Balıklıgöl

Balıklıgöl - the pool with fish - sits at the foot of the citadel rock in the middle of Şanlıurfa, and the tradition attached to it is that Abraham was cast into a fire here by a king and that the fire became water and the burning logs became fish, which is why the carp in the pools are not eaten and are fed instead by everyone who comes. Two pools, Halil-ür Rahman and Ayn Zeliha, lie in walled gardens with mosques and madrasas around them - the Rızvaniye and Halil-ür Rahman complexes - along with a cave shrine identified as Abraham's birthplace, which men and women enter by separate doors. It is a working religious site rather than a monument, busy every day and much busier on Fridays and in Ramadan, with families, pilgrims and vendors selling fish feed. The gardens are green and shaded, which in a city this hot matters, and the castle steps rise directly behind.

What you actually see

• The carp pools - fish crowding to be fed in walled gardens.
• The mosque complexes - Rızvaniye and Halil-ür Rahman.
• The cave shrine - the birthplace site with separate entrances.
• The castle rock - the citadel and its columns above.

When to go

April to May and October to November; Şanlıurfa summers are among the hottest in Turkey. Early morning and evening are pleasantest; Fridays are crowded.

Honest expectations

It is a devotional site - dress conservatively, headscarves are expected for women at the shrine, and behaviour should match. The fish must not be caught or eaten. It is crowded most of the time.

Nearby

The Şanlıurfa Museum and Göbekli Tepe are close; the old bazaar is a short walk.