Turkey: Erzurum
Erzurum is the coldest city in Turkey, situated in the mountains above 6000 ft in elevation. It’s another ancient city in the eastern Anatolya and on the east-west caravan trade routes and as such was inhabited and fought over by everybody possible throughout its long history – Byzantines, Sassanids, Arabs, Armenians, Seljuk, Mongols, and Ottomans. The Seljuk monuments and architecture are the most prevalent in the core of the old town – Cifte Minareli Medresse from 1265 with two towering minarets (the symbol of the city), the Yakutia Medresse from 1310 (now a museum depicting medieval life and artifacts and with a stunning blue-tiles minaret), picturesque monumental Uc Kumbetler medieval tombs, Mustafa Pasha Mosque, and the sprawling Erzurum Castle with walls and towers.
