Ephesus

Before the cruise, I had posted on a couple of websites that I wanted to do a private tour of this iconic place.  Via the Internet, I connected with a couple from England and together the 3 of us did a tour of both Ephesus and the nearby Basilica of St. John.  We were able to do it at our own pace and managed to see what we wanted to see and still be back on the ship in time to see the coronation of King Charles III. 

Ephesus is located southwest of Selcuk in Izmir Province and Kusadasi is its closest port.  This important site was once the second largest metropolitan area in the Roman Empire and famed for the Temple of Artemis, one of the wonders of the ancient world. 

The city was built in the 10^th century BC by Attic and Ionian Greek colonists.  During the Classical Greek era, it was one of 12 cities that were members of the Ionian League.  Ephesus came under the control of the Roman Republic in 129 BC.  In addition to the Temple of Artemis, its many monumental buildings include the Library of Celsus and a theatre capable of holding 24,000 spectators.  There is thought that the Gospel of St. John may have been written here.  The city was destroyed by the Goths in 263.  Although it was rebuilt, its importance as a commercial centre declined as the harbour was slowly silted up.  In 614, it was partially destroyed by an earthquake. 

Today, the ruins are a favourite tourist attraction and are a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site.  It is one of the largest Roman archaeological sites in the eastern Mediterranean.  The ruins give some idea of the city’s original splendour. 

We started our tour at the upper end of the town where the state government was located.  We saw the ruins of the senate, a temple and a gymnasium.  

We passed through some gates to the lower town which was where the commercial centre was.  We could see where shops and a pharmacy had been located as well as where the communal latrines, the Library of Celsus, the enormous amphitheatre which held up to 24,000 people and Hadrian’s Gate were.  The amphitheatre is still in use today.  Our guide told us that only a very small fraction of the ruins have been excavated.  The façade of Library of Celsus has been carefully reconstructed from original pieces.  It once held nearly 12,000 scrolls.  The city also had one of the most advanced aqueduct systems in the ancient world. 

Pharmacy symbol

Our guide and his wife

Once we exited the site, we drove to the nearby Basilica of St. John which had also been destroyed by an earthquake.  This was built in the 6^th century over the supposed site of the apostle’s tomb.  Visitors can see much of how it must have looked including the baptismal site. 

It had been a very interesting tour and we were back to the ship in time to see the Coronation.  Whew!  The ship had gone to a lot of effort.  The Cabaret Lounge was all decorated and the food being offered on the buffet was British-themed including scones with clotted cream.  The coronation was broadcast on the giant screen and it was a moment of pride for me when I saw the RCMP participating in the procession.