Today is October 17th and we have a day at sea. It is about 7AM and I am sitting on the veranda waiting for Ray to wake up so we can go to breakfast. Yesterday was a long but very interesting day. The ship docked in Kusadasi, Turkey around 6AM, in a light rain and lightening visible on the mountains. We had ordered room service breakfast, something we will not do again. The eggs and sausage were cold, they forgot our juice, and there was only enough coffee for one and a half cups each. Better to deal with the crowds in the buffet.
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Port of Kusadasi |
I learned a lot today. One thing I didn't know is that the country of Turkey is actually on 3 continents. A small northern part is in Europe. The rest is partially in Asia and partially in Africa. Kusadasi and Ephesus are in Asia, so I have now touched on my 6th continent. When we get to Egypt, we will both be able to say we have been on every continent except Antarctica.
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St Mary's House |
Our tour, called Best of Ephesus, left at 8:30AM and the first stop was the house of Mary Mother of Jesus. If you remember your bible, when Christ was crucified, he gave over the care of his mother to his disciple John. John took her to Ephesus, where he preached for man years. There is a small stone, 3-room cottage in the hills just outside the city where it is believed that Mary lived her last years.. Pope John Paul declared it as the authentic House of Mary based on the evidence available. There are documents proving John preached in this area. Referring again to the New Testament, Paul's letters to the Ephesians are letters to the Christian community in Ephesus. There is a spring flowing from the mountain just below Mary's House, and people (including me) fill bottles with this holy water.
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View of Ephesus Main Street |
Our second stop was at the ruins of the city of Ephesus. This city was built 4 times, the first 3 being destroyed by earthquakes, and the 4th believed to be under the current village. The first city was built around 2000 BC as a city devoted to the goddess Artemis. It was conquered by the Ionians in the 11th century BC, and temples built to Athena and Apollo. Romans conquered the area in 190 BC. It was originally a port city, but the sea receded over the centuries and there is an open plain below the city now where there was once a bay. Over the years, as earthquakes and mudslides destroyed the city, it was rebuilt in different locations around the area.
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Ephesus Library Facade |
The ruins we visited were of the third city, which was mainly Roman with some Ionic remnants. This was the city where St John the Evangelist preached in the synagogs and public squares. The area that has been excavated is a long main street, where they have uncovered the original paving stones, and many buildings along the street. This includes 2 theaters, a library, the state agora (open square), market square, temples public baths, and private homes. We spent a few hours here and it was fascinating.
The third stop on our agenda was the ruins of the church of St John. The first church at this site was built over St John's grave. It appears to have been rebuilt in the 4th century. In the 6th century, a large basilica was built on the site by Emperor Justinian. The Turks captured Ephesus in the 11th century, and the Ottomans invaded in 1390. At some point the alter was removed, and a minaret was built, converting the basilica to a mosque. It was destroyed during the Mongol raids of 1402.
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Ephesus Grand Theater |
Our fourth stop was at the Ephesus Archaeological Museum. Many of the statues, coins, jewelry, furniture, and other artifacts discovered in the ruins of Ephesus are on display here.
The last stop was at a hotel for a late buffet lunch. The food was good here. Most of the food was more or less familiar, just slight variations in seasonings. We noted that it was the first tour lunch we have been on that did not offer a local wine or other alcoholic beverage.
At the end of the tour we saw a demonstration of how handmade Turkish carpets are woven. We then did a little souvenir shopping and headed back to the ship.
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Tomb of St John the Evangelist |
One of the little gifts that our tour guide gave us and which many shopkeepers also give to shoppers, is the "evil eye" on a pin. This is a bead with a design resembling an eye that is supposed to ward off evil spirits. We wore ours to dinner tonight and we think it worked. The previous night, the new couple at the table started talking about their "religious" beliefs, which, from our perspective, were not religious beliefs at all, but environmental. They said a number of things which Ray found offensive and he was not looking forward to dining with them for the remainder of the cruise. When we got to dinner, they were not at the table, and the head waiter came and asked us if there was a problem with the service. It seems this couple complained about dinner taking 2 hours when they were used to eating in a half hour at restaurants at home. I just responded that service was fine, and they probably were not accustomed to fine dining. If they don't appreciate a relaxed dinner and conversation, they should be eating at the buffet. Tonight is a formal night and they told us the first time we met them that they didn't like formal, so they probably won't show up tonight. I think there are only 2 other meals were they might show up and we're hoping they eat somewhere else for those as well.
Today will be a nice relaxing day at sea. You probably won't see another post from me for a few days. Tomorrow we dock in Alexandria, Egypt and Ray & I are going off to see the pyramids. It is an overnight tour and I won't be bringing my computer. So the next blog entry probably won't be for about 3 days. (It has taken me all day today to get an internet connection. It's now 8:45PM, and I hpe this connection lasts long enough for me to complete this post.)
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