Turkey 2005

How the Mighty are Fallen | 28 May 2005

We arrived at Ismir airport on Friday evening and after my valiant attempts to conquer the Turkish train system, admitted defeat and took a taxi to Selcuk and our hotel.

The main purpose of visiting was to see Ephesus, the best-preserved Roman city in the world according to some. Despite the trials of hundreds of tour groups, even more school children and torrential rain, we wandered and wondered happily round the ruins for several hours. It was disappointing not to see the most recent excavations (spot the archaeologist…) but we sat at the top of the splendid theatre, imagining it full of toga'd citizens rather than screaming children...

The day ended with a visit to the Temple of Artemis, once a Wonder of the Ancient World. This was a particularly elegiac experience, for this once mighty temple is now a marshy bog, just one marble column standing and the rest submerged beneath greenish water. Stalks nest atop the column, and hawkers camp in the car park.

Locations Visited: Izmir

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