Turkey Tour - Part 1

After a enlightening introduction to Turkey (a 4 day stay in Istanbul) we joined a 12 day Trafalgar coach tour around western and central Turkey as indicated on the map.

"Best of Turkey" Tour itinerary

Our tour included visits to many significant cultural and historical locations from Gallipoli on the east of the Dardanelles across to Cappadocia in eastern Turkey.

Gallipoli Peninsular

Like so many Aussie and Kiwi visitors before us our Gallipoli visit left a lasting impression. Somewhat ironically (and appropriately) the roadworks above the beach (yes we thought they would have been completed as well) meant we had to leave the coach and walk the last 500 metres to Ari Burnu Cemetery and the Anzac Commemorative Site. Some walked along the beach from Ari Burnu and were able to contemplate the awful scramble by the ANZAC diggers over those same pebbles and coarse sand under a barrage of gunfire from Turkish troops up on Gaba Tepe and Walkers Ridge. 

North Beach and the Anzac Commemorative Site

The easily recognisable and imposing bluff above Anzac Cove known as "The Sphinx" overlooks the site of the site where the ANZACs  battled with determined Turkish resistance and attempts to drive them back into the sea.

The Sphinx

Towards the end of the time we had to explore the landing sites, many of the Aussies in our tour group gathered for a short commemorative ceremony under of one of the large shady trees in the Ari Burnu Cemetery. The observance commencing with God Defend New Zealand (in recognition that there were no Kiwi representatives amongst us), the reading of some poems including For the Fallen (by Laurence Binyon) and concluding with the Last Post. A single poppy flower was placed under the tree. 

Ari Burnu Cemetery

Troy

The "city" of Troy was made famous in Homer’s epic poem, the Iliad). Now a UNESCO World Heritage and archaeological site, the remains of Hisarlik (and believed to be those of Troy) were destroyed and rebuilt nine times over, and each of nine different layers still has something left to this day, although amateurish archaeological excavations of late 1800s damaged some of them a lot more than others. 

Archaeological plan of the Hisarlik citadel

Current archaeological excavation

Layers of history at Troy

Ephesus

Dating back to Neolithic Age (about 6000 BC) Ephesus was once the trade centre of the ancient world and subsequently a major Greek then Roman city. Later it became a religious centre of early Christianity and today, Ephesus is now an important tourism site in Turkey.

Visitors to Ephesus

 Ephesus contains the largest collection of Roman ruins in the eastern Mediterranean. The colossal ruins that we saw and photographed helped appreciate the city's original size and splendour.

Map of Ephesus

In the 1st century AD, one notable visitor the Apostle Paul spent over three years in Ephesus preaching the Gospel. According to tradition, he delivered a sermon condemning pagan worship in the Great Theatre.

The Great Theatre of Ephesus

Ephesus was eventually completely abandoned in the 15th century and in 1863 a British railway engineer, J.T. Wood directed the first archaeological investigations under the auspices of the British Museum. The Austrian Archaeological Institute took over in 1895 and research and restoration has continued uninterrupted since 1954.

Ongoing archaeological investigation and restoration

In recent years, new perspective informs the project. The primary objective is no longer to focus on the excavation of further buildings and public spaces, but more on the care and preservation of the buildings that have already been discovered. In the course of the excavations, which have now lasted over a century, only ten percent of the ancient city of Ephesus has been unearthed.

Tower crane at theatre restoration site

Celsius Library

Marble Road

By now we were gaining new insights into the complexity and detail involved in the professions of archaeology and ancient history. What really makes things complicated is the recycling of the building materials and foundations of the previous structures from one age / race empire to the next.

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Part 2 of the Turkey Tour will follow very shortly. In the meantime please keep sending in your comments and questions.

Just click on the word "comments" below. You can just select "Comment as: Anonymous" if that's easiest but sign off with your name (so we know that you posted the comment).

If you were wondering where on earth we've been so far or where we're going next there's a separate "blog" site set up just to follow the path (on a map) of our adventure. There's a link at the bottom of the page called TravelPod Blog (for detailed route map).


Also if you haven't read all the stories yet you might find the Blog Archive (also down the bottom of the page) an easy way to choose the post/s that you haven't caught up with yet.  

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That's all for now BUT before you leave -

Have you read the previous post titled " Istanbul " yet?

(click on the link to take you there)