Egypt and Mediterranean Cruise - 3rd Port - Kusadasi, Turkey

Oct. 29 – Kusadasi, Turkey  - A beautiful day today, clear skies and warm temps.  We arrived in port today around noon.  Jay and I were on deck at the back of the boat and taking a few pictures as we were coming in to dock when the man next to us was doing the same thing, but then he dropped his camera.  Where was his strap, of course not around his wrist.  Luckily he was able to catch it through the rail.  If he didn’t it would have been in the water and all his pictures gone.  Jay and I both look at each other and said if that was us we would have lost all our pictures that we have taken so far.  That night we made sure all of our pictures were backed up on our computer.   We had another private tour with a lot to see and little time to see everything. 

Our first stop was Ephsesus, which was once the trade center of the ancient world and a religious center of the early Christianity.   There we saw some amazing ancient ruins like Library of Celsus, and The Great Theater, which is still used today and seats 25,000 spectators.  We also visited the Terrace Houses where you could see how the wealthy people of that time lived.  There were beautiful mosaics on the floor and frescos on the walls.  They used clay pipes beneath the floors and behind the walls that carried hot air though the houses.  Restoration of these houses began in 1960 and two of the six houses have been finished. 

We visited the House of the Virgin Mary which is believed to have been the final resting place of the Virgin Mary.  There is a wall on the way up to the house that is called the “Wishing wall” where you can leave a wish.  

The temple of Artemis is known as one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world.  All that is left of the temple is  just one column and some of the foundations. 

Ruins of The Basilica of St. John was a great church in Ephesus constructed by Emperor Justinian in the 6th century. It stands over the believed burial site of St. John, who is identified as the apostle, evangelist (author of the Fourth Gospel) and prophet (author of Revelation).

We stopped at another carpet store and they demonstrated how the silk threads are made from the cocoons.  Very interesting and unbelievable how they make the carpets.  They also took us to a leather store where they were more than happy to sell you a leather jacket .

We visited a smaller grand bazaar than the one in Istanbul where they advertise genuine fake watches, so you definitely know what you are getting.