from the menu), and 2 table d'hote dinners
(ie, set menu), water and soft drinks
included, at a 4-star hotel in Konya,
as indicated in the tour itinerary
(B = buffet breakfast; L = à la
carte lunch; D = à la carte
dinner)
• Private tours in Konya as described above
• Private airport/train station-to-hotel
and hotel-to-airport/train station
transfers in Konya
• Luxury minibus or midibus
with professional driver on tours & transfers
• Professional licensed tour
guide
• Tickets for Seb-i Aruz Rumi
Commemoration Ceremony in Konya
• All admission fees to museums
and sights
• Taxes
What's NOT included in your
tour fee:
• Transportation to or from
Konya (ie, no flights or train tickets
are included)
• Meals not specifically mentioned
as being included (above)
• Tips to guides and drivers
(at you discretion)
Capppadocia & Konya
of Rumi Tour
Constantinople& Konya
of Rumi Tour
Rumi
Tours Homepage
Whirling
(Mevlevi) Dervishes
The
Whirling Ceremony (Sema)
Jelaleddin
Rumi (Mevlana)
Seljuk
Sultanate of Rum
Konya
Istanbul
Rumi
Tour: Konya & Cappadocia
Argeus
Tourism & Travel
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