Med Madness Begins - Ephesus and Pammukale May 2015

 I arrived in Marmaris, Turkey on the May 17 and rested up for a few days, a welcome bit of leisure after such a busy time at home. It's good to see my dear friend Ron again! I have joined him aboard his yacht Celador,  a Beneteau Oceanis Clipper 411, to spend the summer cruising the Mediterranean Sea.  It promises to be a wonderful summer of sailing and exploring.

Captain Ron.  You can enlarge any photo by clicking on it.

He is waiting for riggers, new batteries, and the salon head is overflowing and cannot be drained due to a buildup of urea crystals inside the tank. Urdal came to clear the blockage. There was a lot of cleanup!  Still to be done are the installation of the tricolor mast head light, and various electrical jobs.

While electricians and riggers were swarming over the boat, the best way for me to help was be out of the way. I arranged to take a bus tour to the ancient city of Ephesus and the travertine terraces and ancient city at Pamukkale. This trip, which included the bus, tours, guides, hotel, and five meals, cost only around $100 (250TL). Our bus group consisted of about half Brits and half Russians. 

The best bread anywhere, fresh cheese, hard boiled egg  and fresh veggies. And of course, coffee!

We stopped for a typical Turkish breakfast, then rode on through the Turkish countryside, passing wind-carved rock formations, farm folk hoeing fields of their small holdings, raking hay and cutting grain by hand. We passed fields of winter wheat and oats, plots of okra, eggplant, and tented strawberries, and groves of orange, fig, pomegranate with their vivid red-orange flowers, peaches, and apricots with branches bending low with their fruit.

Pretty and unusual pomegranate flowers.

Ephesus lies three hours up the road, and has been partially restored to reveal a glimpse of the glorious architecture and sophisticated engineering of it's heyday, around 200 AD. We walked from the top of the town, where a small Greek amphitheater was built into the hillside,

The Greek theater

 down a marble paved avenue of government buildings,

Buildings in the government district

past the shopping arcade with it's intricate mosaic floor and (formerly) shaded columned walkway, 

The column-lined street had shops and a shady arcade on both sides.

The entire walkway was tiled like this.

Pillars depicting Hercules and the Numean Lion. These were placed in the middle of the street to restrict traffic entering into the government district to those on foot. Could these be the namesake for the "Pillars of Hercules"- the ancient name for the straits of Gibraltar, which restricts the entire Mediterranean  Sea into one narrow passage????

past the public latrines and public baths, a prominent house of prostitution (socially acceptable in antiquity).

No, not the brothel!  Another official building, adorned with Medusa the Gorgon, to keep politicians honest....

Medusa, fierce with her hair of writhing snakes

Winged Nike, goddess of victory.

The latrines, where the real problem solving was done.

Across the street from that was the magnificent marble library, once the third largest of the ancient world. 

The Library at Ephesus

Amazing statues and friezes!

At the bottom of the hill lies a large coloseum where gladiators fought with wild animals to entertain the populus, which in ancient times was over 250,000 people. 

On the way past the bus I walked by the ancient cemetery, where raised marble sarcophagi of the ancient dead lay in a meadow of blossoming wildflowers. Down a pine-shaded boulevard lay the buses.

The necropolis at Ephesus

Artemis of Ephesus.  These statues are so well preserved because they were
deliberately buried by the priests to protect them fro invaders.

From there we drove into Selcuk town, the site of the remaining column of the Temple of Artemis, one of the Wonders of the Ancient World. Artemis, the goddess of the hunt and of the moon, was also revered as a provider of food and life. From all over the Hellenistic world they came here to worship. Often depicted as a lithe archer, in Ephesus she is depicted as a mother goddess, giver of life, with 24 breasts (or bull testicles, if you prefer), and animal and plant images representing abundance decorate her gown and crown.

 After earthquakes had tumbled the majestic temple and the tide of history and religion shifted from the ancient gods of Olympus to Christianity, the marble blocks and carvings were reused in newer buildings all over the area, and all that remains of the temple is the one massive reconstructed pillar. It is now topped with a cozy stork's nest, where mama stork was nurturing her babies while we watched.

Next we visited a large 14^th Century mosque, built with many stones from the temple. It was interesting to finally see inside a mosque, with the tranquil garden outside for contemplation, and a simple airy interior for prayer. To enter a normal mosque I would be expected to cover my hair, and wear clothing covering my arms and legs, and remove my shoes out of respect, but here they have made a small area for tourists to come as they are, due to the historical significance of the building.

Muslims always pray facing toward Mecca. I shot this picture before I noticed the man there....
otherwise I would not  have photographed him during his prayers.

The pillars are monoliths...cut from one solid piece of stone, take from the ruined Temple of Artemis.

I wandered around the village of Selcuk, a charming place. Wish we could have stayed longer.

Selcuk

At the cafe with Diane and Roger from Bristol.

Our group rendezvoused at a little cafe, where I saw a nest of tiny swallows waiting to be fed.

We drove on for three hours to the town of Denizli. During that time, our Russian tour guide, standing only three feet away from me, using her loudest seagoing hailing voice and pausing only to catch her breath, unleashed a wall of sound for nearly three hours which quite literally gave me an earache. At last we arrived at our Hotel. What a relief!!!   Jimmy Buffet describes it best...!

  (For those not familiar with "Magic Fingers", it was a coin-operated device back in the 60's that made your hotel bed mattress vibrate for relaxation.  Wish I had one now!)

The next day we got up early to be among the first to enter the park at Pamukkale to see the amazing travertine terraces and the ruins of Hieropolis.

This stock photo was taken in winter when the water flow is abundant. During my visit, the flow was restricted.

 The terraces were formed by 17 mineral-rich thermal springs, volcanic-heated water boiling to the surface. It cascades gently down the hill over a linear length of around 3 km and a vertical distance of about 160 m. As the water cools and evaporates, the calcium carbonate deposits form similar to flowstone and stalactites in a cave. The result resembles a blinding white ski slope, or as the Turkish name implies, a "Cotton Castle". It has been named a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In winter when water is more abundant the terraces are tinted turquoise by the shallow pools of pure water, but for our visit, the flow was reduced to one series of terraces, which are the only ones you are allowed to walk on. I took off my shoes and walked down, marveling.

But first we went swimming in the ancient spa pool. The ancients were awed by this unique place, and believed it to be holy. The thermal waters were thought to heal and the city of Hieropolis grew up as a spa city catering to worshipers and visitors seeking the healing baths. The water of the pool we swam in is around body temp, and there are fluted columns and marble slabs tumbled in the bottom of the pool. It was lovely and refreshing, and beautifully landscaped with shady pines and roses in full bloom.

Phil and Cathy , Andrea and Keith...new friends from Liverpool

I explored the ruins of Hieropolis, which once was a major city of over 100,000 inhabitants. The ruins are scattered in rolling fields of amber wheatgrass, and poppies and other wildflowers added sprinkles of color.

 The theater has been reconstructed and is beautiful, adorned with sculptures which have survived the passing of time.

Love me some old stones!

 I visited the museum surrounded by hordes of school children, and returned to my British comrades on the bus.

A sphynx

The ride home took us three hours through mountains with some snow caps of around 2800 meters. Through piney woods and cultivated wheat fields and fruit groves, and rolling planes of grasslands.

 We stopped for a break at a scenic overlook, and at last returned to Marmaris where I bid my new friends, my British tour companions and Turkish guides, a fond farewell!

The Anglo half of the bus.  Love you guys!
(The Russian guide, still shouting, stands in the aisle!)

Many thanks to Sefa and Mehmet, our knowledgeable engaging guides!