Ancient Ephesus

I was very much looking forward to visiting Ephesus as there had been many stories around it, particularly in the New Testament.  The apostles Paul and John lived there at one point; there was even the possibility that the Gospel of John might have been written in Ephesus and there were claims that the Virgin Mary may have stayed at one of the houses in the last year of her life, making it a popular destination for Catholic pilgrims even though evidence were mixed.  

We arrived in the ancient city on a scorchingly hot day.  The blazing sun reflected on the bare rocks made it feel like an oven and this was the end of September.  The huge crowds descending upon the ruins added to the heat.  But it was exciting to walk on the marble path that had been there since 10th century BC and imagine the merchants who had set up shop in the agora with its many partitioned cubicles.  Particularly intriguing were the latrines with its drainage and the Roman baths.

But the most fascinating section of the ruins were the terrace houses that were excavated in 1960. These were tenements of the rich, with their own sophisticated heating system of clay pipes which brought hot air under the floors and behind the walls.  The mosaics on the floors and frescoes could be seen in the two houses that had been converted into a museum.  Visitors were able to walk through and see the rooms and the peristyle interior courtyards and imagine them in their past glory.  

I found the most beautiful part of the ruins was the Library of Celsus, built in 135 AD in honour of the Roman Senator Celsus and also served as his mausoleum (crypt under the library).  The library was destroyed over two earthquakes in the 3rd and 11th centuries and laid in ruins until the facade was rebuilt in the 1970's.  It was absolutely gorgeous!

The most famous ruin in Ephesus was the Temple of Artemis, built in the 6th century BC -  it's one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World and was located outside the main ruins. It was a little disappointing to see this much touted wonder as all that was left of it was one solitary column, but it was a touching reminder of what it once was.  

After the extended tour of the ancient ruins with our diligent guide Hamid, we had neither the energy nor time to visit the rest of the city even though its Grand Bazaar was supposedly as impressive as the one in Istanbul.  Maybe next time...

First thing we saw when we entered via the Magnesia Gate - I think this is the East Gymnasium which included the Roman baths

Clay pipes used in the Roman baths

The Odeon - small theatre - parts of it reconstructed

Remarkable columns along the way

I like how even the cats in the ruins got a scratching post and how ancient capitals and statues were casually strewned along the roadside!

Roman latrines with drainage!

 Peristyle courtyard inside the terrace houses

Looking down at the rooms in the houses

These wall paintings feature drawings and graffiti which offered insights into the everyday life of the inhabitants.  According to the signage, the drawings mainly show gladiators, caricatures and animals.  The graffiti included names of persons, poems and declarations of love.  Especially interesting is a group of 30 lists referring to goods and necessities of everyday life including their prices!

Marble walls and floors would provide a luxurious setting for this large room

Mosaics on the floor and painted wall panels

View of the ancient city from the terrace houses

The fabulous Library of Celsus

Roman baths

The Marble Road

View of the large amphitheatre from the Marble Road

The lone pillar at the Temple of Artemis

Ephesus all lit up at night

Monasteries in "the middle of the sky"

Volos was our first cruise stop.  The Meteora monasteries, in Thessaly, Greece, were just a couple of hours away by car so we booked a cab to drive us to see these amazing havens hung in "the middle of the sky" or "suspended in the air" (meteora in Greek).  The monks built them on top of rock pillars in the 14th century so they could be safe from political upheaval.  Now they are invaded by tourists who could brave the climb up to the entrance.  In the case of the Holy Monastery of Great Meteoron,  it was 750 steps up - not for the faint of heart!

There are six of these monasteries remaining from the original 20.  We visited the two largest monasteries, the Holy Monastery of the Grand Meteoron and the Varlaam Monastery.  You can see below the pictures of the monasteries and the surrounding landscape of rock pillars that remanded me of places like Yosemite in California and Zhangjiajie in China, except these places don't have monasteries built on top of their rocks. The Tigers' Nest Monastery in Bhutan, once on my bucket list, also comes to mind but I've never visited that one and likely never will because it is even harder to reach from what I gather - a lot more than 750 steps!  Wrap around skirts are available for women wearing pants - if they want to go into the churches, which are so gorgeous they are worth putting on someone else's skirts for.  

First glimpse of the Meteora monasteries

The Holy Monastery of Great Meteoron - the highest, largest and oldest of the Meteora monasteries.  The rock on which it stands rises 2000 feet about sea level.  The monastery was built around 1340.

The entrance, after you've climbed the 750 steps (there are more inside!)

The Church of the Transfiguration with icons from the 14th and 16th centuries

The kitchen with the original bread oven and soup hearth

An idyllic courtyard in the monastery

Mural of the 12 apostles

The rocks are an obvious attraction for rock climbers

The Varlaam Monastery - the pulley system for delivering supplies is still being used

The main entrance

Inside the chapel

Original water barrel from the 14th century could hold 12 tons of water

The Meteora landscape

Breathtaking!

Making the most of our last days in Istanbul

The last day and a half we had left in Istanbul, we made it to three museums, the Istanbul Archaeological Museum, the Islamic Arts Museum, the Istanbul Museum of Modern Art; the awesome Underground Cistern; had tea at the Hafiz Mustafa 1864 sweet shop in Sirecki that we had walked by a dozen times during the week; watched the mesmerizing Whirling Dervish ceremony and tried the showy Turkish dish, Testi Kebab.

The museums were all very impressive.  The Istanbul Archaeological Museum, on the grounds of the Topkapi Palace, has a vast collection of sculptures and statuary from the Archaic to the Roman era. There were also a lot of archaeological information on the Istanbul area which made it particularly interesting and relevant.  It has extensive floor space over several floors in the main building and two other side buildings - one could easily spend half a day here.  

The entrance to one of the buildings in the Istanbul Archaeological Museum

A mihrab in the museum

Young boy sculpture from 1st Century BC

The Islamic Arts Museum is right beside the Hippodrome and has some exquisite treasures including many artifacts around the Prophet and multiple illuminated versions of the Qur'an. It was not crowded which meant a very enjoyable time browsing without having to jostle with the crowds.  

The Islamic Arts Museum

This was called "Beggar's Bowl"!

We squeezed in the Islamic Museum of Modern Art the day we left Istanbul, visiting after we checked in at the cruise port as it was only a ten minute walk away.  It was particularly enjoyable after several days of looking through the past - the art here gave us very positive glimpses of the future.   These two pieces really stood out for me at the Istanbul Modern: 

"Virtual Places" by Istanbul artist Ali Alisir, images of microchips and electronic circuits overlaying images of historical buildings in medieval Europe;  

"Northern Smoke" by American Pae White interweaving digital technology and the ancient art of tapestry

The Basilica Cistern, an amazing feat of engineering, was intriguing and quite a challenge to my photography skills (and my camera) - we spent a good part of an hour here just because it took me that long to find a suitable camera setting to produce a half decent photo of this underground water chamber.  It turned out my iphone did a better job in seconds.

Basilica Cistern

Another angle taken with my iphone - no fiddling around with settings!

It was the weekend and the locals and tourists from near and far were out in full force - a great time for people watching on the streets as we sat down for afternoon tea on the second floor of the historic sweet shop Hafiz Mustafa, which looked out on the train tracks.  

Afternoon tea at the Hafiz Mustafa, looking down on the busy street near Sirkeci train station

Some street scenes in Istanbul...

The Whirling Dervishes - a religious ritual/performance originating from the Sufi master Rumi.  The most authentic performance was supposed to be the one at the Galata Mevlevi Lodge but they were closed for the holidays.  We were told the next best was the one at the Hodjapasha Dance Theatre which was just around the corner from our hotel.  It helped that there were surtitles projected to explain each segment of the very meaningful ritual celebrating the religious journey towards the divine.  It was a great way to wrap up our last evening in Istanbul.

Preparing the Turkish dish "Testi kebab"

Testi kebab with chicken

Saying goodbye to sensational Istanbul as we set sail at sunset...