10/11/2015 Ephesus (Cruise to Mediterranean & Israel)

After leaving Haifa, we cruised for one day at sea before we reached our next port of call, Kuşadası, a seaport on Turkey’s Aegean coast.

One of the rituals on our cruise ship was to hold a formal dinner while the ship was at sea for the full day.  For dinner in the main dining room, we were assigned to a big table for eight.  In addition to Rosa and I being from California, our tablemates are from different parts of the world (clockwise from my right):

• Two energetic ladies, Freda and Ray, from Scotland.      
• An amiable couple, Jennette and Aris, from Holland. 
• A tremendously sociable couple, Mohan and Ranjini, from Canada. 

Eight of us sat together every night for the whole duration of our cruise.  We had so much to talk about and share every evening.  We were very lucky to have been assigned to this fun-loving table.

The main attraction near Kuşadası is the ruin of the ancient city of Ephesus.  It was one of the most important cities of the Roman Empire and among the world’s best ancient sites.  During the Classical Greece era, Ephesus was one of the twelve cities of the Ionian League.  After the city came under the control of the Roman Republic in 129 BC, it flourished.  At its peak during the 1^st and 2^nd centuries AD, Ephesus was one of the four leading centers of the Roman Empire.  Today the majority of the ruin at the site is from the Roman period. Only 15% of the ancient city has been excavated so far.

Through the online forum, Cruise Critic, we joined a private tour organized by an efficient and helpful lady from New Jersey.  Jackie has been to Ephesus and knew whom to ask to guide our tour.

Our tour guide for Ephesus is Ata, a senior partner of the tour company Melitour.  The company’s owner was the tour guide for Rick Steves’ TV episode on Ephesus (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_Q5ED6iI-QA).   Ata is very knowledgeable and passionate about Ephesus.  He is also the editor for Rick Steves’ book on Ephesus.  We were lucky to have him to guide us around.

Our tour started at The State Agora, a sizable open-air square that was a marketplace surrounded by buildings on all sides.

Our tour guide Ata, standing in the middle of the State Agora, explained about Ephesus’ extensive plumbing system.  Water was delivered to residential and commercial areas using clay pipes similar to the ones in the picture.

People in Ephesus love animals.  We noticed many stray dogs and cats in almost every place we visited.  Ata told us these friendly animals are well-fed by locals and tourists.   

Odeon, an indoor theater with 1500 seats was built around 150 AD. 

The Prytaneion was the city administration.

Two figures sit on the side of the road.

The Temple of Domitian.  Domitian was a Roman emperor from 81 to 96 AD.  He was considered an efficient tyrant, who successfully laid the foundation for a peaceful 2^nd century.   


This small gate kept chariots on the commercial road from entering the pedestrian-only upper Ephesus. 



Looking down over the Curetes Road.  Statues, fountains, arches, and shops once lined this major thoroughfare.  


The Trajan’s Fountain.  This was a public fountain providing water to commoners while the wealthy had indoor plumbing. There once stood a statue of Emperor Trajan, who ruled the Roman Empire from 88 to 117 AD and was one of the Five Good Emperors.

The Temple of Hadrian.  Hadrian was a Roman emperor from 117 to 138 AD.  He was also one of the Five Good Emperors.

The figure over the first arch is Hadrian’s lover. 

The figure behind Hadrian’s lover is the snake-haired Medusa.

Ephesians, as Romans did, loved to socialize at the bathhouse.  They also liked to mingle with each other at public toilets.

A separate admission ticket is required to see the Terrace Houses, a cluster of seven three-story homes of the rich.  These houses represent the lifestyle of upper-class Ephesians in the 1^st and 2^nd centuries.  The Terrace Houses is an ongoing excavation site.  Archeologists are still digging here.
The hall under the arch on the right was the entrance to the house.    

A courtyard in the middle of the house was lined with columns.


The rooms were decorated with colorful wall paintings and exquisite floor mosaics.

View of the Harbor Street from the top of the Terrace Houses.

The iconic building at Ephesus is the Library of Celsus.

The triple-arched gate next to the Library of Celsus on the right was an entrance to another library.

The Commercial Agora, a huge square, is next to the library complex.  The square was once the main shopping area and market of Ephesus.

The Great Theater is huge, and it holds about 25,000 spectators. Based on the size of this theater, the population of Ephesus was estimated to be 250,000.

The ancient Greeks built this theater in the 3^rd century BC.  When Romans came they enlarged the theater and improved its acoustics.  In recent years Diana Rose, Pavarotti, and Elton John have held performances at this venue until a riot from a Sting concert halted any future performance.  


We later went to the Ephesus Museum to see statues and various items uncovered at Ephesus.

Original friezes from the Temple of Hadrian.  The sizes and details of these friezes, from about 2000 years ago, are amazing.

The statue of Artemis.  The many-breasted Lady of Ephesus, the goddess of fertility, was venerated and worshiped by Ephesians.


The Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, was not too far from the site we visited.  After its rediscovery, building fragments of the temple were used for reconstruction in the British Museum.  The original location of the temple has no trace of its once mighty edifice except one single column, so we didn’t visit the remnant of the temple.

Lunch was at the country villa of our tour agency’s owner.  The setting was charming and the home-style cooking was delicious.  We were all very pleased.

The tour guide dropped us off at the Kuşadası port with enough time for us to browse the bazaars nearby.
 

The day before we arrived at Kuşadası in Turkey, two bombs were detonated in Ankara, the capital city of Turkey.  The fatality count was 102 and more than 400 people were injured.  At the marina near our cruise ship, Turkish national flags were at half-staff.

-Joe