Ismir, Ephesus, Kusadasi: Day 12

After a quick sightseeing tour of Ismir and coffee we had a 10am appointment at St Polycarp's Church. St Polycarp was the first Bishop of Smyrna (now Ismir) and our first visit for the day was to the church that honours him in this city of 3.5 million people. Relatively few are Christians today. Polycarp was said to be a convert of St John the Divine - we look forward to reading more about this early saint and martyr on our return down under. The church is elaborate without being too gaudy - with attractive statues, paintings and frescoes. The local Religious Sister was our guide with our tour guide Omer translating.

Then it was on to Ephesus - focus of a great deal of St Paul's life and work. After a quick overview of the crusader fort, the mosque and the temple of Artemis it was a traditional lunch on recliner couches and low tables. A hearty meal and then photos of Omer with his 'harem" before our tour of the ancient site.  This is one of the great archeological sites of the world - so rich in history every corner has one gulping in excitement and wonder.

Omer with his Aussie harem

 
You can't help but marvel at their amazing ingenuity and endurance - rows of ornate columns, marble roads and spectacular buildings. The archaeology continues and new things are happening all the time. The wow factor is around every corner - so many photos.  It has been quite a hot day but this did not stop everyone clambering around the sites to see as much as possible and you could spend days here doing just that.  The air conditioned bus was welcoming when we finished the expedition.

We were pleased to also celebrate with Don and Sally White their 44th Wedding Anniversary today; this was capped off by their being photographed with a young bride (Baha) and groom (Met) who were having their photographs taken at Ephesus.

Don, Met, Baha and Sally:  the happy couples  :)

We met the 3 musketeers (Peter, Hume and Judy) in the Hotel Foyer on our arrival at Kusadasi - there are great stories also from them of their separate few days at Cappadocia.  We said goodbye to Kathlyn who has been with us for a few days and tomorrow Penny White leaves to return to the UK. Finally we said farewell to Omer at our dinner on the pool deck here at the Hotel Onder.

Gay, Penny and Fr Ron at Ephesus

Tomorrow we board the cruise ship at midday but will probably have restricted internet so the next blog may be in a few days' time.

Troy, Pergamum: Day 11

After another unbelievable Kolin Hotel Breakfast we were on our way to the ancient site of Troy by 8.30am.  Yes Troy of Helen fame - not part of our original itinerary - but we  were so close and the suggestion from fellow traveller Paul was acceptable to the whole bus. It was really worthwhile - to understand the scale of the city and of the recent archeological diggings. We learnt that there are nine historical stages (levels being unearthed) of this place and each of them has their own character.

Next visit was to Alexandria Troas. We were led in to the archaeological site by a special guide on a motorbike and discovered a fantastic archaeological site with, much to everyone's joy, archaeologists hard at work! Further along the road here a bush site under some ancient Roman arches was a good place to have a relevant reading from Acts about St Paul's call to Macedonia.

German archaeologists hard at work

We had many kms to cover today and on our way to Pergamum we stopped for a traditional Turkish Pizza for lunch - like yesterday a family run restaurant and they were terrific - so hospitable and delighted to see a bus load of Aussies. We were well fed and cared for.

Ruth, Tig and Paul explore the lower corridor at Pergamum

Pergamum was a massive surprise; we needed every bit of the one and a half hours to explore the main site. In order to reach this required a lift, a cable car and then a mountainous walk. There we found the remains of a hilltop city - complete with temples, theatre, commerce/shops and library (at one time the library was second only to the one in Alexandria as the largest in the world). The photos will hardly do this site justice! Words cannot explain the magnificent height and age of the marble columns of the temple standing tall on the top of the hill which can be seen for many kilomteres away and designed for ancient seafarers to know that the city was there.

Ruined temple at Pergamum

Just down the road the site of the ancient Red Basilica - another massive building and a treasurer.  It was at Pergamum, one of the seven cities that St John the Divine included in his message to the churches in the book of Revelation.

Then it was a matter of pushing on to Ismir - Turkey's second biggest city - only 3.5 million people - most of them seemed to be travelling on the busy roads or crossing them on foot as we arrived - it was busy. Our Hotel is in the middle of the old town. Ismir is also known as Smirna - another of those seven churches. Tomorrow we head for Ephesus and Kusadasi.

ANZAC Cove, Gallipoli (Gelibolu): Day 10

After another massive 5 star breakfast we set off for a day commemorating the Anzac tradition. After a ferry ride from Cannakale to Eceabat we proceeded to a well organised visitors' centre in the heart of the Gallipoli peninsula.

The 3D model made it much easier to understand the position of the Turkish troops and the Allies' strategy and landing. From this we were able to visualise even mor the bloody battles of 1915. During the course of the day we visited many Australian and New Zealand cemeteries.

At Anzac Cove Fr Ron led us in a prayer and then recited the Ode ".....age shall not weary them and the years condemn .." it was moving and especially  so as we stood around the burial site of John Simpson Kirkpatrick (Simpson and his donkey).  We were all given red poppies by Ron to wear or put in a special place.

The group at ANZAC Cove

At Lone Pine Cemetery we stood as a group under the shadow of the solitary pine tree and Gay led a reflection reading of Banjo Paterson's poem "We're all Australians Now" this was a  moving and humbling moment.

It is sad to see all the graves and to think of all those young men both Allies and Turks who perished in the battles that raged for 9 months. But the war was not in vain - Turkey looks back to this as the beginning of their new Republic under the command of the successful General Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. His immortal words reassuring Australian and New Zealand mothers that their sons who died on Turkey's beaches were now Turkey's sons and they were in their care.

Lord Casey who would one day be Governor General of Australia was wounded at Gallipoli and carried to a safe place by a Turkish soldier - this too is depicted in a statue. It makes us all appreciate peace and our form of Government even more.

During the afternoon we were able to explore the trenches both Allied and Turk and to actually walk in them.

We must mention lunch - it was very traditional little family business, rustic wayside stop - we all enjoyed Turkish pancakes and tea - absolutely superb.

Turkish pancakes and tea

Then back to our 5 star plus Hotel Kolin - via the car/bus ferry - a quick swim, relax or shopping, prayers including the singing of the National Anthems of New Zealand and Australia before another great meal.

Tomorrow another day of big miles but Troy ad Pergumum on our way to Ismir. 

Istanbul to Cannakale: Day 9

As an obedient little group we gathered in the foyer of our hotel on time to load our bus  and proceed out of Istanbul approximately six hours driving time to Gallipoli and Cannakale.  The most eventful aspect of the journey is getting out of the tiny streets of Istanbul that are strewn with vehicles and many of them are loading and unloading goods to the shops along the way. It is a bustling crazy busy scene. We keep reminding ourselves that Istanbul is a city of 15 million people and Turkey's population is in excess of 75 million. No wonder we ran into a traffic jam and crowds of people at the various venues yesterday.

We stopped at a couple of roadhouses along the highway which stretches out to the  south-west and down onto the Peninsula that leads to a narrow strip of land and the Dardanelles. Those who are looking for Turkish cuisine along the way were sadly disappointed the food was very similar to your average Shell Roadhouse - well some of our folk thought so anyway.  Most of us found something local and interesting to eat.

We arrived at Gallipoli town (spelt Gelibolu locally) and the caught the car / bus ferry across to Cannakale. We are now therefore in the Asian section of Turkey which occupies 97% of the land mass, sometimes called Asia Minor or little Asia.

Steve relaxing on the ferry to Cannakale

The hotel Kolin is a modern  plush 5 star resort and its grounds stretch out to the sea across from Anzac Cove. We arrived early enough in the afternoon to relax, some to go shopping and others took a dip in one of the hotel's pools and dried off on the sundeck. After worship, which included the singing of the national anthems of Australia and New Zealand and prayers particularly focused  on our defence forces past and present  and the bid for peace in the world, we then made our way through the endless corridors from the foyer and dining rooms to our buffet dinner. The array of food and its presentation was a sight to behold - this hotel is really some place!

Tomorrow we head for Anzac Cove and the Gallipoli landing beaches.

Istanbul: Day 8

After yesterday's walking tour it was good to begin this day with a bus ride to the pier called the Golden Horn and a cruise on the Bosphorus River that lasted about an hour and a half. The sprightly Omer gave a terrific commentary as we made our way north toward the Black Sea pointing out both modern and ancient sites. Among the highlights are the suspension bridge that links the continents of Europe and Asia, the Sultans' Palaces, the ancient fort and a huge number of modern five star hotels.

Sultan's Palace (one of them)

From the cruise we walked a short distance to the spice market on the way visiting a small mosque that is beautifully decorated with tiles depicting flowers in many forms. Being Islamic art this is done using symbols for the flowers. The spice market is a sensorial experience and  especially the smells and the colour.  We were able to enjoy some pomegranite tea and Turkish Delight and other nibbles for free from a friend of our guide. He did some pretty good business from our group after the freebies.

Fr Ron about to sample pomegranate tea at the spice market

Then members of the group went in various directions exploring the spice market and we lunched in an upper level restaurant together.

The afternoon was spent at the Topkapi Palace which has four courtyards and in each courtyard top museum viewing areas, some dedicated to weaponry, jewellery, to religion, politics, the art - portraits of the Sultans etc. It is a vast complex and most of Istanbul's 15 million  population seemed to be there today! By late afternoon we were ready to  see the Grand Bazaar - 8 members of the group wanted to walk from one side to the other and back to the Hotel. The rest remained on the bus to do a shorter trip from the hotel on the other side. Those who remained in the bus encountered their first experience of a Turkish traffic jam.  Nevertheless it was all an interesting experience and gave us much to talk about and reflect upon as we gathered for prayers before dinner.

This was our third evening meal at the President's Hotel and we have been well cared for in beautiful accommodation and good service in this place in the heart of the old city of Istanbul. Tomorrow we pack our cases for our long bus journey to Cannakale.

Istanbul: Day 7

As we gathered in the sixth floor dining area for breakfast pilgrims were wishing the gentlemen "Happy Fathers' Day" to start our Sunday.  The main adventure for the day began with our happy guide, Omer - pronounced Omar - guiding us on foot first to the Hippodrome - the site of ancient sporting events like horse and chariot racing and now a central plaza. It has various monuments including a massive Egyptian obelisk.

We are on our way to visit the Blue Mosque and after queuing for a short time we remove our shoes and enter the brightly lit, red carpeted worship space. Omer has much to tell us about the Moslem faith and the architecture of this renowned sacred building.

A short walk across another plaza is the church of St Sophia sometimes called "Hagia Sophia". Today it is neither used as church or mosque althought it has been both down through history but a museum. Again Omer has much to tell us about its history. It is an impressive building and with a lot more character than the Mosque. Of interest some very old Christian mosaics and frescoes remain here.

Ruth Flett, Jenny & Jim Mitchell in the Hagia Sophia

We had lunch in the centre of the very busy tourist area of Istanbul - some of us enjoying the quiet  shade of a lovely park close by. Then Omer was waving his hat and offering his shrill whistle to get us together and head for the underground cistern. This was a huge surprise to most of us and given the heat of the day it was a welcoming, cool place to explore. This is an ancient underground water storage area that today has a small amount of water in it with lots of carp and gold fish. The original cistern was vast but just one of many under this historic city.

We were able to return to the hotel  and for some of us a swim in the hotel pool  before the Eucharist which was led by Fr Ron. This had a special focus on the ANZACs, those who have made the supreme sacrifice for our freedom.  Ron told a great little modern parable and connected those thoughts with the New Guinea martyrs.   Then it was on to dinner.

Thessalonika to Istanbul: Day 6

View from the Golden Star, Thessalonika

It was great to be able to sleep in and enjoy the Golden Star Hotel in Thessalonika.


Most of us took the opportunity to walk around the little seaside village of Perea, some had a swim in the Aegean Sea or an early lunch. Panos, our driver got us to the airport a short distance away and we thanked him for his care and said goodbye.

Hume, Peter and Judy were destined to be leaving us in Istanbul, so we said a farewell in advance, we will meet up with them again in five days after they tour Cappadocia and the rest of us tour Istanbul and the west coast of Turkey.

The big moment of the day was the reunion of Ron and Gay with their daughter Penny, we had heard speeches all week about how anyone standing in the way at the airport would be bowled over in the the crush. It was a moving moment, floods of tears and that was dad!!!

Hume, Peter and Judy were still with us so we said our goodbyes, again.

We met our local guide, Omer, and our driver Ayhan, the traffic was crazy as we negotiated our way in our Mercedes coach to the Hotel President, just around the corner from the Grand Bazaar.

Before we left the airport, Hume, Peter and Judy met our guide and he called his colleague ... eventually they were on their way to Adana ... we said our goodbyes ... again!!

Our prayer and reflection time was a bit later than normal then we sat down to a set menu, not everyone enjoyed the meal, but, we can't complain about the food, there's been plenty of it and to spare.

It has been a relaxing day and perhaps we will need our strength for our busy program tomorrow.