Walk in the footsteps of the Romans and experience a Roman W/C (Ephesus)

Member Name: lm09

Product:	Ephesus
Date:	18/03/09 (83 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: The Celsus Library is in amazing condtion and makes for great photographs

Disadvantages: Can get very crowded and the summer sun can make this a slog

I visited Ephesus in May 2008 as part of a circular trip starting in Antalaya, Pamukkale, Bodrum and Perge. Of all the sights of Turkey I have visited (having not yet been to Istanbul) Ephesus is, for me, the one that stands out.

Before reaching the Roman site of Ephesus I first went through Selcuk which is two miles to the west of the sight. Selcuk has a couple of notable tourists attractions itself. I was specifically here to visit the ancient Basilica of St John which stands on top of the hill to the north of Selcuk. It is from this hilltop that St. John is said to have written his gospel and the Basilica was once one of the great pilgrimage sites. Now damaged by numerous Turkish earthquakes much of it lies in ruin. However, some parts, notably the Christening cross, are still in suprisingly good condition.

I spent a good hour walking over this massive site and taking photographs in the beautiful late spring sun. Situated, as it is, on Ayasuluk hill, this offers great views over the stork packed rooftops of Selcuk as well as views of the Temple of Artemis. For those of you who are not pub quiz champions this temple is one of the Seven Wonders of the World. All that remians now though is one solitary standing pillar and various piles of stones. If you are a Seven Wonders traveller and can only make it to six having never seen the other six I would be confident in saying that this would be the one to miss.

I took a photograph of the pillar and have spent my time since trying to convince friends that this really is classified as one of the seven wonders! Note that the guide book I had with me said, and lets hold onto this, "In it's prime it (the temple) was larger than the Parthenon at Athens", so there you go!

The town of Selcuk itself has a really nice feel to it. It is used to tourists en route to the great sight of Ephesus and has just about anything you would need in terms of eating options and shops. The city roof tops are dotted with massive stork nests and the huge birds themselves. Being such a relaxed town I took a look around the Isa Bey Camii mosque(remembering to remove my shoes). This was fansinating for me to see inside somewhere that feels off limits in everyday life.

So onto Ephesus itself then. Ephesus or Efes in Turkish. Ephesus began its history as a Ancient Greek settlement. If was chosen as a sight, according to Greek legend, by King Cordus of Athens. Wanting to know where best to build his new temple (Artemis) he consulted the Greek oracles which advised him to build his city where indicated by the fish and the boar. Well as Greek legend has it Greek explorers were cooking their dinner of fish when one of them jumped out of the pan taking with it a hot ember which lit the scrub. The fire caused a wild boar to shoot out and the great Temple of Artemis was built, the city of Ephesus was subsequently built to be close to this temple.

The city of Ephesus dates from around 600BC. At this time the Aegean sea came further in and Ephesus was probably a large fishing port. After the first temple of Artemis was destroyed it was Alexander the great who paid for the re-build as it is said he spent a considerable amount of time in Ephesus. The city around this time prospered as did the Greek empire. That was until the Roman empire swept through and left their mark on it.
Entrance to the sight costs 40 Turkish Lira (about £5 at the time of my visit however the Turksih Lira is doing worse than the pound at the minute). Tip for you - if you can, arrange to be dropped at one end of the site and picked up at the other. If you get dropped at the Southern end of the site you have a nice downhill walk through the site. If you get dropped at the other end obviously this becomes an uphill slog. Its up to you, but in the heat I know which one I prefer!

From the Southern end, the first sights you will see are the ruins of the bath house, the Odeum and the temple of Hestia Boulea. Having been to the Forum in Rome, these initial sights left me un-inspired to be honest. The real breath taking sights don't start until you reach the Sacred Way. The ruins here, of the wealth houses and temples of the former Ephesus residents are in really good conditions.

In one section you are able to sit on (but its probably best not to use) some ancient Roman toliets. Almost perfectly preserved, this part of the sight needs no great leaps of imagination to picture what ancient Romans did here.

The greatest site of Ephesus however, has to be the Great Library of Celsus. Built in around 200BC the remains of this library are un-believable. To have survived so long in an eartquake prone area is amazing. Celsus, whom the library is named after, was the Roman Governor of the Asian minor and his body was buried under the library. This bulding is in better state of repair than much of the Forum of Rome and is easy to photograph beautifully. The level of detail of the statues is amazing. This is a true wonder of the world. Next door to the library is the Agora or Roman market, a masive buidling and also in very good condition despite dating back to the 3rd century BC.

To finish the tour of the site you need to climb up the steps of the Roman theatre (again in amazing condition). Capable of holding 25,000 people, this is like a small version of the Colossium. The view from the top out over Western turkey is absolutly stunning.

I enjoyed my visit to Ephesus and for the small entrance fee this really is a good value trip. Seeing the great library of Ephesis in the stone, as it were, was something on my to-do list. It looks every bit as stunning in real life as all the pictures and reading material show it. The whole sight takes about three hours to negotiate and appreciate. If you are planning a trip to Western Turkey or even a package tour to Bodrum, Ephesis should definitely be on your itinery of places to go.

Summary: For any trip to Turkey make sure you visit Selcuk and Ephesus