The Virgin Mary's final resting place is just outside Kusadasi. Apparently in the 19th century some bed-ridden German nun had a vision about Mary's home in the hills. Some local monks got hold of the book she wrote and went and found a house in the hills...therefore! Hmmm. Quite interesting to see if only to people watch and observe excessively religious people at a shrine.
Ephesus is quite the site. It was the highlight of the day. The sun was shining and I felt hot for the first time the entire trip. We were not alone but site-seeing with about 4500 of our closest friends!
There are so many ruins in this 3rd century BC complex. The stadium, the agoras (markets), the latrine, the stadium. I saw a carving of Nike, the goddess of victory, and one of two intertwined snakes, apparently a symbol for health for centuries. I managed to get an impromptu camera lesson from Rosa which made a big difference in the shots I was taking (note to self: RTFM!!!).
After lunch we went to the Ephesus museum where we saw many of the artifacts they excavated and photos of the process. The sculptures had details of their jewellery, their footwear and clothes. Historians really didn't have to guess to much about the clothing of the period when it's all there in marble.
The statues of Artemis were on either side of a mock-up temple with dozens of columns. I would later find out that that was the Temple of Artemis, one of the seven ancient wonders of the world. When we went to see the site in person, it was barely recognizable. Only one full column remains and a few chinks of another column. I could only name a couple of the ancient wonders of the world and I had no idea I'd see one today! A strategy in not researching where the tour goes!
We stopped off at a carpet outlet and got the schpeel. I enjoyed looking but had no intention of buying. Ed and Martha picked one up and we all cheered them on in their negotiations.
We headed to the Izmir airport since several of us were heading back to Istanbul. The first flight was at 6, mine was at 9. That's a lot of killing time. I tried to arrange an earlier flight and I tried to get the Hotel Sultania. No luck on either. Ah well, I'll get up and head straight there in the morning to enjoy all the luxuries I can!
Have just settled in to bed back in Istanbul. Tomorrow I'll go on the hunt for some carpets and wander through the Grand Bazaar.
