Blogs from Selçuk, Aegean, Turkey, Middle East - page 2

Day started with good Turkish breakfast ..at 9:00 met guide, Seda, for short ride to Ephesus. One of the best preserved classic cities in the Mediterranean . Ephesus was once ancient Ionia where colonists from Greece arrived around 1000 BC. It was not until the Romans took the city in 129 BC that the city flourished and became the main port on the Agean Sea.. The city's importance as a commercial center declined as the Harbour was slowly silted up by the river. Ephesus played an important role in the spread of Christianity. It is believed that the Virgin Mary spent her last days nearby and that St. John the Evangelist came to look after her. St. Paul also visited Ephesus and later wrote his letter back to the Ephesians after his exhile. Upon leaving Ephesus ... read more

It was raining cats and dogs today in Istanbul. No worry....it is first really rainy day of our journey and a travel day . Taxi to Ataturk airport to catch Turkish Air flyte to Iznik. Plane delayed a while before departing ....easy flyte. We really like Turkish Air..... More leg room and nice snacks. King tried to trade us his eggplant salad for our chocolate mousse! We traveling Grami's are much to smart to fall for that one. As planned, a driver from our hotel in Selcuk was waiting outside of baggage claim .....drove us to Selcuk to the Kalehan Hotel .... A really lovely place where once checked in were offered tea and a cookie. The inn Keeper/ head Maître De also bussed us through beautiful rose gardens to our comfy, clean room. We freshened ... read more

On est allé à la vielle ville de Ephesus. C'était 5 minutes loin du village où on restait. C'est ville est une femme, avec le temple de Artemis et Hestes, en plus on pense que la maison de la vierge Mary est sur un colline à côté de la ville. Les Romans a mis un bain juste en avant de l'entrée pourque tout le monde a un bain avant d'entre dans la ville. Ibo a expliqué les choses sur les bain. On a vu les colonnes et les statues. Il y a une place pour les assémblées, un petit chamber à un côté où il fait leur décisions. On a vu les temples de Artemis et Hestes. On a payé un peu plus pour voir les planches mosaics c'est encroyables tous les differents motifs et dessins ... read more

Mad dogs and Englishmen, or perhaps it should be the other way round...... mad Englishmen and bloody wild dogs! As I continue on my route through Turkey the temperature is hotting up and I am regularly experiencing temperatures in the high 30s. I have hence had to adopt my routine a little and now rise at 4.45 in the morning for a 5.30 am start on the road, usually finishing no later than 1.30 pm in the afternoon. From predominantly riding on flat roads throughout Europe, I am now having to regularly get out of my saddle to scale the hills on the coastline. I know I have much worst to come when I start heading inland, but hopefully the heat will be less stifling when I gain some altitude. Istanbul was my first major milestone ... read more

Lahol som uz o 20/00, pred tym som si ale este dal medicinu v podobe coldrexu. V noci som nemohl spat,stale na mna utocil komar. Na izbe bola riadna zima (mozno ani nie,mozno som mal horucku),spal som v ponozkach a natelniku,riadne zababuseny. Rano behnutie na dalsie vydatne ranajky,fakt klobuk dole pred turkami. Cakali ma svedske stoly s mega vyberom roznych druhov syrov a oliv. Najlepsi bol korenisty syr .Nalial som do seba 2 silnejsie caje (3/4 caj,1/4 voda), k tomu 6 sendvicov. Skoda ale ,ze nebola v ponuke nutela. Po jedle klasika, zbalenie sa, odovzdanie klucu a smer dolmus. Na mini namesticku ma hned odchytil clovek z cestovky nech si idem k nim kupit priamy listok do Selcuku. To som samozrejme odmietol,chlapik teda aspon poradil, ze sa nemusim trepat na bus stanicu (5.min chodze) ale dolmus ... read more