Our Trip to Ephesus.

It is the 3rd day on the Island and we are sailing to Kusandasi .
The village where we stay is about 10 or 12 kilometres from Vathi and we have to get up early to catch the Sailing boat.

EPHESUS

Ephesus was one of the most significant cities in Antiguity, built on the western shores of Asia Minor opposite Samos.
During the period of acme the city was situated next to the sea, but with the passing of eons the deposits from the river created a narrow strip of land, so we visitors have to drive about 8 km inland to get to Ephesus.

It is pity that the government of Turkey just receive money and does no work there. Visitors have to pay 10 euros or 20 Turkish pounds just to enter but not us. Ours was included in the 62 euros we paid in Samos. The trip from Samos to reach Kusandasi depends on the tourist Office one chooses. I tried 4 different agencies and each one had something else to tell me.
So visitors who go there have to check. We paid 62 euros, but I know that 10 euros are for taxes we were told . 62 was the package to sail there, and have a 2 hour tour, and then have some time in the market. The boat leaves at 8.30 and we were back at 6.30. Plenty of time for somebody who wants to do some shopping. I spent most of the time at the restaurant.
From Samos the sailing trip lasts about 90 minutes.

Ephesus has been inhabited for many centuries now so therefore only the last phases of many of the monuments have been saved. Small sections of theAncient, Classical and Hellenistic buildings have remained, and they are quite impressive.
The Sanctuary of Artemida was one of the 'ornaments' during the period of the greatest artists in ancient times.
The Public Market with the small conservatory, the baths, the prytaneum and the temples of Rome and Caesar, together with atri-aisled bacilica that was constructed along the north side- all give us a feeling of the life at Ephesus during the Roman period.

CELSIU'S LIBRARY

One of the most impressive monuments is Celciu's Library .
Basically it was not originally a library but rather a huge war memorial containing a tomb with a sarcophagus.In later times it was transformed into a library with the capacity to store around 12.000 papyruses. The 4 female statues that adorn the façade of the restored library represent the Virtue (Areti) the knowledge (Episteme) the Sagacity (Sophia) and the Fortune (Evnia) Celsiu.

IMPRESSIONS
Reaching Kusadasi you get the feeling of a huge touristic city. The market area is clean, and there are many shops, restaurants, nice hotel resorts. The roads are wide and the Turkish people very friendly. The majority of them speak Greek.

The moment a tourist gets to the port, has to get to different coaches depending on the Language they speak. We had a Greek speaking leader but all of us in the group knew that he got the job because he just knew the language. To be honest, we did not have a serious touring with the detailed information all of us expected .

Be aware to keep your passes because in case you lose them, surely you will wish you never have been there!

A visitor might think that Turkey is a cheap destination, but everything is expensive there. There were many nice pottery factories, that I really liked, but they were expensive so I did not buy any. Instead I preferred taking photos.

After the tour was over, we were led to a Leather Factory. There were many on the way, and we were offered cold tea the moment we got in the factory. Refreshing and polite. I had two!
Just one couple bought something from the factory, and to be honest the quality was all right, however I found everything not very modern. I did not like their style!

I only bought some BAKLAVA which the Turks claim that is a Turkish delight. However, I am sure this is not Turkish, but it is completely an Arabic delight.
I asked our leader to show us a good shop to buy the best. We had to walk a bit outside the market and he took us to a shop where we bought our BAKLAVA for less money but of the best quality. I think it comes from ATEP which is the best Baklava in Turkey.

I also asked him to show me a nice shop to get the spices I like, and he took us there. The shop was really very interesting. I took photos, and I was impressed. The price I got was excellent.