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Approaching Marmara Island, photo by Mike Dunphy
Not a weekend goes by in Istanbul without boatloads of locals and tourists making the approximately one-hour Princes’ Island Tour from Istanbul or Bosphorus Strait and Black Sea Day Cruise from Istanbul. In summer, it quickly turns into droves. Far fewer (especially tourists) make the longer six-hour trip to the more distant archipelago consisting of four of the other Marmara islands: Marmara, Avşa, Paşalimani and Ekinlik.
Bunched in a cluster near the Marmara Sea’s exit into the Aegean, through the Dardanelles, these windswept islands claim more than 6,000 years of habitation, from the Ancient Greeks and Persians through the Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman eras. No doubt this had much to do with their geographic advantages for trade and quality of soil to produce wine and olives, but the real attraction was the copious stock of high quality white marble (mermer in Turkish), which gave both the sea and largest island its name and remains the most lucrative source of income to this day.
Until the population exchanges following the establishment of the Turkish Republic, the majority population on Marmara Island, the largest of the islands, remained Greek, although little remains architecturally owing to a large earthquake in 1935 that destroyed most buildings and churches. However, a few remain and have been restored, like the Ali Özkan Evi (the house of Ali Özkan). With few “sights,” the main attraction of the island is simply the total escape from the urban environment, spending the day in seaside cafes or under the shade of ancient plane trees. The more adventurous arrange transportation to visit the open-air Marble Museum on the north coast in Saraylar, where unfinished sculptures from Roman times are on display.
Although Marmara is the largest of the islands, Avşa is the most popular for tourism by far, primarily for the good quality beaches and water, the most popular being Altinkum (golden sand). The mild climate and sea breezes, even in July, keep everyone relatively cool and comfortable during the day, while the local wineries like Büyülübağ warms them at night, especially in the restaurants and open-air pubs on Plaj Caddesi (Beach Street). In Mantasir, the remains of a Byzantine monastery are also worth a visit.
Paşalimani and Ekinlik islands can also be visited, but their tiny size offers little to visitors beyond the pastoral seclusion, quiet and ruins of the former Greek inhabitants. However, your visit (and dollars) are very well-appreciated.
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