We left the ship to go on our Tour in Turkey. I was amazed at the huge population of over 80 million people living in Turkey, with the country size not much bigger than Texas in the USA. We were in Izmir and I can tell you it is big time over crowded and the traffic is like nothing we have ever seen in Canada . The streets are narrow so buses and cars often have problems passing and turning causing conflict.
Our tour in Greece took us to the House of the Virgin Mary and Ephesus. There are lots of people visiting these sites so always expect it to be crowded and in some locations, long line-ups. Again, this is a hot location so bring water and a hat or an umbrella.
We were able to walk through the House of the Virgin Mary, but no photo's are allowed to be taken. As you leave the house, if you leave a donation, you can take 2 candles to light. As well, very unique, there is a long wall where it is said if you write your wish on a tissue and tie it and attach it to the wall, your wish will come true. As you will see in a photo below, many people practice this tradition.
The magnificent ruins of Ephesus are from the 4th century, BC. It is an interesting and extensive ancient city. There were ruins/remains from the Rome period, the Grand Theater, the Library of Celsus, the Temple of Hadrian, the Scholastic Baths, the Odeon, and the Agora.
Following the tour we went to a typical Turkish village to see how Turkish carpets are made. It is very long hard work for the ladies that do it day in and day out. Some of the rugs, the very large detailed ones, can take up to 3 years to finish. It was very interesting to see how silk is made from the silk worm cocoons.
At the Turkish Village I took a photo of what we believe to be a type of Scarb Beetle. They are quite big. A couple of people told me they had not seen one this colour before. Anyone know what type it is?
Like any tour, you end up at the tourist shops at the end. This time Neil found a sign that was post that made us laugh....see below.
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