Istanbul and Ephesus

Semester at Sea’s arrival in Istanbul, Turkey dawned cold and rainy. Standing on the ship’s deck as the vessel moved into port meant that I could no longer deny that it is fall in many parts of the world. It was as if someone flicked a switch and turned fall on for Semester at Sea. We went from sweating at the Pyramids to shivering in the cold rain of Istanbul (I know everyone is feeling appropriately sorry for me), to taking refugee in the warm Starbucks, oh-so-conveniently located across the street from our dock. In addition to crisp, fall weather, also waiting for me in Istanbul was Pauletta, who had secured time off from Everyone’s Favorite Judge and fellow Wahoo, Justice Steele, to make the journey. (Everyone also knows that Roylene is really the person who reads my blog in that courthouse so I want to be sure to give credit where credit is due.) Pauletta is a good friend and Delawarean who owns the house where I reside in C’ville. Her extremely kind landlord ways (which make no financial sense for her whatsoever) make such things like Semester at Sea possible for me. My first visitor from home, we headed out to eat our way through Istanbul since the food warnings provided to us by the ship’s medical team in our logistical preport meetings were significantly reduced in Turkey. Tired of eating Pepto chalk, we lived on the edge and I gorged myself on salad (the ship has nothing on Arch’s salads) and delicious desserts, including a warm, molten chocolate soufflé the size of a small swimming pool. After a most enjoyable dive into the vat o’chocolate, we checked into our hotel, before confirming plans for our cruise up the Bosphorus the following day.

Since our visit to Turkey fell during the off-season, there was only one daily cruise up the Bosphorus, although in the summer there are numerous jaunts up the river. Despite the nippy weather, Pauletta, and two of friends of mine from the ship, Lara and Laura, decided that we had to see what all the hype was about riding up the Bosphorus strait from the Sea of Marmara to the Black Sea. (We are kept from actually venturing into the Black Sea by the Turkish military’s oversight of that channel, although they did make their military presence known on our cruise!)

Our ride stopped a six, quaint little piers along the way,

in addition to providing us views Dolmabahce Palace (a highly decorative Baroque palace that is a tribute to the Ottoman rule)

and the Fortresses of Europe (1452) and Asia (1396-7). Built fifty years apart, these fortresses were constructed in anticipation of invasions into Constantinople. At the end of the cruise “line,” we were able to grab lunch at this funky fishing village known as Anadolu Kavagi, where the Genoese Castle from the 1300s provided us with a beautiful view of the Black Sea.


Istanbul is a unique city in many ways, with a rich and varied cultural and religious history. Perhaps most famously, Istanbul is an enigma, straddling both Europe and Asia; the Bosphorus bridge, constructed in 1973, serving the first physical link between European and Asian straits. This is perhaps even cooler than keeping one foot in Delaware and the other foot into Pennsylvania. You be the judge!
After another dinner of delicious salad and fruit juices, (I never thought I could be so excited about lettuce!) Pauletta and I hit the bus station for our 11 PM departure to Ephesus. After two bus transfers, a breakfast of white bread and your choice of olives, butter, or jam, and nine hours, we arrived in Ephesus. The hotel/rug shop Pauletta where Pauletta had made our reservations was so charming in its décor. (By the way, the Turkish are famous for their rugs and somewhat infamous for pressuring tourists to buy said rugs; our inn keeper was no such pressure salesman.) The friendly owner of Hotel Bella (www.hotelbella.com) advised us to take naps before heading to the Grotto of the Seven Sleepers, a Byzantine-era tomb. Legend has it that this necropolis is the final resting place of seven Christians who fled to the caves to escape religious persecution, only to be sealed into the cave for two hundred years under the orders of their persecutor. Just down from the grotto, we enjoyed a delicious lunch of savory vegetarian crepes and chocolate banana crepes, positioned on floor cushions at a very traditional restaurant while American hip-hop music reverberated against the walls.

Like the chocolate and bananas, it was a pleasing experience mixing two very different parts of life—ancient civilization with modern hip-hop. I think the ancient Romans would have approved.
Tummies hanging out, we pressed on and headed to Ephesus’s biggest tourist attraction, the ancient ruins. Despite the coolness of Istanbul, we were able to walk around this ancient city, known as the best-preserved classical city in the eastern Mediterranean region, without jackets. First established as a Greek urban center in 1000 BC, Ephesus became well-known as the hub for the worship of Cybele, the Anatolian fertility goddess. The ruins we visted came later, from a 4th century Roman city, established by the Roman general Lysinachus, Alexander the Great’s successor, whose Roman rule helped make the city the number one port on the Aegean.

Although silt buildup led to Ephesus’s decline in prominence as a port center, this urban area is still known for hosting two councils of the early Christian church in AD 431 and 449.

Many believe that the Virgin Mary spent the days before her death in the area and that St John the Evangelist cared for her there.

Incredibly, only 20% of the city is believed to be excavated, but we still needed the entire afternoon to wonder through the city’s ruins. Particularly impressive was the Gymnasium of Vedius complete with pools, toilets, exercise rooms, and baths (the model for the modern ACAC, Sarah????);

the theater with the capacity for 25,000 persons, painstakingly cut into the side of Mt Pion during the Hellenstic period and later renovated by the Romans, still used occasionally for performances today;

and the Gate of Hercules, believed to date to 4th century AD and marking the entrance to Curetes Street, well known for its statues of civic leaders.

My absolute favorite part of the ruins was the Library of Celsus, though injured by the Goths and later, by an earthquake in 1000, was restored to its splendor.

The Curry School has nothing on this library! Beautiful replicas of the original statues of Sophia (wisdom), Ennoia (intellect), Arete (virtue), and Episteme (knowledge) are in nestled into the building’s front; the real statues are in Vienna as the Austrian Archaeological Institute was responsible for the library’s restoration.

This early bibliotheca, constructed by Celsus Polemaenus’s son in memoriam of this Roman governor’s death in 114, held 12,000 tomes with a one meter gap between the inner and outer library walls to protect the books from heat and humidity.

Once again, I was all set to finish the dissertation under the watchful eyes of Sophia, when I was pulled away for dinner and rest at our hotel.
After visits to rainy Selcuk, the Ephesus Museum, the remains of the Ephesus Byzatine church, and the Basilica of St John, believed to contain the tomb of St. John, we headed back on our bus to Istanbul.

On our last day there, we visited one of Istanbul’s main tourist attractions.

The Blue Mosque derives its name from the tens of thousands of blue Isnik tiles covering the mosque’s interior. This architectural wonder, known as the most famous religious building in the world, was created under the orders of Sultan Ahmet between the years of 1609-16. The mosque’s multiple domes and semidomes are adorned with beautiful painted mosaics, and while the original Venetian colorful stained glass windows are long gone, the replacement glass covering the mosque’s 260 windows allow for magnificent lighting in the mosque’s central prayer space. The mosque’s creation was controversial because of its six minarets, viewed by many as a blasphemous attempt to rival Mecca’s architecture.
A trip to Istanbul wouldn’t be complete without a visit to Aya Sofya, (aka Sancta Sophia for you Latin scholars out there) Istanbul’s most well-known monument. Completed in 537 under the orders of Emperor Justinian to restore the splendor of the Roman Empire, it was known as the highest Christian church until it was converted into a mosque by Mehmet the Conqueror in 1453; in 1935 Ataturk declared it a museum. The Christian mosaics in the upper level of the museum were really exquisite in their colors, but just stepping into the interior of the huge dome with its intricate and ornate interior was completely awe-inspiring.


Truly, a must-see!
Low on funds and slightly fatigued from sight seeing, I decided not to pay the ten New Turkish lira required for entry into the Basilica Cistern, but Pauletta would have none of it. A visit to the cistern had come highly recommended to her from a friend who made her way on a previous visit so there was no arguing. Although a third of this aqueduct system was bricked up in the 1800s, touring the underground water cistern was absolutely worth the trip. Dimly lit with classical music permeating its walkways, its architectural strength derived from its 336 columns, each over eight meters high, this network of underground tunnels was created under Justinian in 532. The Ottomans did not even realize its existence until a century after they’d captured Istanbul. My favorite part of the self-guided tour, besides watching the huge fish (large in number and in size calling the aqueduct home) were the two columns resting on stone Medusa heads, one upside down, the other turned on its side. Supposedly, these bases are a result of the Byzantines thievery of previous moments and are considered a memorial to water nymphs. They were really just so cool. For those of you who have lived with me, think of my hair when I first get up in the morning for an apt visual.

Purchasing blue “eye” charms as is Turkish custom to ward off evil spirits, and going back to the ship with every cent spent, as is Alexis’s custom, Pauletta and said our goodbyes and drank Starbucks one more time in celebration of her birthday. Happy Birthday, Pauletta!