Mevlana Konya Sufi Spiritual Tour

Konya sits on the Anatolian plateau on the far side of the Taurus mountains, and the drive there does half the work of the day. The coast falls away, pine gives way to bare rock and then to an enormous flat horizon of wheat and sugar beet. The city at the end of it is one of the quietest and most self-possessed in Turkey.

Jalal ad-Din Rumi, known to Turks as Mevlâna, died in Konya in 1273, and the turquoise-tiled tower raised over his tomb has drawn pilgrims ever since. The complex was the lodge of the Mevlevi order and is officially a museum now, though nobody visiting treats it as one. People come to stand quietly and many recite. Inside are Rumi's sarcophagus, the tombs of his family and followers, illuminated manuscripts, prayer rugs and instruments from the order's history.

The whirling that made the Mevlevi famous is worship rather than folklore. The dervish turns the right palm upward to receive and the left downward to give, the body revolves around the heart, and the white skirt and tall felt hat carry their own symbolism of shroud and tombstone. Whether a ceremony is taking place on any given day depends on the local programme, which is set by the city and not by us.

Konya was the capital of the Sultanate of Rum, and the evidence is scattered through the centre: Alâeddin Hill with its mosque, the Karatay Medrese with a dome of star-pattern tiles that stops conversation, and the İnce Minareli Medrese with its extravagantly carved portal. Konya is also a serious food town, so try the thin, flat etli ekmek if lunch allows.

• A full-day trip with hotel pickup and drop-off in air-conditioned transport
• Professional guide, all entrance fees, lunch at a local restaurant, bottled water and insurance
• Dress modestly, with shoulders and knees covered; women should carry a scarf for the mausoleum
• Shoes come off at the shrine, so easy footwear and decent socks make life simpler

Konya is a conservative city and the shrine is an active place of devotion. Photograph the architecture rather than people at prayer, and keep your voice down inside, because that atmosphere is the reason to come at all.