08.11.14 - Turkish Delights

A Day in Ephesus, Turkey

The paparazzi just wouldn't leave us alone!

Today we docked in Kusadasi, Turkey. We booked a tour through Princess to tour Ephesus, an ancient greek city. We were really excited to see the city we have read about in the New Testament.

 Our little tug guiding us into the port

The port of Kusadasi, Turkey

We had booked a tour to go in to Ephesus so we met up early with other shipmates going into the city. We all got a little radio to hang around our necks and plugged in our headphones. We could follow our guide and hear him narrate all the wonders of this incredible place. The structures were amazing and only a small percentage of the city has even been excavated. The whole town was buried under 12 feet of silt and dirt from landslides. It was really cool to walk on the same marble pathways that so many did 2000 years ago. We saw where the Apostle Paul probably had his tent making shop in the Roman Agora (market) area of Ephesus where he lived for a couple of years and taught the Ephesians. 

Ancient Roman Baths

Amphitheater

A roman cat posing for his fans!

The long road to the Library of Celsus

A beautiful mosaic pathway

The Library of Celsus - a magnificent structure

Being with a tour made it difficult to wander away on our own for too long, and before we knew it, it was time to get back on the bus and head for the bazaar. It was just like what I pictured, just without Aladdin and the monkey. Again, it was vendors everywhere trying to push their treasures into our hands, and trying to get our tourist money.

I would've loved to have bought many, many of these delightful little hanging lights 

and saved them for a fun backyard party. 

A tightly packed shop full of baubles, lights and toys.

This picture is not at all the way the bazaar really was. 

It was packed with people buying all manner of trinkets!

Turkish Kebabs for lunch - Can I just say yummy! I thought a kebab was meat on a stick. Not in Turkey! Delightful thin, crisp shavings of marinated meat, with fresh tomatoes, lettuce, onions, to kill for sauce, all piled high on a soft pita bread. It seriously was so delicious! The smacking of lips could be heard for miles!  Had fun visiting with a group of friends from Alabama. We would bump into them for the rest of the cruise.

The most delicious food!!

Terrible picture! But it shows our ship in the background.

Before we actually walked through the bazaar, we witnessed a silk rug demonstration. Fascinating!! The shop we were visiting was a family owned shop where they teach the skill of rug weaving from generation after generation. They showed us the technique used starting with the butterflies laying eggs, and caterpillars being born then going into a cocoon, and getting the cocoon before the butterfly emerges. The cocoons are put into very hot water, a stiff bristle brush is used to get the starts of the silk, then it taken up on a little machine that twists several strands of silk into one thread.   (Insert video demonstration).  These threads are dyed with natural colors; for example pomegranate juice to make a beautiful magenta red color. They import indigo from India, etc. 

Cocoons soaking in very hot water

Stirring the pot and gathering the threads that would be intertwined into a single thread.

The next step is put all these together to form a beautiful rug. It is a painstaking process of weaving and cutting one thread at a time to create their design. Depending on the size of the rug, they can cost thousands of dollars. We have a whole new appreciation for these stunning pieces of art. So if you want to get a nice rug for your floors, Turkish rugs are the way to go! I wish I had the money and the space to buy one. Awesome!!

A rug maker ... she very patiently works one thread at a time.

Masterpieces!

These rugs took months to weave and are very expensive!

After we got back to the ship, we had nice dinner in the Symphony Dining Room. Larry got chastised for wearing shorts and flip-flops, but they let us in anyway. We won't make that mistake again! After dinner we watched a movie under the stars "Jack Ryan, Shadow Recruit." Another great day! See you later Kusadasi!

Farewell Kusadasi!

08.10.14 - Athens, the City of Gods

A Day in Athens, Greece

Athens, Greece! I love waking up to a new city! Athens is a sprawling and very congested city with what looks like apartment buildings crammed next to and on top of each other really tight. It is a huge city with about 4 million people including the surrounding area. Very cool to see from the ocean. There were so many things to go see but our main goal was to get to the Acropolis to see the sights.

We didn't purchase a tour through the cruise line so we hopped off the boat early to beat the crowds and to make our way to the Acropolis on our own. It is very difficult trying to figure out the bus system in a country where you can hardly guess what the signs are saying. A lone taxi driver caught us in a weak moment and we jumped at his offer to take us to our destination for only €20. Sounds like a bargain, yes? No!

We made it to the Acropolis in good time with the driver persistently trying to coax us into hiring him for the day. It is safe to say he drove off a disappointed man. But we were some of the first to arrive at the Acropolis!!! We purchased our tickets and started to our walk to the top of the hill. I was excited to see two landmarks - the amphitheater where Yanni performed and the Parthenon. There were many ruins along the way to stop and photograph and marvel at the ingenuity and craftsmanship that existed so long ago. 

The Theater of Dionysus

We came to a fenced off area and looked in and there it was! The Herodes Atticus Theater! It was so awesome. I really can't think of the right words to express how excited I was to be seeing this amazing sight! We took pictures and found a bench nearby and started playing the Yanni Live at the Acropolis CD. We are such nerds but it was so cool!! I might have even gotten a little teary I was so excited and happy. Something I have dreamed of doing for years finally coming true! It was seriously the best thing ever!

 The Herodes Atticus Theater

Yanni's Theater

After sitting there listening to music for a bit, we continued our way up the hill to see the other ruins. What a breathtaking experience! So much thought and creativity went into making these old buildings. The craftsmanship was amazing. We arrived at the top of the Acropolis where the Parthenon is located. This was the birthplace of democracy with one of the world’s first democratic governments. Larry has dreamed of walking these paths since he was a young man. History is his passion!

The Parthenon

The city of Athens looking down from the Acropolis

The Erechtheum - Ancient Greek Temple

Propylaea - The Entrance to the Acropolis

Leaving the Propylaea

Funny side note...while we walking around the cobble stone and marble grounds, we saw this decked out chick wearing 4 inch high heels. It sorta reminded me of Ivy hiking in her gold shoes, but with stilts. I guess a girl's gotta do what girl's gotta do. We had a good chuckle when we saw that!

The Ancient Agora (market place)

Odeon of Agrippa (large concert hall and gymnasium)

The Temple of Athena (on the far right)

Temple of Hephaestus

Adjacent to the Acropolis is a rocky hill called Mars Hill. This is where the apostle Paul taught the Athenians and declared unto them the true identity of their “unknown god” found in Acts 17:16-34. Larry and I had our own Sabbath Service under a tree where we read from the book of Acts in the Bible and talked about the great things that took place so many years ago. It was amazing to be walking in Paul’s footsteps and was a very special experience for us.

Mars Hill

"We are the offspring of God."  ~ the Apostle Paul

Looking up at the Acropolis from Mars Hill

 Church of the Holy Apostles

Frescos in the Church

After spending a great deal of time exploring the ruins of the Acropolis we made our way down back to the city. By this time we were so hot and so so thirsty. Besides the tours, sights and food, the most money we have spent is on water. We can't get enough!

Because of our dehydrated state we decided to try and find a place where we could share some kind of Greek food and water. We started down this little street lined with all kinds of vendors selling their trinkets and outside restaurants that literally run on into each other, with their owners all trying to talk you into coming to their place. "It's much better!" We found a shady spot and ordered a gyro, chicken salad and a large pitcher of water to share. What a delightful decision! So tasty! 

Happy after a great Greek meal!

Graffiti trains like this one would zip by frequently while we were eating. 

After eating and resting a bit, we continued on our way. There were hundreds of the same little shops lining street after street, with each vendor approaching you saying, "my turn now?". Considering we didn't really want to buy anything, and the pushiness of the sellers we finally decided enough was enough and headed back for the ship. 

Bazaar shopping

Church in the middle of the road

We didn't want to spend €20 again so we tried to find other Princess cruisers who might want to share a cab. We were defeated and were running out of time. We were about to go investigate the train option when we decided to just offer a cabbie €10 if he would take us back to the ship. Surprisingly, he took the offer and we made it back with time to spare!

What a splendid day!!