Ephesus (Efes)

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From Istanbul we flew to Izmır, a 1 hour flight as opposed to a 12 hour bus journey, this was to be a difficult choice... At the airport we hired a car where Will did an exceptional job of driving us south to Selçuk. It was quite exciting to be let loose on foreign roads without a decent road map! An hour or so drive and we arrived, found some good accommodation with lovely people and proceeded to Ephesus for the afternoon. Ephesus, also know as Efes has been around since 5000BC. It is assumed that it was inhabited by the Ions first of all, the Kimmers, Lydians, the Persians and then the Romans. It is the Roman city we see today which dates from 300BC.
I found it fascinating wanderıng through the ruins. A library is present, churches, a brothel and even the communal loos! I think the most impressive was the Theatre, it could hold up to 25,000 people. It was easy to spend hours exploring the cıty, just trying to imagine what it was like so long ago.

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Photos

The Theatre
This theatre used to hold up to 25,000 people.

Looking down
The acoustics were amazing, we could hear everything that was said from the people down below!

The main road
This was once shadowed by statues lining the left and the right.

Restoration
If you look closely on the arch, you can see the cracks where it shattered and has now been put back.