Day 9 - Ephesus
We just came back from Ephesus, a five minute cab ride away from Selçuk. Ephesus is the best preserved Roman city in eastern Mediterranean. It was a sunny day. By 10 AM, it got really warm. Neither of us could keep the long sleeve on. Since it is Saturday today, there are lots of locals also visiting especially groups of children.
The most impressive sight was the Library of Celsus. It was built in 2nd century AD by Celcus Polemaeanus, the Roman governor of Asia Minor. The library was built between other complexes. In order to make it appear larger than reality, the central columns are larger than those at the end. The niches on the façade hold statues of the virtues: Arete (Goodness), Ennoıa (Thought), Epizteme (Knowledge), and Sophia (Wisdom). The library reminded us a little bit of the Treasury in Petra.
For an extra charge, we visited the Terraced House. The house was built on the hill and stood three storeys. There were elaborate mosaic on the floor and frescos on the wall, some of which perfectly preserved. It was the residence of Roman officials. The size of the living units, courtyards and complexity of the multiple bath houses inside all showed the kind of luxurious life the wealthy Romans led thousands of years ago.
After Ephesus, we returned to Rumeli, a local restaurant we found yesterday and had Turkish pizza for lunch. Julee had the brain and tongue soup and I had the mushroom soup. I tried a spoonful of Julee's soup. The brain was white and a little chewy while the tongue was dark red and slippery. The mushroom soup was delicious especially after a few drops of lemon juice. Pide is the Turkish pizza with finely grounded beef and spices topping. It was in the shape of an elongated American football. The pita bread curled up at the edge, making the crust thicker. Julee had lamacun, a thin crust pizza with the same topping.
The most impressive sight was the Library of Celsus. It was built in 2nd century AD by Celcus Polemaeanus, the Roman governor of Asia Minor. The library was built between other complexes. In order to make it appear larger than reality, the central columns are larger than those at the end. The niches on the façade hold statues of the virtues: Arete (Goodness), Ennoıa (Thought), Epizteme (Knowledge), and Sophia (Wisdom). The library reminded us a little bit of the Treasury in Petra.
For an extra charge, we visited the Terraced House. The house was built on the hill and stood three storeys. There were elaborate mosaic on the floor and frescos on the wall, some of which perfectly preserved. It was the residence of Roman officials. The size of the living units, courtyards and complexity of the multiple bath houses inside all showed the kind of luxurious life the wealthy Romans led thousands of years ago.
After Ephesus, we returned to Rumeli, a local restaurant we found yesterday and had Turkish pizza for lunch. Julee had the brain and tongue soup and I had the mushroom soup. I tried a spoonful of Julee's soup. The brain was white and a little chewy while the tongue was dark red and slippery. The mushroom soup was delicious especially after a few drops of lemon juice. Pide is the Turkish pizza with finely grounded beef and spices topping. It was in the shape of an elongated American football. The pita bread curled up at the edge, making the crust thicker. Julee had lamacun, a thin crust pizza with the same topping.
posted by Koshka at 5/17/2008
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