barbaros (9)

Barbaros Village

DRIVING INFORMATION

Alaçatı – Barbaros Village: 26 kilometers.

 

BARBAROS

Barbaros is a small but visionary village that preserved its spirit while developing with a project that supports women – as a result, there are many women who produce handcrafts and run restaurants which serves homemade meals in Barbaros. The villagers had the vision of “providing sustainable development without sacrificing the ‘food’ which their village offers to them, without giving harm to tranquility and nature, revitalizing the traditions & putting their efforts into production” have started organizing a festival named ‘Oyuk Festivali’ in 2016 in order to keep their values alive. The festival is still organized every year and the bird-scarers, some are fancy, funny and spooky, prepared by the villagers and presented in the streets with a parade which is followed by a permanent display in the village after the festival.

What to do in Barbaros Village:

  • Pay a visit to Emek, Kültür ve Sanat Evi (Labour, Culture and Art House) in the entrance of the village where you can meet Batuhan Bozkurt, the founder of the place and listen to the painting technique of the world famous ‘stone mosaics’, stories and philosophies of the paintings, touch the incredible stone paintings which are made with a great effort.
  • Batuhan, a valuable artist of our country who plays ‘ud’ (a traditional instrument often used in Turkish classical music) surprised us by guessing the numbers that we had in our minds. He says that; ‘Eyes are the mirrors of the heart and mind’. You must definitely meet this precious person.
  • Visit the library located at the old primary school, just by the entrance of the village where you can see the wall art of artist Gülfem Kesler, presented in one of its rooms.
  • We think the most delicious meals here are cooked in a family owned business; Ebruli. You can taste the daily made dishes such as; çalkama (a homemade pastry made of spinach, parsley, garden orach, cheese and herbs), keşkek (a traditional meal prepared by wheat and chicken), pastry (börek) with eggplant, white beans, rice or try their breakfast prepared with fresh food produced in the village such as eggs, butter, cheese and olives.
  • Other nice alternatives are; ‘Çağdaş’ (a restaurant at the center of the village, run by two women), ‘Delice’ next to it and Yıldız Cafe. You can also drink tea, coffee or syrup of sweet basil or black mulberry at the village cafe; ‘Baharın Kahvesi’
  • One of the unique attractions at Barbaros Village is ‘Çat Kapı Evleri’. When you see these signs, you can just ring the bell and have a tasting session with the local products for a small fee.
  • The most famous taste of the village is ‘katmer’ (a tasty homemade pastry prepared by a big amount of butter and flour) and ‘patlıcan balığı’ (eggplants fried with corn flour)
  • Try the ‘karabaşotu’ (French lavender) jam in April and ‘çalkama’ (a pastry prepared with local herbs) in winter months which is baked in the big village oven.
  • While you walk in the streets of the village, you can visit handcraft atelier ‘Kirli Çıkın’ and Mimas Sanat Evi (Mimas Art House) and shop from the stands in the streets that sell natural products and local handcrafts.