Karatas – the legend about the black stone in Foca

They say that there is a black stone somewhere in Foca - nobody knows where, but if you step on it you are doomed to always return to Foca.

At least that is what the local ”Phokaian's” in Foca say, and it seems like it might be true. Many turks and tourists come here and fall in love with the place. After that they come back again and again and again.



What is so magic about Foca?

Actually, you should not think that there was anything special with Foca. This sleepy little fishing village which never (thanks God) grew into a real tourist destination. Here life is laid back and relaxing. Even the few shop keepers and pushy waiters at the restaurants are not very "efficient" compared to tourist destinations further south in Turkey. The shop keepers are more interested in talking than selling, and the waiters become friends with the guests and go for a beer with them after their duty is over. Maybe it is just this low stress athmosphere which attracts so many people?



Still this cannot be the full story. Because most of the people who vacate in Foca are turks, foreign tourists are much less in numbers. The turks come to Foca because it almost always blows a mild breeze from the Aegean Sea, and the air is several degrees cooler than in the city (Izmir) or other Turkish cities during summer. The turks come to eat fresh fish and sea food at Foca's many fish restaurants.They buy summer houses and stay whole summer. In the evenings they stroll along the seafront in shorts and slippers and lick ice cream and chew salted, roasted sunflower seeds.



The foundation of Foca
Foca was founded by Greek tribes (Aeolians) around 800 BC and the original name of the city was Phokaia (Phocaea). The name is said to come from the Greek (and Turkish) word for seal "fok", because there were a lot of Mediterreanean munk seals in the area. Others say that name was given due to the islands outside Foca, which looks like seals bathing in the water. Due to being 2800 years old, Foca is called "Eski Foca" (Old Foca) in Turkish, and must not be mixed up with the other town called "Yeni Foca" (New Foca) just 20 kilometres north. Around 500 BC Foca was one of the largest cities in the world, and had a busy harbour with large boats carrying huge loads and many passengers. The founders of Foca later went out and founded several other colonies in the Mediterreanean, amongst others Masilla and Nikaia in the South of France - today better known as Marseille and Nice.