could still be heard being spoken in the streets. Many of the town's older mosques are Greek Orthodox churches that have been given a new use. History of Altınova Until the early 1920s Altınova was a village called "Ayazmend". However, during Atatürk's visit to the village, he was so impressed by its golden colour and the fertility of the Madra River's delta, that he called it the "Golden Delta," hence, Altınova. Altınova had its own separate municipality within Ayvalık district until Balıkesir turned into a metropolitan city in 2014. With the local elections of 2014, Altınova Municipality ceased to exist and merged with Ayvalik Municipality. Modern Ayvalık Today, the population of Ayvalık is close to 80,000, which significantly increases during the summer due to tourism. Ayvalık and its environs are famous for high quality olive oil production, which provides an important source of income for the local population. Ayvalık and the numerous islets encircling the bay area are popular holiday resorts. The largest and most important of these islets is Cunda Island (Alibey Island) which is connected to Lale Island, and thence to the mainland, by a bridge and causeway built in the late 1960s. This was the first bridge in Turkey to connect lands separated by a strait. Both Ayvalık and Cunda Island are famous for their seafood restaurants which line the seashore. Ayvalık also has two of the longest sandy beaches - Sarımsaklı and Altınova beaches - in Turkey which extend as far as the Dikili district of İzmir nearly to the south. In recent years, Ayvalık has also become increasingly attractive to scuba divers. Ayvalık International Music Academy (AIMA) was established in September 1998. Students receive master-instructed classes for violin, viola and cello. USA-based Harvard University and Turkey's Koç University run a Harvard-Koç University Intensive Ottoman & Turkish Summer School on Cunda Island every summer. Ayvalık is also a member of the Norwich-based European Association of Historic Towns and Regions (EAHTR). Attractions In Ayvalık and Cunda Both Ayvalık and Cunda have a rich heritage of lovely old stone houses built by the lost Greek population and still often called collectively Rum Evleri (Greek Houses). There are also a number of large and imposing Greek Orthodox churches, some of which have been converted into mosques. In the centre of town the Ayios Yannis Kilise became the Saatlı Cami (Clock Mosque) while Ayios Yorgis became the Çınarlı Cami (Plant