Friday, July 8, 2011 – Ephesus, Turkey

I love days when we don’t have to get up and pack our luggage on the bus but rather can just stay put in a hotel multiple nights!  What a gift!

Today we explored the best-preserved classic city of Ephesus (or Efes).  Here is what the Lonely Plant guide for Turkey says on page 205.  “Ephesus is the place to get a feel for what life was like Greco-Roman times.  In its heyday, Ephesus was the grand capital of the Roman province of Asia and boasted over 250,000 inhabitants.”  Artemis was greatly worshipped there and we saw the ruins of the ancient temple that was built for her, and was one of the original Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.  It is estimated that only 18% of the original city has actually been uncovered and that is after 150 years of excavations!

The beulitertium - government meeting place

A water routing system

Statue of Nike

Statue of godness Maryanna Louisa

The Libery of Ephesus in the background

After exploring the ancient ruins of Ephesus, we headed to Meryemana (Mary’s House) which is where it is said that the Virgin Mary came to live with Saint John (or Saint Jean as he is known here) at the end of her life.  The site consists of a small chapel that was built on top of the house that she is believed to have lived in and there is a wishing wall covered in rags where visitors tie bits of cloth, paper, plastic, stickers, tissues, etc. to the wall with a written wish.  It was a special sight to visit.  Oh!  And I was wearing the dress I bought when I went shopping with my mentor teacher, Mrs. Mary Harding, and I have been lovingly calling this dress my "Mary" dress all trip - love how I happened to wear it on such an appropriate day!  :-)

Mary's Chapel

The wishing wall

Maybe I, too, have a wish on the wall?

The view of the ancient city of Ephesus from the Virgin Mary statue

Then a surprising event of the day was when we visited the Carpetium Weaving Center where we saw the intricate work of Turkish carpet weaving and silk thread making.  The entire process was a breathtaking vision for the eyes and FEET!  Yes!  We were able to take off our shoes and “touch” all of the carpet types – wool on wool, cotton on wool, cotton on cotton (my favorite) and silk on silk.  It was like foot sensory museum!!!  I almost bought one, but in the end decided to save my money until I could come back another time and truly by the one and the size that I would want for 200+ years.

Silk making process

A 'flying' carpet!

Next we went to the Ephesus Museum to see the wonderful pieces that have been excavated from the ancient sites at Ephesus.  Here are a few of my favorites.

Ancient chair

King Richard and his t-shirt that lots of people followed suit and purchased as well

 Our last stop of the day was to the Basilica of St. John.  It is believed that St. John was buried here, yet when the grave site where his gravestone was found was empty.  It is believed that grave robbers stole the body, that his body turned to ash, or that he wasn’t really buried there.  The church on the site was built by Emperor Justinian in honor of St. John (aka St. Jean).



Can you see the catcus behind me?



The column marks where the temple of Artemis once stood