Turkey: The Early Days

The boat rıde across the Aegean was only an hour and a half or so long (and not in a particularly speedy vessel). We docked at Çeşme (I think I spelled that right) where I walked around briefly before catching a bus to İzmir, the third largest city in Turkey. İzmir was only about an hour and a half by bus and from there I caught a minibus south to Selçuk, the small town nearest the Ephesian ruins.

Selçuk was great. I stayed in my own room in a pretty nice hotel near the center (for around $10 a night). Not long after situating myself in town and the hotel, grabbing a kebab and a few scoops of yoghurt for lunch, I set off for Ephesus, a 3 or 4 kilometer walk from the town. Along the way, I met a guy about my age who'd been trying to call hıs 'girlfriend' in Korea but didn't speak enough English to understand the message indicating the number had been temporarily suspended (I helped him out with that). Closer to the entrance to the ruins, I bought a few ancient looking but likely replica Ephesian coins off a farmer.

The ruins of Ephesus were amazing. The well-preserved 2000 year-old commerce center rivaled any ruins I've seen anywhere in the world. Marble wears well and the details and magnitude of this town, which boasted John and Mary as residents and Paul as prisoner, were awe-inspiring.

I took the long way home. I'm sorry, did I say long way? I meant wrong way. That's okay, a little exercise never hurt anyone. Once I got back to town I bought a little Turkish Delight and some more yoghurt and something else for dinner (only the yoghurt seems to ever stand out in my mind).

The next day, I took it easy. I could have left earlier, but I stuck around because I wanted to go to church in İzmir (an hour north) the next day. So, on this day - being Saturday - I wandered around the weekly market, bought a shirt to add some color to my well-used travel wardrobe, bought some more turkish delight, and bought some more yoghurt from a guy off the street (I pack spoons in my backpack). The market was a really cool experience - 12 or so hours of bustling people and the sights, sounds, smells and tastes of an authentic Turkish bazaar.

After the market, I went up to St. John's Basilica, the ruins of the hill where John resided before and after his exhile to Patmos. It was pretty cool to walk around where he walked.

Then I headed a kilometer or so out of town to what remains of the Temple or Artemis, one of the ancient seven wonders of the world. I took a couple pictures of the sole remaining column and then headed back to the hotel and layed down on the couch in the lobby. A girl from Hong Kong, sitting in a chair across from me says I slept for quite a while. I'm on vacation.

After my nap, some strawberries and my daily recommended dose of turkish delight, I went out on the town for a meal of kebab, stuffed tomatoes, peppers and some other as yet unidentifiable delicacies.