Side, Ancient neighborhood in Manavgat, Turkey
Side is a peninsula on the Turkish Mediterranean coast in Manavgat where Roman columns stand among residential buildings and ancient city walls separate the sandy beach from the rest of the settlement. The second-century theater sits behind the main square facing the bay while paved paths run through the old street grid connecting remnants of gates, baths, and fountains.
Greek traders from Cyme founded a harbor on this peninsula in the seventh century BCE that later came under Persian and then Macedonian control. Rome transformed the settlement into a major port city with large public buildings during the first and second centuries CE before Arab raids in the seventh century drove out the population.
Fishermen sell their catch directly from boats at the old harbor each morning while tables along the harbor wall are set up for mending nets together. Visitors can watch residents weave carpets and shape pottery in the narrow lanes behind the agora using methods passed down through generations.
Access to the ruins is possible year-round with early mornings or late afternoons offering fewer visitors and milder temperatures. Flat sandals work for most paved areas though sturdy footwear helps on the uneven stones around the theater and temples.
The main gate on the eastern side of the old street grid still carries grooves in its threshold worn by wagon wheels when the harbor received ships from across the Mediterranean daily. The temple columns by the water stand on a foundation that extends directly into the sea so that waves lap against the lowest stones at high tide.
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