This ~300 degree panoramic view (scroll right to see the whole view) shows the hilltop near the ruins of Harput Castle outside the city of Elazig. Visiting observers, including members of several separate eclipse tour groups, occupied 3 terraces cut into the hillside while the general public and media were at the top of the hill.
This shows the site as it appeared about 2 hours prior to the start of the eclipse. As the eclipse neared, the few soldiers stationed on the perimeters were overwhelmed by the size of the growing crowd and by eclipse time, the entire hillside was covered by visitors and locals watching the eclipse shoulder-to-shoulder, though some of the locals seemed more interested in watching the strange visitors. The huge crowd and sound of cell phones constantly going off all over the hillside added to air of unreality.