ON THE WINGS OF A DOVE...
We have five carrier pigeons we are going to send from fortress to fortress. Our first dove alights on a medieval castle whose Arabic name, ’Hasankeyf’, means Rock Fortress, a maze of secret passages carved out of stone. These passageways, which trace a zigzag down to the banks of the Tigris, are escape routes. A long gorge that encircles the surrounding countryside was once a trail for the silk caravans. From the Artukids to the Umayyads, the footsteps of many an army resounded here on the rocky cliffs that form this road. But let us leave the fortress not at war but at a feast in the 15th century: The daughter of Shah Ismail, ruler of Safavid Iran, is marrying Halil Shah, commander of Hasankeyf, and a feather from our white dove falls on her wedding gown.
Our second dove wings it way to the Mediterranean coast, alighting on the Red Tower of Alanya Castle. The tower at first assumes it has been sent by the architect, Kettenizade Ebur Rahaoglu Ebu Ali of Aleppo. Not to disappoint, the dove explains that it has been dispatched by Alaaddin Keykubad.