The road proceeds to the Dardanelles town and castle, 6½ hours.

Lampascus, 6 h. About 12 h. from Lampsacus the traveller reaches the river Granicus, as it is supposed to be, called by the Turks Karakasu. Over this river are the ruins of a Roman bridge of 8 arches. It is here 75 ft. broad. After passing the Karakasu the road passes several small streams.

Themoticon, 13½ hours. Before reaching Salsdereh we meet with another large river, by some supposed to be the Granicus, by others the Œsophus.

Salsdereh, 9 hours. A wretched village. There is another village equally miserable near it called Kerideri. Between Salsdereh and Bendramo is the celebrated peninsula of Cyzicus and Artaki. The traveller should devote a day to this interesting spot, and will do well to proceed to Bendramo, and visit it from thence, as there is not time to deviate from the direct route in travelling to that place.

Bendramo, 6½ hours, is a large town, with 4 mosques and 1000 houses, occupying a lovely situation on the S. side of a picturesque bay, supposed to be Panormus, 15 m. in length, and 5 to 7 in breadth; it is on all sides enclosed by mountains.

Cyzicus is a beautiful peninsula, formerly an island, joined to the continent by an isthmus nearly 1 m. long and ½ m. broad, formed by the accumulations caused by the ruins of 2 ancient bridges which connected the island with the mainland. The remains of Cyzicus consist of a fine Roman amphitheatre, 1 m. from the shore, built on 2 hills, the area being formed by the intervening valley. The arches and walls are not less than 60 ft. high; the diameter of the theatre is about 300 ft. The interior is now overgrown with trees and shrubs, which give it a most picturesque effect, and a mountain stream runs in the centre. Another large theatre, overgrown with ilex and other shrubs, has been also discovered. The whole site of Cyzicus is so overgrown with underwood and covered with cherry orchards and vineyards, that it is very difficult to make out anything distinctly. There are considerable remains of the walls, 2 fine octagon towers, and very extensive substructions with numerous vaults, built in a massive style of architecture. The ruins at Cyzicus do not appear to be of great antiquity, and are certainly neither Hellenic nor Cyclopean. To the eastward of the town, and partly on the narrow isthmus, may be traced the large and closed ancient harbour, as well as a canal, or narrow passage, of solid masonry. The present town is called Balkiz. Many marble fragments of the ruins of Cyzicus have been removed to Aidinjik on the mainland near the Isthmus. (See Rte. 43.) The country between Cyzicus and Artaki (now called Erdek) is covered with vineyards, and the wine of Artaki is much esteemed, being sent in large quantities to Constantinople. At Artaki are the remains of an ancient mole.

Mikalitza, or Muhalich, 6½ hours from Bendramo, is a large and populous town, containing 3 or 4 khans. It is situated on the Rhyndacus, 4 hours from the sea, and possesses a considerable trade. There are 9 mosques here. More than half the houses belong to the Greeks, and the Armenians are also numerous.

Ulubad, 4 hours.
Brousa, 9 hours. (See Rte. 31.)

Isnik, 10 or 12 hours, on the site of Nicæa, the ancient capital of Bithyuia, is a miserable Turkish village of 100 houses; it is beautifully situated on the S.E. extremity of Lake Ascanius, which is 10 m. long and 4m. Broad: beyond this are seen the snowy summits of Olympus. The nearer hills are clothed with forests of oak, ilex, and evergreens, amongst which appears the entire circuit of the walls of the ancient city, with their majestic gates and towers, still nearly perfect, and enclosing a vast area, said to be 5 or 6 leagues in length and 1½ in breadth. They resemble in construction those of Constantinople, with which they are coeval. They are mostly formed of alternate courses of Roman tiles, and of large square stones joined by a cement of great thickness, In some places have been inserted columns and other architectural fragments, the ruins of still more ancient edifices, The ruins of mosques, baths, and houses dispersed among the gardens and corn-fields now occupying a great part of the space within the Greek fortifications show that the Turkish Isnik, though now so inconsiderable, was once a place of importance, as its history indeed sufficiently proves. But it never was so large as the Grecian Nicæa, and it seems to have been almost entirely constructed of the remains of that city. The Greek city was first called Antigonca after Antigonus, by whom it was built on the site of a former town, soon after the death of Alexander the Great; but its name was soon changed by Lysimachus to Nicæa, in honour of his wife. Nicæa holds a distinguished place in the annals of ecclesiastical history, in consequence of the general councils held there. At the first of these, convened by Constantine, A.D. 325, the Nicene Creed was framed. In the same year the city was overthrown by an earthquake, but it was restored by the Emp. Valens in 368. The last council was held in the reign of Irene, A.D. 787. A rude picture of the first council may be seen in the only Christian church now used in Nicæa, that dedicated to “the Death of the Virgin.” The Greek priest of this church (Mauricius) will receive travellers in his house and act as a guide. The supposed scene of the council is immediately outside the walls, on the shore of the lake. Nicæa was the first conquest made by the crusaders, A.D. 1097, after 7 weeks’ siege. It was at that period the capital of Sultan Suleiman, of Roum. On the expulsion of Latins it reverted to the Greek emperors, who made it their capital during the period of their expulsion from Constantinople, but it was finally lost to them in 1330, when it was taken by Orchan, the son of Othman, and it has ever since remained under the Ottoman rule.

Ismid, and sometimes Isnikmid (Nicomedia), about 7 hours, is situated on the acclivity of a hill rising from the gulf. The town contains about 3000 houses; 1000 of which belong to Greeks and the remainder to Turks. A Pasha resides here; and the trade of the town is still considerable. Nicomedes, first king of Bithynia, embellished the original town, which was called Olbia, made it his capital, and changed its name. It was raised by Diocletian to the rank of the capital of the Roman empire, but lost that pre-eminence on the building of Constantinople: it was finally wrested from the Greek empire by Orchan in 1339. No remains of its former splendour now exist. N.B. There is a steamer from Ismid to Constantinople every Tuesday morning, at 8 o’clock, which makes the trip in 8 hours, should the traveller prefer that route.

The route continues among mountains for some time, then follows the shore of the Sea of Marmora, whence the Princes’ Islands appear to advantage; and, winding through Ghebse, Kartal, and other villages on the way, enters Skutari by the Great Necropolis.