The sheltered bay of Akyarlar

After you’ve rounded the corner of the Peninsula at Kemer Beach, the next bay you’ll encounter is Akyarlar.  (Its ancient name is Arhialla.)

This stretch of the coastline isn’t as cluttered with Europeans (many of who don’t get any further south than the Saturday market in Turgutreis).

The proximity of Kos is the cause. Military law dictates that foreigners can’t own property on the coastline that overlooks foreign land, so the expat community hasn’t planted its roots down in this corner of the peninsula. Instead, you’ll brush shoulders with locals and metropolitan out-of-towners.

The Simple Life

For me, this is the beauty of the Bodrum Peninsula.

A scant ~10km from the ex-pat hub of Turgutreis, and you’re knee deep in a foreign land. I threw off any trepidation at vocalizing my Turkish language skills, and entertained the locals with my fumbling attempts to request sustenance – I must have succeeded, but I didn’t starve or go thirsty.

Market Day

If you visit Akyarlar on a Thursday, you can wander around their weekly pazar.  Size-wize, it’s compact and a little more condensed than the Gümüşlük pazar.

Drive up the hill past the mosque on your right, and to your left you’ll see the covered pazar.  I was able to find street parking further up the hill, and just amble back down for a wander around.

As with most of the smaller pazar’s on the peninsula, the back-bone consists of primarily local produce stalls, but there’s a smattering of fabric stalls selling curtains, cushion covers, and garish material, and of course, the obligatory random-house-ware stall.

If you’re looking for tourist trinkets, you won’t find them here.

Continuing on my road trip

Keep going round the peninsula, and the next bay you’ll reach is Karaincir, it’s just as sheltered, and gives Akyarlar a run for it’s money.

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