Skeptical about our rental car reservation given our experience in Cape Town, we woke up early on Saturday and prepared for a long wait at the airport Budget counter. We were honestly shocked at how smooth and pleasant the experience was - we were on the road by 9:30am! Alex easily remembered how to drive on the right side of the road again and we made it to Selçuk in less than an hour.
After checking in at our hotel, we walked to check out the nearby historical sites. Our first stop was The Basilica of St. John, constructed in the 6th century over the believed burial site of John the Apostle. It was pretty cool to be standing in Turkey, a very Muslim country, and walking through church ruins left by the Romans. Basically next door to the former church was the Ayasuluk Castle, which overlooks the entire town of Selçuk. There wasn't a lot remaining besides the fortress walls and former mosque, but the views were spectacular.
Standing in front of the mosque inside the castle.
Looking out over Selçuk.
Castle views of the valley.
The third sight we visited was the İsabey Mosque, constructed in the fourteenth century and one of the oldest architectural works remaining from the Anatolian period in Turkey.
While we've seen many mosques during our travels, this was one of the few with such a nice courtyard.
Ready for a hearty lunch, we heeded the advice of our hotel receptionist and drove to nearby town Şirince for a home-cooked Turkish meal. With sweeping views on the village nestled in the valley below, the restaurant was a great find. We ended up ordering a traditional Turkish breakfast, which is basically ten plates of fresh vegetables, cheeses, olives and various oils and jams served with eggs and freshly baked bread, which we watched being made. After a filling "brunch" we walked around the town before heading back to our hotel to grab a taxi and explore the main attraction, Ephesus.
Ephesus was originally an ancient Greek city and dates back to the tenth century B.C. A former trade center in the ancient world and later a Roman city and epicenter of Christianity, the town deserves its tourist reputation. We spent about three hours walking through the ruins and learning about the ancient city. We've seen some pretty amazing sights during our adventure but nothing that is almost two thousand years old! We again followed the advice of our hotel receptionist and started at the top gate, working our way down to the bottom gate, where we could catch a minibus back to town. We took an excessive number of photos - often hoping to wait out other tourists - but below are our favorites!
One of the many archways that stood the test of time.
Saw this beautiful building along the main road in town.
We waited a long time and came back twice to take this shot of the Celsus Library without anyone else around.
I quickly ran up to the Library so Alex could get a picture of me.
We totally lucked out when we grabbed the first tourist we saw and got this shot before a massive teen tour descended upon us.
The remains of a square market, right next to the library.
The formerly grand marketplace from above.
The theater, naturally.
Last shot of the theater as we left Ephesus.
We grabbed a bottle of Raki, our favorite black Liquorice-flavored Turkish liquor and walked back to our hotel to have a drink and watch the sunset. Finally, we ended the night with dinner at Agora, by far the best meal we've had in Turkey, and probably one of the best during our trip!
We sampled every meze option available. Every. Single. One. Was. Delicious!
We woke up early again this morning and left the hotel by 9am to complete the three hour drive to Pamukkale before lunchtime. The drive was easy and scenic and we enjoyed the unexpected mountain views as we approached the town. Once we arrived we quickly realized there really isn't much in Pammukale besides Hieropolis and the springs - we had trouble finding an open restaurant for lunch at noon! We ate an unmemorable meal and quickly drove up to the park.
Pamukkale literally translates to "Cotton Castles" and the naturally occurring hot springs and travertines have been used for bathing since the second century B.C. Hierapolis is an ancient city built at the top of these springs where ruins still remain.
The main amphitheater with a great view of the mountains in the background.
Looking out over the town of Pamukkale from the top of the springs.
The water was much warmer than we expected, but we still opted not to swim given the 50-degree air temperature!
We decided against hang-gliding but still appreciated the awesome panoramic views.
I think this shot explains the name "cotton castles."
While we loved the scenic views and got to explore some additional ruins, we thought Hieropolis was a definite second to Ephesus - it just doesn't compare in scale or grandeur.
We had an easy but long drive back to Izmir and returned the car, checked in to the airport hotel and grabbed a quick dinner. Now it's time to rest up before our 6am flight to Athens tomorrow!