“Yellow Village” Population: 750
Other names: Sare, Istir, Gawayto
Just off the main road from Midyat to İdil is the small Tur Abdin village of Sarıköy which is home to the Syrian Orthodox Church of Mor Malke, newly restored and with modern rooms added to it to allow for social activities. It’s not a very big church but it is rather pretty with its hand-printed cloths by members of the Mardinli Şimmeshindi family and new baptismal font. Not to be missed is a battered pillar that is actually a Parthian stele with carved figures on two of its sides. When the British explorer Gertrude Bell visited in 1909 she found it upside down in the courtyard!
One or two large new houses in the village testify to the return of some departed Suryanis although most seem only to visit for a few months in the summer.
Transport info
You can easily get here by taking the dolmuş from Midyat to İdil or Cizre and asking to be put off at the road junction. From here you can also walk to nearby Haberli although the walk is all uphill. Alternatively use a taxi from Midyat, perhaps including a visit to the monastery at Mor Gabriel on the way.
