Hello everyone,
Our second visit from Pamukkale was to Aphrodisias, a 90 minute drive and it was an absolutely fabulous experience. No bikini clad Russians just fabulous Roman remains, an an amazing example of a stadium. It was completely intact and had seats for 30,000. My picture didn't seem to do it justice but I've just looked on line and they aren't much better.
It was incredibly hot and dry but there was plenty of shade from the trees. At the end we visited the museum which gave an insight into how ornate it might have been.
We then left Pamukkale by train, we booked a taxi and thought we would be taken to Denizli station but we were dropped at Goncali. Our taxi driver sorted a ticket and we had 45 minutes till the train. I spotted a place with tables so we left our bags and walked over the lines to quite a large restaurant. No-one spoke English so using our little bit of Turkish we got a bottle of water , Su, and two freshly made kofte sandwiches. Lunch sorted. The train took about 3 hours and then we were in Selcuk.
Selcuk had a nice feel to it, it is the town nearest to Ephesus but not as well used a base as Kusadasi on the coast. In fact huge numbers of the visitors are people on cruise ships docked in Kusadasi. Selcuk had a nice feel to it and we stayed in Artemis hotel. So far we have been at least three floors up and this time it was four......excellent exercise!! The owner Tom assured us we could "do" most of Selcuk in one day and then one day at Efes (the Turkish name for Ephesus). We later realised that is what most people do, huge numbers of Chinese, Koreans and Japanese tourists on a mission to "do" Europe in as little time as possible.
On our first day we visited the church of St John the Apostle, Selcuk castle and the mosque. The church was originally enormous but little remains, although it is where John was buried. Our next plan was to go to Sirince, a little hillside village to enjoy the view and have a leisurely lunch. It was not to be as the village was full of souvenir shops hiding the beautiful village houses. We did however have Gozleme for lunch in a little family place. Definitely not aimed at the tourists as it had a squat toilet!!
When we got back to town the weekly market was on and the place was full of vegetable and fruit stalls selling fabulous produce, it is when you see this that a self catering option looks attractive.
Our evening meal was really good, we found a little place with seats outside, with local people and had salad and spicy kebabs with flatbead, fresh, beautifully cooked and remarkably cheap!!
Next day we had breakfast at eight and got a taxi to Ephesus, which was already mobbed, it was very hot and busy. We did manage to do it at our own pace, we hired an audio guide and also visited the terrace houses which are mainly avoided by the big groups. It was truly stunning and the audio guide was excellent, it does allow you to absorb what you are seeing.
We did a little bit of retail therapy and Chris bought me a beautiful necklace, made of Zultanite, a gemstone from Turkey that changes colour with the light. I love it and I went back another day and bought earrings to match. he also looked at carpet but that is another story for later!!
That evening we made a mistake with our choice of restaurant, Tom in our hotel had said it was the best food in Selcuk and it had pretty good reviews on Trip Advisor ( not very reliable in Turkey as there is lots of encouragement to write good reviews!!). The setting was great, under the viaduct with a fountain by the side. We were served complimentary soup but our meze starter was pretty average and then we waited 30-40 minutes for our main courses. When they came they were tasty enough and very nicely presented. We decided against dessert and coffee and when the owner brought the bill with a flourish of the hand wipes it emphasised the whole ethos of the place. There is a lovely Geordie expression "fur coat and nae knickers", which sums the place up. So for dessert we went to a cake shop with one table outside and had lovely rice pudding.
With the effects of Ephesus from the previous day we had a later breakfast and I wanted to see the Temple of Artemis, it is one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. There is not much left, the column below makes a lovely nest for the storks. It was a nice little walk out of town and there was a small pond with loads of terrapins.
On the way back we wandered into a carpet shop and Chris succumbed to one of his passions in life buying lovely carpets. His house in Spain has tiled floors and he has already got examples from Turkey, Morocco and Persia. I must admit it was beautiful but you never know whether you are being ripped off or not. It is being shipped to the UK so it will be there in 6-8 weeks.
On our last night we went to a family run place and had gorgeous meze and Chris had liver, bought by the owner's wife from the butchers, and I had chicken kebab.
We left Selcuk on our journey north and got a little minibus to Izmir, one hour away and then a second one to Bergama and we got dropped right outside where we are staying. We are in Gobi pension a family run little place on the edge of town. It is spotlessly clean and our room is spacious. Bergama is ancient Pergamon and has a history at the beginnings of medicine.
We visited the Asclepsion today and tomorrow will see the Acropolis. It is the least touristy place we have visited and has a nice feel. Today we had a lunch of local food , meat and vegetable stews with rice all for 10TL , about £3.
At breakfast this morning we met a couple from Canada who could have been our mirror images, retired early with public sector pensions, a yen to travel and a recently purchased camper van. We made an instant connection and talked to them about the possibilities and opportunities that house sitting can offer.
For me the anticipation of seeing Istanbul is mounting, I'm just about "ruined" out and am looking forward to an entirely different vibe and style of architecture. Then our last week will be back on the Turquoise coast .
So till next time, hope you still enjoy reading about our travels.
Take care
Norma x
Our second visit from Pamukkale was to Aphrodisias, a 90 minute drive and it was an absolutely fabulous experience. No bikini clad Russians just fabulous Roman remains, an an amazing example of a stadium. It was completely intact and had seats for 30,000. My picture didn't seem to do it justice but I've just looked on line and they aren't much better.
 |
| The gladiator pit |
 |
| Theatre at Aphrodisias |
Selcuk had a nice feel to it, it is the town nearest to Ephesus but not as well used a base as Kusadasi on the coast. In fact huge numbers of the visitors are people on cruise ships docked in Kusadasi. Selcuk had a nice feel to it and we stayed in Artemis hotel. So far we have been at least three floors up and this time it was four......excellent exercise!! The owner Tom assured us we could "do" most of Selcuk in one day and then one day at Efes (the Turkish name for Ephesus). We later realised that is what most people do, huge numbers of Chinese, Koreans and Japanese tourists on a mission to "do" Europe in as little time as possible.
On our first day we visited the church of St John the Apostle, Selcuk castle and the mosque. The church was originally enormous but little remains, although it is where John was buried. Our next plan was to go to Sirince, a little hillside village to enjoy the view and have a leisurely lunch. It was not to be as the village was full of souvenir shops hiding the beautiful village houses. We did however have Gozleme for lunch in a little family place. Definitely not aimed at the tourists as it had a squat toilet!!
 |
| Our Gozleme chef !! |
When we got back to town the weekly market was on and the place was full of vegetable and fruit stalls selling fabulous produce, it is when you see this that a self catering option looks attractive.
Our evening meal was really good, we found a little place with seats outside, with local people and had salad and spicy kebabs with flatbead, fresh, beautifully cooked and remarkably cheap!!
Next day we had breakfast at eight and got a taxi to Ephesus, which was already mobbed, it was very hot and busy. We did manage to do it at our own pace, we hired an audio guide and also visited the terrace houses which are mainly avoided by the big groups. It was truly stunning and the audio guide was excellent, it does allow you to absorb what you are seeing.
 |
| Bored tour group |
 | ||
| Ephesus |
We did a little bit of retail therapy and Chris bought me a beautiful necklace, made of Zultanite, a gemstone from Turkey that changes colour with the light. I love it and I went back another day and bought earrings to match. he also looked at carpet but that is another story for later!!
That evening we made a mistake with our choice of restaurant, Tom in our hotel had said it was the best food in Selcuk and it had pretty good reviews on Trip Advisor ( not very reliable in Turkey as there is lots of encouragement to write good reviews!!). The setting was great, under the viaduct with a fountain by the side. We were served complimentary soup but our meze starter was pretty average and then we waited 30-40 minutes for our main courses. When they came they were tasty enough and very nicely presented. We decided against dessert and coffee and when the owner brought the bill with a flourish of the hand wipes it emphasised the whole ethos of the place. There is a lovely Geordie expression "fur coat and nae knickers", which sums the place up. So for dessert we went to a cake shop with one table outside and had lovely rice pudding.
With the effects of Ephesus from the previous day we had a later breakfast and I wanted to see the Temple of Artemis, it is one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. There is not much left, the column below makes a lovely nest for the storks. It was a nice little walk out of town and there was a small pond with loads of terrapins.
 |
| Artemis temple-well what is left |
On the way back we wandered into a carpet shop and Chris succumbed to one of his passions in life buying lovely carpets. His house in Spain has tiled floors and he has already got examples from Turkey, Morocco and Persia. I must admit it was beautiful but you never know whether you are being ripped off or not. It is being shipped to the UK so it will be there in 6-8 weeks.
On our last night we went to a family run place and had gorgeous meze and Chris had liver, bought by the owner's wife from the butchers, and I had chicken kebab.
 |
| Chris and his 7 year old best buddy Mehmet |
We left Selcuk on our journey north and got a little minibus to Izmir, one hour away and then a second one to Bergama and we got dropped right outside where we are staying. We are in Gobi pension a family run little place on the edge of town. It is spotlessly clean and our room is spacious. Bergama is ancient Pergamon and has a history at the beginnings of medicine.
We visited the Asclepsion today and tomorrow will see the Acropolis. It is the least touristy place we have visited and has a nice feel. Today we had a lunch of local food , meat and vegetable stews with rice all for 10TL , about £3.
At breakfast this morning we met a couple from Canada who could have been our mirror images, retired early with public sector pensions, a yen to travel and a recently purchased camper van. We made an instant connection and talked to them about the possibilities and opportunities that house sitting can offer.
For me the anticipation of seeing Istanbul is mounting, I'm just about "ruined" out and am looking forward to an entirely different vibe and style of architecture. Then our last week will be back on the Turquoise coast .
So till next time, hope you still enjoy reading about our travels.
Take care
Norma x
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