Thursday Nov 18, 2010
All of the pictures from this port of call can be seen in the Turkey/Ephesus photo gallery.
We're now a full week removed from our Barcelona departure, and this day found us in the country of Turkey. Before this visit, I could have said that this country - indeed, much of that region of the world - was somewhere I really had no desire to visit. I have used the "not much prior knowledge or research" excuse a lot during this trip and trip story, but I really didn't know much about Turkey or what it, as a geographical area, had to offer the traveler and sight seer. Before this trip (and what smidge of research I did beforehand), my knowledge of Turkey consisted of knowing that the capital used to be Istanbul (formerly known as Constantinople), that there is US Air Force base there where dad was stationed back in the mid-60s, and that during special holidays, you would walk down the street past the meat markets and see poseys sticking out of the asses of the sheep carcases hanging in the windows (a story from dad). I also knew that the Turks are predominantly Muslim, but an important ally of the US in our military operations in the Middle East. Beyond that, I really didn't know much of the amazing history that had transpired there.
Primarily, I wasn't aware of the overall significance of Ephesus. I'd heard the stories from the Bible regarding the letters to the Ephesians and that the Apostle Saint John most likely wrote the Book of Revelations there. What I didn't know was how important the city was overall. Lots of historically and Biblicly significant things happened there. The city was originally an ancient Greek city that ultimately developed into the second largest city in the Roman Empire behind Rome itself. It was an important port city with an excellent natural harbor, and the city declined because the Cayster River eventually silted up the harbor and created marshlands that brought mosquitoes and disease. Ephesus is also very near to modern-day Selçuk, and the outskirts of Selçuk house the Basilica of St John as well as the ruins of one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World: the Temple of Artemis.
Needless to say, by the time the day was over, I was awestruck at everything we had seen. I'll start from the beginning. We disembarked from the ship and found our driver and guide. This was only one of two places where we had two folks herding us around (the other was Naples). The service we used was Sammy's Travel, as they had been recommended through CruiseCritic.com, and they were right on time. The one negative thing I have to say regarding this particular excursion: we were told we would be given a couple of "low pressure" shopping opportunities. Well, they weren't very low pressure. Those stops along with the constant barrage of people trying to sell you coins and other junk, I decided the most important Turkish words for foreigners to know while in Turkey are either "defol" or "siktir git" (and thanks to Bonney Wilkinson for providing the second option). Essentially, they both translate to "f*ck off" in Turkish. 
Anyway, we hopped in the van - almost our entire crew was with us; Barry and Rod elected to stay on the ship that day - and off we went. Our first stop was the House of Mary. During some of my limited pre-trip research, I learned that Mary, mother of Jesus, lived out her final days not far from Ephesus, and it turns out we were going to visit the small house where she lived. It was a pretty moving experience to be there, even though there is some argument on whether this is where she lived out her days after Christ's crucifixion, resurrection and ultimate ascendancy to Heaven. Something I didn't know was that Muslims also consider the house a holy place as well, as Maryam is a prominent figure in the Qur'an, and that they pilgramage to the site just like Christians do. I didn't take any pictures at this site, though. As you might've noticed by the style of my other photos, I typically like to take and share shots without people in them. This place was a zoo and super crowded the morning we were there, so no people-less shots presented themselves. There are quite a few pictures to be seen of it out on the Internet, though.
After finishing at the House of Mary, it was down the mountain for the relatively short drive to the upper gates of Ephesus. Our driver dropped us off near the upper gates, called Magnesia Gate, and we were glad they picked the arrangement of the tour the way they did. By dropping us off up there, the majority of the walking we did through Ephesus was downhill.
Before getting too far into the discussion of our tour of Ephesus, I'd like to point out a couple of resources that were very helpful to me in naming and describing many of the things we saw in Ephesus. This link has a map of ancient Ephesus and is labled to help you see where certain ruins are, along with some links to further discussion of certain ruins within the city. The second site has some good photos and descriptions of different ruins, along with a little bit of the history behind them. I'm also sure you've noticed that my primary external resource for further facts and learning is Wikipedia. While Wikipedia's overall article on Ephesus is pretty informative and has good links to further information, there wasn't much there regarding some of the individual buildings, and there isn't a map of the city's layout there. Another resource I found that has some good information and history is the official municipal website of Selçuk. Hopefully these other sites will help fill in some of the gaps.
Entering by the Baths of Varius, we got our first look at some of the upper ruins. We couldn't yet see the treasure trove of ruins contained at this site, though. Moving down some, we saw and entered the odeon, or small theater. This theater could hold roughly 1,500 people, and even though relatively small compared to some other amphitheaters, it was still an impressive structure. The next important ruin we saw was the Prytaneion. This building housed the sacred flame of the city that was never allowed to be extinguished, and was dedicated to the goddess Hestia. A few minutes later we visited the remains of the Memmius Monument.
 Bath of Varius   |
 The Odeion |
 The Prytaneion |
 Memmius Monument |
Moving further down, we investigated Domitian Square, named for the Temple of Domitian, and the first temple to be built for an emperor. The next item up for bid was the Fountain of Pollio - it looked to be a beautiful structure in its day with an imposing arch (reconstructed in recent times from the rubble), and interesting to know that some of it was constructed from parts of the older Temple of Isis when it was destroyed during the reign of Emperor Augustus. One of the very interesting aspects of Ephesus was the mix of so many different religions that came together in the city, and the mark left by each. Paganism and worship of the Greek Olympian, Roman and Egyptian gods mixed in with Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Ephesus is important in all of the religions practiced back in the day, and was known to be a religiously-tolerant place.
 Domitian Square |
 The Fountain of Pollio |
We next moved into Curetes Street, one of the three main streets in ancient Ephesus. This street leads from the upper gates of the older walled portion of the city to the center at the Library of Celsus, and was lined with shops, fountains, monuments and other important buildings. The pillars supported a roof and covered collonades that allowed pedestrians to walk in the shade or out of the rain. One of the important fountains on Curetes Street is the Fountain of Trajan. Trajan was considered to be the second of the Five Good Emperors. Our next stop was the Temple of Hadrian, named after Hadrian, who was considered the third of the Five Good Emperors. The interesting thing about this temple was that it contained a frieze of Medusa over one of the entrances. As we walked down Curetes Street past these different temples and such, we did pass the enclosure for the Slope or Terrace Houses. We didn't go into the enclosure, as it is a very active excavation site, but were told that this area housed some of the homes of the rich of Ephesus.
 Curetes Street |
 Fountain of Trajan |
 Mosaic along Curetes Street |
 Temple of Hadrian |
Before finally moving to the bottom of the hill, we toured a couple of other buildings, including the public latrines (I couldn't imagine using them...) and the brothel. Passing Hadrian's Gate, we entered the square area at the bottom of the hill that formed the intersection of Curetes Street and Marble Street. At the bottom, there were two very impressive structures: the famous Library of Celsus and the three arch Gate of Mazeus and Mythridates that led to the lower commercial agora. The library was both a tomb for Celsus, a governor and popular local citizen, and a house for over 12,000 scrolls. The building was constructed such that morning light would enter the windows for good reading. Standing under the reconstructed façade, one gets an idea of the size and grandeur of this Roman building. Very impressive!
 Libraryof Celcus & the Gate of... |
 The Library of Celcus |
 Pillars on the Marble Road |
After exiting the square into the commercial Agora, we proceeded adjacent to the Marble Road towards the Great Theater. Standing in front of it was amazing - it was huge and very impressive in its construction into the side of a hill. The theater is estimated to hold up to 44,000 people (some estimate 25,000; regardless, you can stuff a lot of folks in there) and is Biblically significant, as it is said Apostle St. Paul preached against the pagans during his roughly three years in Ephesus. Portions of theater were accessible, and I climbed to the highest point allowed in the theater to take in the scenery. I could see the full length of Arcadian Street (Harbor Street) that terminated at the Harbor Gates very near the old harbor.
 The Great Theater |
 The Great Theater |
 The Great Theater |
The theater was pretty much the "grand finale" of the tour of Ephesus. Although there were a few other things to see, like the stadium or the Grotto of the Seven Sleepers, we didn't see those, and exited the ruins. Our driver and guide then took us into Selçuk for the first of the high pressure sales pitches involving "fine leather." I think a few of the ladies ended up purchasing some leather goods. Dad and I decided we didn't want to hear the pitch, so we stayed outside on a patio and enjoyed the beautiful weather. Once the sales pitch and purchases were done, we loaded back in the van for a short drive over to a restaurant for lunch. I have to admit I was a little worried about eating the food. My worry was not only from a cleanliness standpoint - it was primarily from a fare standpoint. I'm not a fan of lamb and mutton, and that seems to be one of their staples over there. We were served a variety of different meats, though, and I even tried a piece of lamb (it wasn't as bad as I was expecting). We also enjoyed a couple of Efes beers, and it wasn't too bad.
The next (and final) stop on our tour of the day was just on the outskirts of Selçuk back in the general direction of Ephesus. This area isn't very far from ancient Ephesus - roughly 2 miles - and there are four historically important items in close proximity. Our stop was at the Basilica of St. John. It was built sometime in the 6th century over the supposed burial site of the Apostle St. John. John lived out the remainder of his life in Ephesus after fleeing Jerusalem, and was the only Apostle to die naturally (i.e. not martyred). It is said that he wrote the Book of Revelation in Ephesus.
From the hill on which the basilica was built, one could see several historically significant things. The first was the remains of the ruins of one of the Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It is interesting to note that only a single pillar remains today, and that was reconstructed during excavations in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Another interesting sight: constructed adjacent to the ruins of the the Basilica of St. John is a mosque. It is the Ìsa Bey Mosque, and was constructed between 1374 and 1375. I find it interesting the builders of the mosque saw fit to construct it so close to the ruins of a Christian chruch that was considered holy and so revered... While we were touring the ruins of the basilica, we had the "pleasure" of hearing one of the afternoon calls to prayer from the loud speakers at the mosque. Another interesting sensation that was...hearing a Muslim prayer call while touring the ruins of a Christian holy site.
As mentioned, the basilica was constructed in the 6th century over the site that was believed to be St. John's burial site. At the intersection of the original nave and the transept, before reaching the chancel area, we could see the marble floor and colums that marked the supposed tomb of St. John. Further explorations of the basilica led us to the baptismal font. It was in the ground rather than being a tub on legs or something like that, and interesting as I had never seen one like it.
The other interesting item that was visible the whole time we toured the basilica ruins came into better view as we were exiting the basilica. At the top of Ayasoluk Hill (on a lower portion of which the basilica was built) is the Grand Fortress of Selçuk. It is an impressive looking fortress that was built during the reign of the Ottoman Empire. Because of time limitations - they had to take us for more shopping, you know... - we didn't get to visit the fortress, but it was impressive to see.
 The Temple of Artemis |
 Saint John's Tomb |
 Basilica of St. John & Fortres... |
After finishing our stop there, we were back in the van, and back to Kuşadasi. The ladies in the group were generally giddy about another shopping opportunity, but I began planning my escape back to the ship - I'm not really big on the whole shopping thing. It didn't work, though, and I was dragged kicking and screaming (well, not really...maybe that was just in my head) into the Turkish rug sales presentation. It turned out to be an interesting spectacle, as it was kind of cool to see them fling and spin the rugs around in their presentations. Once the presentation of the different rugs was finished, the high pressure sales pitches started. Folks were divided up into groups and assaulted by a salesman. I think mom and dad were the only people to buy a rug there, and mom was a fantastic negotiator. After Dad gave it up, he, Mac and I stood outside the entrance and watched mom with the salesman. With repeated attempts to leave, she finally made a deal: a 3' x 5' silk Turkish rug whose asking price had started at $4,200 was hers for $500. It was a deal she couldn't refuse! And I have to say the rug is gorgeous. The rug shop was where we parted ways with our driver and guide, and it was close to some other shopping.
After the rug buying experience, the three of us walked the relatively short distance back to the cruise terminal to re-board the ship. This day actually ended a little earlier than some of our days, as they had built in some shopping time before the ship sailed. It was nice to get back to the cabin a little early and enjoy happy hour before having to hit the dining room for dinner. And I have to say that I was somewhat antisocial after the dinners. I didn't grace the bars with my presence very often - mostly I wanted to just relax in the cabin. Oh, and not fall prey to the high booze prices on the ship. This night was really no different. Our stop the next day: Santorini. I was looking forward to that stop for several reasons. First, we had no organized shore excursion, which meant I could sleep in a little bit. I was also looking forward to the free day and the photo opportunities.
One final note about our stop in Turkey. We were docked next to the (at the time) brand-spanking-new Cunard Line cruise ship Queen Elizabeth. What an impressive vessel she was! She is virtually the same size as our ship, the Brilliance of the Seas, but I don't know...it must have been the paint job and the fact that I knew she was a Cunard ship. Yeah, they're now owned by Carnival, but still...a Cunard ship that I got to see in person! Whenever I first saw the ship docked next to us as we debarked earlier in the day, I mistook her for the Queen Elizabeth II (the QE2). I knew my grandparents had sailed on a trans-Atlantic cruise from England to New York back in the 80's, and was excited at the prospect of seeing that ship in person. Little did I know, the QE2 was retired and has been out of service since November of 2008. As further post-trip research revealed, when we saw the new Queen Elizabeth this day (Nov 18), she had been sailing as a revenue-generating cruise ship for a total of 37 days: she had her maiden voyage on October 12, 2010, and had only been Christened one day previous (Oct 11). She was virtually brand-new! This might have been only her third or fourth revenue-generating cruise.
But that wasn't (necessarily) the most impressive part of seeing the Queen Elizabeth in port. Her starboard side was to the dock, while the port side of the Brilliance was to the same dock on the opposite side; in other words, our gangplanks met on the dock. As we were walking down the dock to re-board the ship after our tours, we actually met and talked to a few folks that were sailing on the QE. Since mom and dad's cabin was on the port side, we could look out and see (and even converse with people on their balconies of) the QE. The folks and I were definitely on their cabin's balcony to watch the QE depart, as one of the passengers on the QE, who happened to be a lovely British lady, had told us their sailing time. As the QE's lines were being cast, we got to witness one of the neatest maritime rituals between ships: a "whistle salute." Put in other terms, it was a pissing contest of horns between our ship and theirs. The QE blew her horn, and the Brilliance answered. This happened four times. And while the whistle on the Brilliance sounded pretty awesome in its own right, it paled in comparison to the the deep bass whistle of the Queen Elizabeth. Wow, it sounded good - especially with the hills around Kuşadasi providing a medium of echo. As the QE started moving away from the dock and backing out of her berthing position, we exchanged waves with some of the starboard-side passengers on the QE. And I couldn't resist yelling out - in reference to the whistle contest, "OK, OK, you guys win!!! Yours is bigger than ours!!!" I could hear laughing and "woo hoos" and received several boisterous waves from the QE! I hope they appreciated it. 
Regardless, it was a fitting and proper end to a spectacular day.
Continue the story and read about our stop in Santorini.