Kusadasi, Turkey -- Ephesus, the ancient city

We began our day docking in Kusadasi, Turkey.  But the truly memorable moments of today's adventures were the visits to the home of the Virgin Mary and the HUGE ancient Roman City (250,000 people) of Ephesus.  

I am sorry to say that I neglected to write down the name of our lovely guide!  She has EXCELLENT english skills and is a great educator!  She told us so many things in such an understandable way.  She actually has a daughter who is currently living in Deerfield Beach, Florida.  It seems she has met a nice young man who lives in Coral Gables!  

John the desciple, brought Mary to Ephesus after the resurrection of Jesus.  They built a home for her atop a hill above Ephesus to keep her away from the pagans who lived below in the city.  Mary Fuller made the trek to the Virgin Mary's home, but elected to stay in our mini bus while we walked the archeological site of Ephesus. It was a wise decision.  There were many stairs and a lot of walking over very uneven terrain.. Many of the marble stones in the streets are original..

 The crown jewel of the city is the Library of Ephesus.  It was the third largest library of its time.. In order to preserve the papyrus scrolls in the library, the roof was wooden to help control humidity.  Unfortunately, there was a fire and everything was destroyed except for one book that had been removed the day of the fire-- The Iliad!  

We also were able to visit a large area of excavated homes.  There was one section that was a 10,000 square foot house that belonged to a Roman tax collector!  It was absolutely amazing!  It was elaborately  decorated with so many rooms!  

I also learned the origin of the snake symbolism used in medicine.  We saw a hospital (sorry I missed that photo ) that is the beginning of this symbolism.. It seems a man showed up at the hospital and was sent away as too ill for the Doctors to help.  On the way home, the man decided he wanted to die.  He saw a snake "milking" a goat and decided to drink the venom laced goat's milk.  Instead of dying, the small amount of venom in the milk had curative powers for the man and he lived!  Thus, the symbol of a snake as a healing power in medicine began!

We finished the day with (surprise!) a little shopping.  Trey is the new owner of a beautiful Handmade Turkish rug and I found a couple of magnificent leather jackets that are so soft they feel like silk!

We are busy packing tonight because Bill and Trey fly to Cappadocia tomorrow while Mary and I spend one more night on the ship.  We will meet the boys the next day at the hotel in Istanbul. I will keep you apprised of our "girl's night out"!  I know we get to see a whirling dervishes show! 

Arrival..

Outside the Virgin Mary's home..

The Virgin Mary's house is behind us.

We were not the only people visiting today!

The Library.

Trey in front of Winged Victory!

The road from the Harbor to the city entrance that Cleopatra and Mark Antony rode bringing scrolls to the Library of Ephesus from the Library in Alexandria....

A hidden passageway from the library to the brothel!  Gives new meaning to "Honey, I'll be at the library"!

These are part of the 44 public toilets for men.  There was actually a violinist who played outside the entrance.   And, since these marble seats were mighty cold in winter, they sent their slaves up to sit and "warm" the seat!  Ephesus was a large trading center and there were many slaves!

This is a small section of the city that we actually visited today.  It gives you some idea of how big this archeological site is.  There is a GREAT deal more to be uncovered, but they are waiting until funds are raised to do further excavating..

These are some of the rooms in the 10,000 square foot tax collectors elaborate home.  The wall paintings are well preserved..

On the wall of a master bedroom!

Amazingly preserved mosaic floor in the wealthy Roman's house.

Remains of the 24000 seat theater.  They had a rock concert here a few years ago and the sound caused a collapse of some of the structures.  They now only allow classical musical concerts occasionally ..

Inside the library.

On the main road to the city entrance.

Excavation of the tax collector's home.

Truly a remarkable sight!

Ok.. I'm signing off tonight.  Just as I was getting ready to post the blog, I hit the wrong key and erased EVERYTHING I had just done!  You should have heard me groaning all the way back to Boca.  (I'm sure our next door neighbors on the ship must have heard me! ). SO, I have just redone everything.  I may have left out a few more pictures or some kernel of information I have learned, but I'm too tired and it's too late to add any more tonight !  Maybe tomorrow.... Thanks for reading!