Yumurtalık, coastal town to the south-east of Adana, deserves somewhat better than the pictures I show. It was a bit dreary and overcast when I paid it a visit in March 2008. I hope to return someday when the sun is shining, because than the definite charm of this place will become more apparent. I took a minibus from Ceyhan and got off at the final stop, which is near a cute harbor that Marco Polo seems to have visited twice, he called it Layaze, from the name Ayaş, which itself was the name of the Roman Aegea). A castle guarded the harbour, not much of it remains. Strolling along the beach it became obvious that a newer part of town lies further to the east, with sandy beaches in its front I suppose that is where most tourists will go to, I just stayed in the old part and took the bus back to Adana (there is a regular connection to the Yüreğir otogar in Adana).

The town took over the role of Tarsus as the main port of Cilicia during the period of the Minor Armenian kingdom, since Tarsus, that used to be connected to sea by a short channel, was getting more distant from the sea due to sedimentation from the rivers Seyhan and Ceyhan. From the Wikipedia: "kingdom of Lesser Armenia or Armenia Minor. This Christian kingdom, surrounded by Moslem states, hostile to the Byzantines, giving valuable support to the crusaders, and trading with the great commercial cities of Italy had a stormy existence of about 300 years."

I have repeatedly visited the town again, it's harbour front looked cleaner and better organized last time around, and the castle area had a better appearance also. I will reorganize the current mess later.