Day 30
Friday, July 21, 2006
Kusadasi, Turkey
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Ancient Ephesian architecture |
Our ship docks in Kusadasi, Turkey and we take our tour of
Ephesus,
St. John’s
Basilica and the Virgin Mary Shrine.
Our tour guide’s name is Mehmet and he gives us much information about Turkey which
shows his great love for his country.
Turkey used to be called Asia Minor and many
sites in Turkey
today are mentioned in history and in the Bible.
It is considered to be the Second Holy Land
for Christians around the world.
We travel by tour bus from the port
of Kusadasi to Ephesus
to view the ruins of ancient Ephesus. Our first stop is to view the House of the
Virgin Mary. This has been recognized as
the final resting place of Mary. A small
shrine dedicated to Mary was found when the ruins of the house were first
discovered.
Our next stop is to view the ruins of the town of Ephesus. We enter through the Magnesia Gate and begin
a slow, downhill walk through the ruins.
This is the largest excavated site in the world.
- We see
ruins of the Odeon which is a small theatre with a seating capacity of
1,400. It was used for public
meetings of the city council.
- We
pass by Hadrian’s Temple,
the public baths, the brothel, and the Fountain of Trajan.
- Then
we see the Great Theatre, which seats 25,000 and is still used today. This is where Paul spoke to the
Ephesians. What a privilege to be
in the same arena where Paul addressed the Ephesians.
- We
then walk over to the Library of Celsus which is a huge structure and very
impressive. It was designed to hold
1,200 scrolls.
- We
walk down Harbor Street
(also known as Arcadian Way)
which connected the port district with the center of town. Beautiful colonnades on both sides and
marble pavement made a dazzling first impression on visiting
dignitaries. It was one of the rare
ancient streets to be lit by lamps at night.
- We see
beautiful mosaic streets lining the homes which are currently being
excavated.
Our next stop is to visit the ruins of the Basilica of St.
John. This is a church built over the
tomb of John, the beloved disciple.
There isn’t much left of the church but a model shows what it would have
looked like before falling into ruin. It
was very large and had a baptistry which can still be seen today.
What a wonderful surprise to see so many sites that we
recognize from the Bible.
We have dinner in the dining room and attend the
entertainment which was a magic show.
Looking forward to going to Mykonos
tomorrow.
Scenes from Ephesus, Turkey
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Notice about the house & final resting place of Mary | |
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Mary's house in Ephesus |
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Entering the ruins of Ephesus |
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Political assembly area (Odeon) in ancient Ephesus |
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Curetes Street in ancient Ephesus |
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Entering the Library area in ancient Ephesus |
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Mosaic street alongside the Terrace Houses of ancient Ephesus |
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The Hydra of Greek mythology |
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Ruins of Library of Celsus in ancient Ephesus |
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Entering the marketplace in ancient Ephesus |
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Statute at entrance to Library of Celsus in ancient Ephesus |
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Theatre of Ephesus where the apostle Paul spoke |
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Mike and Pat with ancient Ephesian theatre in background |
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Tomb of John (the beloved disciple) in Ephesus |
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Model of what the Basilica of St. John looked like in 6th century AD |
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Ruins of the Basilica of St. John today |
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