Then Steve got sick.
He gets sick alot differently than me. Generally he doesn't get sick. When he is does, he hunkers down and rests. And drinks a ton of water. All there is to do is sit and wait it out.
We holed up like bandits in our smokey hotel room and tried to wait it out. I walked to the supermarket and bought a candle to make our room smell better and to add a homey feel. I brushed up on some internet TV and Steve sweated and froze in long cycles. I think we were both ready for our moms at that point.
Although he was sick, we did manage to get out and visit Ephesus, the great biblical city, which is said to be where St. John wrote the book of revelation. The city, which began as an ancient greek city and later a roman one, is in a sunken valley that used to be on the bank of an ancient sea that served as a major harbour. Through the years the sea has dried up, and the city is landlocked.The city fell away and was lost until rediscovered and excavated.
When we walked up to the main gates we were amazed at the piles of huge rock, each cut into cubes that belong to a giant puzzle. Organizations are slowly fitting them back together to restore the city , and parts of it are completed. The Celcius library, built by the mathematician's son in honor of him, is the most famous reconstruction.
It was an amazing feeling to walk down an ancient street. I tried hard to imagine the early christians that lived there, beinging visited by St. John and Mother Mary, who is said to have lived her last days in a house on the mountain above. So much time has passed-- an entire sea has been soaked up.
In the city we walked up to the tomb of St. John and around the fort castle that was built. The temple of John has been rebuilt as a bascillica and church many times. His tomb lies in the centre and people used to pilgramage there. Legend has it the dust that collects on his tomb has healing powers.
There was more to see around the city, but we were anxious to keep moving forward. We were coming to the end of Turkey and had to plan our trip to Greece. The hotel owner, a nosey gatekeeper who was always aware of our coming and goings, said he would give us the ferry timetables so we could figure out where we needed to go. We met with him, and before we knew it were whisked off to a travel office. The agent who helped us called the ferry and mapped out our ports. We had tired to research them before but the websites are all in Greek and Turkish, so we needed a locals help. "340 Euros" He said, looking pleased. "ughhh......" Steve said. He was slumped over in his chair, looking green from his flu and annoyed at getting duped into the whole visit. " We will have to think about it" I said. 680 Euros seemed impossible for just bus and transportation. At that point we were ready to skip Greece and fly straight to Italy.
"Ok, what is your max. I give you discount" He said.
The magic words. Discount. Whenever there is a bargain willing to happen you can bet you're not getting a good deal.
We left the office and went back to the hotel. The owner grilled us, hoping to collect a cut of the profit. "Still thinking about it" I said. We were happy to get out of there the next day, and even happier when we found legit ferry tickets for 30Euros a person. Gee whiz.
From Selcuk the last stop in Turkey is......Pummakle! One of our favorite stops. We had great weather, good health, and amazing sights.
Stay tuned!
Church of Mary:
Fountain of Savanah:
Theatre of Steve:
Celsius library:
Public toilets: (very public)
Cool rocks:
Tomb of st.john:
Turtles for lunch:
Tea for lunch:
Dutch facial hair:
No comments:
Post a Comment