Turquoise sea, golden sand, light glistening on ancient ruins… A dream painted in sunset hues…

Shaped by the cooling waters and soft sands of the Mediterranean, heir to the riches of antiquity and child of the modern world, Side is the perfect destination, equally rich in ancient treasures and the gems of contemporary entertainment, shopping and comfortable accommodation.

Side is a superb choice for a holiday, whether your aim is to bath in sun, sea and sand, or to repose in harmony with nature under a soft, leafy canopy, or to explore the region's unparalleled history, wandering mesmerised through the ruins of antiquity.

Here sea and sky exist in perfect harmony, and where the waters meet the side of the peninsula, golden beaches give on to ancient ruins, cafes, superb restaurants and souvenir shops. Natural marvels such as Manavgat Waterfall and Köprülü Canyon National Park are easily accessible. It’s all here.

Ruins of antiquity reflecting the spirit of time

The ancient Side was a centre of commerce, and the temples were built next to its harbour so that gods would protect it. One of these is the temple believed to have been devoted to Men, the God of Moon, which stands next to the other temples. The people of Side worshipped Cybele and Men before Athena and Apollo. During the Christian Era the temples of the sacred field were substituted for a basilica and a church. The basilica was built in 5th century AD, and the church was built in the 8th or 9th century.

The god and goddess of Side, Apollo and Athena, adorned the coins minted in here. The reverse, however, showed the pomegranate, the symbol of fertility and life represented by Cybele and Athena. The word "Side" itself means pomegranate. Small and large, from coins to temples, these ancient objects provide us highly valuable information regarding the history, beliefs, culture and daily life of Side.

Gateway to the masterpieces of antiquity

Ancient Side welcomes its visitors through the Main Gate, set between two towers of the insurmountable city walls, standing directly across from the monumental fountain. The Main Gate dates to the 2nd century, and together with the horse shoe shaped, colonnaded courtyard it was also used for ceremonial processions. The monumental fountain across from the gate had three wide arches and a basin, and it was also built in the 2nd century. It is the largest ancient fountain of Anatolia. Originally the structure had three levels and it was decorated with marble cladding and reliefs, however at present only a single level is standing and a few decorations of the pool can be seen. Manavgat River used to provide water to the fountain through aqueducts, splendid examples of human ingenuity working in tandem with the gifts of nature. Sections of the aqueducts are still visible.

Photo: Gülcan AcarPhoto: Gülcan Acar

Passing through the Main Gate and courtyard there are two roads originally lined with corinthian columns: the main road that continues straight ahead, and another leading off to the left. The main road, which channelled the social and cultural life of ancient Side, is lined with porticoes providing sheltered access to the shops and houses, and passes through the agora and city centre where a bathhouse, a theatre, and fountains once stood. The road eventually reaches the tip of the peninsula, site of the harbour and temples, symbols of commerce and religion.

Agora where slaves famed for their beauty were sold

After entering ancient Side and proceeding on the main road, the groups of ruins on the left are from the bishopric basilica, surrounded with columns, and the palace. A little further down on the same road, again on the left is the commercial agora which is one of the two agorae the city. Apart from its traditional function as a venue for commerce and a forum to discuss the political and economic situation, the commercial agora of Side assumed another function. In the first century BC a passage was built that connected the commercial agora to the theatre nearby, and both the agora and the theatre served as a slave market. In the middle of the agora, where slaves famed for their beauty were traded, used to stand a temple devoted to Fortuna, the goddess of luck and trade, which had a round plan lined with 12 columns with corinthian capitals. The Agora was lined with porticos and large shops behind them.

At one corner of the agora, next to the theatre stood the latrina, the public toilets of the city. The latrina, which was a decorated structure covered with domes, and connected to the sewers laid under the main road, is a proof of excellence in city planning in Antiquity.

On the opposite side of the road across the agora stood the Roman Bathhouse from the 5th century, which now serves as a museum where magnificent sculptures, busts and sarcophagi are on permanent display.

 

The Museum of Side, which resembles Olympus, the home of the gods and goddesses

The Museum of Side, with the statues and figurines of gods and goddesses on display, seems like Olympus, the home of the gods and goddesses. Here the gods and goddesses of Olympus compete with each other to whisper myth and legend in the ear of visitors. Zeus, Aphrodite, Ares, Nike, Hygeia, Asclepius, Apollo, Hermes, Dionysus, Heracles, Tyche and Athena – the heroes and heroines of the legends that they narrate themselve in the Museum of Side.

Information Text on the Use of Your Personal Data

This Consent and Information Document (“Information Document”) regulates terms and conditions for use of the data notified by Users of services (“Patients”) and/or gained from Patients during delivery of Oba Tourism Organization Adversiment  and Publishing Limited Company (“Medithrace”) with headquarter at Ertuğrul Mah. Orduevi Cad. No 2 Süleymanpaşa -  Tekirdağ pursuant to Personal Data Protection Law (Nr. 6698)  activities performed to deliver services, including “Free-of-charge Second Opinion and Health Counseling” (“Services”) at contract partner hospitals (“Hospitals”) with details written below.
 
How is your medical history and health information obtained?

Your personal health details are derived from “your medical reports, details about medications you take, epicrisis, imaging studies, imaging reports and pathology reports” that you submit us and they are shared with or disclosed to partner hospitals in Turkey and their relevant personnel in order to create your treatment plan.

Which data is processed?
 
This article lists the data that is regarded as personal data in Personal Data Protection Law (Nr. 6698) and processed by Medithrace for the services delivered to patients. Unless otherwise is stated, “Personal Data” and “Data with Specific Quality (Sensitive”) shall have following meanings pursuant to terms and conditions of this Information Document. 

Hospital collects following data that are notified by Patients. 
 
●    Identity - Address Details: Name surname, identity number, gender, date of birth, business or personal e-mail, phone number, home address or business address that are written on relevant forms,
●    Health Evaluation Details: Your medical history, medical reports, details of medications you take, epicrisis, imaging studies, imaging reports and pathology reports.
●    Extra data: Other health and/or personal information that is required for service delivery and not covered in above written data classes. 

Pursuant to Articles 3 and 7 of Personal Data Protection Law (Nr. 6698) and regulations to be issued by the Committee, personal data or sensitive data shall not cover the data that is anonymized by deleting your identity details in an irreversible manner and terms and conditions of this Information Document, hereby, shall not apply to such data. 

Why do we use your data?

Your data is shared with or disclosed to physicians, healthcare staff and other relevant hospital personnel to help our firm provide you with “free-of-charge second opinion” service that is rendered in relation with your probable treatment. Thus, they are used to have contract hospitals create a complete treatment plan and submit estimated cost.

Hospitals may process the personal data notified by the Patient and the new data derived by the Hospital from the personal data in order to help the Patient use the Services, deliver the Services, fulfill the intended use of the personal data specified in this Information Document, fulfill the liabilities arising out of the content of Services and meet any and all legal obligations.

In addition, the Hospital may process the personal data and disclose them to third parties without any need to consent of the Patient pursuant to Articles 5, 6 and 8 of Personal Data Protection Law (Nr. 6698) and/or in the presence of exemptions in the relevant legislation.

Allowed Disclosures
 
Medithrace shall be entitled to disclose the personal data notified by the Patient and the new data derived by the hospital from the personal data in order to render the Services, improve the patient experience, improve Services and achieve any one of the goals specified under the section “Why do we use your data?” of this Information Policy.

Your personal, clinical and genetic data collected pursuant to this Information Document, hereby, shall be processed in line with the provisions written in this document and the provisions and security measures dictated by relevant legislation of the country, where the data is stored and/or processed.

Your Right to Access Your Data and Your Correction Requests

 The patient shall have the following rights by applying to Medithrace;

●    Learning if the personal data is processed or how it is processed,
●    Requesting relevant information, if personal data is processed,
●    Learning the intent of processing personal data and whether they are used in line with the intention, 
●    Learning local and international third parties who are shared the personal data,
●    Requesting correction, if personal data is processes incompletely or incorrectly,
●    Requesting correction, deletion or disposal of the personal data in line with the provisions set by relevant legislation; requesting notification of the correction, deletion or disposal to third parties that are transferred the personal data,
●    Raising an objection to a negative outcome arising out of analyzing the data exclusively with automated systems,
●    Requesting compensation of loss and damage that arises out of illegal processing of personal data. 

The patient may post the request in writing to Ertuğrul Mah. Orduevi Cad. No: 2 Süleymanpaşa -  Tekirdağ or e-mail the request letter to info@medithrace.com. Medithrace shall issue and transfer the positive or negative response in writing or electronically pursuant to the above mentioned requests, provided the grounds of negative response are notified. The Patient undertakes that the details subject to this Information Policy are complete, correct and up-to-date and that they will be immediately updated in case of any change Medithrace shall assume no responsibility, if up-to-date information is not notified by the Patient.

Duration of Storage for Personal Data


Medithrace shall store the personal data notified by the Patient for the interval that the Services are actually delivered in order to fulfill liabilities set in this Information Policy, hereby, and arise out of the content of Services to help the Patient use the Services.

Our Measures and Commitments for Data Security

Pursuant to provisions set by relevant legislation or mentioned in this Information Policy, Medithrace commits to take necessary technical and administrative measures to ensure appropriate level of security in order to prevent illegal access to the personal data and/or illegal data processing.
Possible Changes in Information Policy
Medithrace shall be entitled to amend provisions of this Information Policy at any time, provided the amended policy is accessible at the Web Site, www.medithrace.com. The amendments made in the Information Policy by Medithrace shall be put into force immediately after the amended provisions are publicized.

By signing the declaration and consent document, I agree and state that I received the information and consent document, I read and understood the content and my personal data is processed, used and disclosed to third parties if necessary for my potential treatment.

LART