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heading East , we visited Harran , a village a few kilometres from Urfa , about twenty from Syrian border , surrounded by cotton fields irrigated by the Atatürk dam on the Euphrates River . Harran is famous for its stone houses with circular ground plans , covered by domes , as well as the first mosque built in Turkey in the eighth century .
A sleepy atmosphere fills the village , the small cobblestone streets , bordered by drywalls , are almost desert for the intense heat . Children approach , amazed to meet these two aliens on a bike just like their parents do in front of the castle . The museum house is clearly set up for tourists but still gives an idea of how life is .
Two kids become excited knowing we are from Italy ; they seem aware that in our country we have a similar construction called ‘ trulli ’.
We drink a cold Coca Cola in a hopeless effort to lower our temperature before the 250 kilometres straight road to Mardin . Perched on a 1090 metres high rocky spur , Mardin lays around the ruins of a Roman fortification , its name means fortress , and were founded by Christians of the Persian Church in the third century . Its elevated position granted the city more than a stunning view over the plane , the Syriac Christian cult was practiced until the 20th century despite the spread of Islam and the Mongol invasion .
Today , Mardin people seem to be free from the interethnic mistrust of the middle east , Arabs , Kurds , and Turks live in peace , and , despite nationalist persecutions of the 20th century , Mardin still has a substantial number of active Syriac monasteries . Here , among narrow lanes connecting shops and mosques , many people still speak the language of Jesus and Talmud . Aramaic is spoken in the Deyrulzafran
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