We could have stayed in Canakkale another day or so, but it was time to move on. We spent most of Tuesday doing the 6 hour drive between there and Selcuk, which is the home of the Ephesus ruins, the most important archeological site in Turkey. The drive was effortless, except at the very end when Waze took us way out of our way, and led us to some obscure apartment building. All we could say was, WTF! Our room in Selcuk had tasteful decoration, again was on the small side, but we liked it. Unfortunately no refrigerator or electric tea pot to heat our morning coffee water, but hey, we survived. The streets were narrow and quiet, and a large tree shaded the outside breakfast area.
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| Library of Celsus, Ephesus We spent three days visiting ancient ruins, some of which date back to 3,000 BC. They were all unique, so we never got the feeling we were looking at the same thing twice. Again, rather than try and describe them, Cynthia’s photos can tell a better story. We spent an entire day at Ephesus, which definitely lives up to its exalted reputation. The crowds were heavy, but that was expected. The site is so large that one can always find quiet spots. What was difficult to find was shade. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky, and the sun, though not the temperature, was full force. |
Ephesus became even more dramatic after visiting the museum in Selcuk. The museum is extremely impressive and just the right size. The eyes definitely do not glaze over. A few things stand out. Marble, marble, marble. Apparently it came from mines nearby, but there is just so much of it. Sculptures, walls, streets. The amount of marble artifacts are mind boggling. Hundreds, if not thousands, of columns that you would think would be in museums are just lying about.
Sculpture totally stands out. Some of the sculptures and ceramics date back to the 7th century BC. The Romans, in particular, loved their sculpture and hundreds of them have been excavated. They were not all in one piece, in fact rarely so, and it so impressive to see how pieces were put back together to make a whole again. It was often like a jigsaw puzzle. Some of the sculptures we saw were massive, especially during the Roman period. Even though we are talking a long period of time, I am still totally impressed with the volume of creations. And it is reported that only about 1/3 of Ephesus has been uncovered, with many of the new discoveries uncovered for the first time in the 20th century.
The next day we visited Priene and Didyma. In ways these experiences were richer than the time spent at Ephesus. Priene is like a poor cousin of Ephesus (the admission fee of $1.25 vs $20 tells a lot), yet we really liked it. One can wander anywhere they want, shade is easy to find, and we had the place almost entirely to ourselves. Our rental car made that possible, as large tour groups, which are common at Ephesus, don’t go there.
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| Cynthia at Priene |
Didyma, the Temple of Apollo, is small, but again we were impressed with the magnitude of detail and scale that went into the building of the city. Again, few visitors. The theaters, both in Ephesus and Priene, are of particular interest. They are well preserved and show that societies that lived there took an interest in art and performance. It wasn’t hard to let one’s imagination fly.
An interesting aside is that all three of the archeological sites we visited used to be on the Aegean Sea, and were critically located as sea ports. Today there is no water in sight. The silt from the Caystrus River eventually turned the sea into farm land. From Priene, which has a high elevation, we could see the sea off in the distance. It took, however, a forty five minute drive to reach the water. The process took a couple of thousand years, but still.
Selcuk itself has its charm. Were it not for the ruins I am sure it would be a sleepy farming town. A large part of the town, which is small, is pedestrian only, so it made wandering the sidewalks a pleasure. We found a restaurant we liked, and another that was so-so. Selcuk didn’t have the interest of Canakkale, but being land locked doesn’t help.
Cynthia had a hard time saying goodbye to the cats that either lived at our hotel, or were frequent visitors, but after four nights it was time to move on. We drove inland for about 3-1/2 hours to reach the town of Pamukkale. The last part of the drive has you wondering where you are going. The road is almost a two track, no traffic, and nothing but fields are in sight. Then, off in the distance, you see this mass of white. Now neither Cynthia nor I were sure of what the Travertines of Pamukkale were, and when I saw them from a distance I was not exactly blown away. Well, over the course of the next couple of days our impression took a big turn upwards. For one it is a World Heritage site, a distinction that does not come easy. Let’s start with the name Pamukkale. Pamuk is cotton in Turkish, and Kale is castle. So, the cotton castle. Actually it is calcite. Looking at it from our hotel balcony (we scored a prime room in Pamukkale, $68 a night) it looks like a mountain side that had a good snow fall the night before. Except not really. Again, I think you need to look at Cynthia’s photos to get a better idea.
I have to say that our day of exploration of the Travertines was one of the more bizarre travel experiences I have had. First off, to protect the calcite surface, one must go barefoot. The few security personnel that were present made sure of it. Now back in the barefoot hippy days this might have been a piece of cake. But not for the soft feet of two people in their seventies.
Actually most of the surface was smooth, and not too jagged, but there were places where walking was just not easy. Plus you are going up a mountain! At the same time mineral rich waters are coming down the mountain, from a spring way above, giving your feet a nice soaking much of the time. There are pools along the way, and standing in the healing waters up to your ankles is a popular thing to do.
Healing waters for sore, tired feet!The contrast in women’s clothing can’t go without mention. We saw young women in thong bathing suits you would expect to see on the beaches of Southern France, and others dressed
in black burkas head to toe.
Some of the photo ops we witnessed were totally bizarre. Strike a pose was the name of the game. It all, however, seemed to be in total harmony.
It took about 1-1/2 hours of slow, careful walking to reach the upper most portion, stopping often for those photo ops, though in contrast to others, rarely of ourselves. By the time we reached the top I was never happier to put my shoes back on!!
Though clearly the healing waters of the Travertines are extremely popular with current day Turks, the ruins of Hierapolis show that has been the case for centuries. The ruins sit at the top and behind the Travertines. The city, founded in 190 BC, is elaborate and expansive. The location is no doubt due to the Travertines and its healing waters. The ruins are impressive and the theatre is an absolute knock out. We have now seen four or five theaters and this one takes the proverbial cake.
After a long day we read the book and decided to take a stroll to the North Gate. Along the way we were treated with the ruins of the latrine, which are highlighted in several of the sites we have seen. The views were great because one is up on the mountain, but the road to the gate is long. Too long. We starting to get freaked that if we couldn’t find a shuttle (here called dolmus) back down to Pamukkale we were in big trouble. Finally I stuck my thumb out and we got a ride to the gate. No dolmus, but $10 later we were back at the hotel.
Our last day in Pamukkale was taken with visits to two more cities, one about a 1/2 hour away (Laodicea) and the other (Afrodisias) another hour. It is just astounding the work that has gone into excavating and rebuilding these wonders. There is so much. In Afrodisias they have uncovered more than 700 sarcophagi (in layman’s terms caskets) all with incredible and intricate carvings.
The museum here was amazing. Hundreds of larger than life sculptures, mostly of the Gods and the men that pay for them. Interesting that many of the men are nude. With the women a breast may be exposed. Cynthia commented that it is amazing these made it past the first Christians when they came around, as they certainly did.
What seems to be a theme is that most of these cities were founded before the Romans, and they weren’t too shabby. But when the Romans came the cities took on a new vibrance and grandeur. The amount of sculpture, the size of the buildings, the planned layouts of the cities. Just spectacular.
A word about the museums that accompany most of the ruins. They are so well done. The layouts, the lighting, the exhibits are all exceedingly professional. Turkey should be proud.
After three nights here in Pamukkale, it is time to hit the road once again. We are headed back to the sea, though this time it is the Mediterranean, and we both love what water can do for a place. Again, thank you so much for reading and we’ll be back before you know it.
So rich a description....
ReplyDeleteI no longer feel a need to travel there!
Thanks for sharing.