Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Wordless Wednesday: The Oldest Library I've Ever Been To

This is a part of Create-With-Joy's Wordless Wednesday, which is a blog hop of photographs.

3 1/2 years ago, I went on my first family vacation with my in-laws and we took a cruise of the Mediterranean.  We left from Rome's port, Civitavecchia, stopped in Messina, Sicilly, cruised on over to Athens, Greece, (Side bar1: I ran into a college ex-boyfriend on this cruise.  He was on his honeymoon. True story.) stopped in the port of Kushadasi, Turkey and lastly, hit up Heraklion, Crete.

It was while in Kushadasi (Side bar2: it's actually spelled Kusadasi, but the first s is pronounced sh. I also learned that Turkey is pronounced tour-key-yay.) that we took an excursion to the ruined city of Ephesus (EFF-eh-suss).  Ephesus was originally a port city.  It now lies several kilometers from the coast, thanks to plate tectonics.  It was an active city for the Greeks and Romans, but its claim to fame is that John of biblical/disciple fame lived there and the Virgin Mary died there.  The city was buried and abandoned, but archeologists are working to excavate it.  They predict that only 10% of the city has been excavated so far and it seems like a LOT, so this must have been a huge city.

Main road in Ephesus


We saw baths, a brothel, an amphitheater, wagon tracks, columns, Greek and Roman god statuary.  But the thing that wowed me most was a two-story library.  A library!  In that era!  It was beautiful and amazing.  So, without further ado, here is the Ephesus library:


and 


*hint: click on the images to make them bigger

29 comments:

  1. Awesome photos and story Sus. Can't believe you ran into an ex (seriously - what are the odds!)

    Have a fabulous week & thanks for joining us for WW at Create With Joy!

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    1. I know, right? It seems like it happens far too frequently. When I told my husband (they were sitting next to each other at the black jack table - what're those odds), he just sighed and said "of course".

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    2. and he was on his honeymoon?! that's even crazier...

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  2. Wow! These pictures are brilliant. It's amazing how much of it is still there after all that time. I always fancied going to Pompeii myself... Maybe one day. :-)

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    1. Thanks you. Yeah, it's amazing how great the architecture was that it's lasted this long.

      I've also been to Pompeii. It's amazing and haunting. I'll post picture of that trip another time...maybe next Wed!

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  3. Fab photos would love to visit there, amazing seeing your ex heheh!

    Have a fantabulosa week :-)

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    1. Thanks for stopping by. Definitely visit there if you get the chance.

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  4. Great photos!
    Stopping by from the WW blog hop, please link up! http://savegreenbeinggreen.blogspot.com/2013/01/wordless-wednesday-wilderness-waterparks.html

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  5. Loved the story and the photos. I've been as far as Greece. It is so beautiful there. Found you through Create with Joy http://georgielee.blogspot.com

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    1. Thanks! Greece is great, but when we were there is horrendously crowded and HOT. I'd like to go back and visit when there are less people and it's not 100 degrees out.

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  6. Looks like a great trip.

    http://joycelansky.blogspot.com/2013/01/wordless-wednesday-my-baby-is-twenty.html

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    1. It was a great trip. Thanks for stopping by.

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  7. Beautiful! I wanna go there someday - maybe in my next life!

    Happy WW!

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    1. Why wait for the next life - do it now! It was such an amazing place. I want everyone to go there.

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  8. Oh my word, how gorgeous.

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    1. Donna, it was breathtaking. And the people in Turkey are so very nice. I want to go back there. No, I need to go back there.

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  9. I remember when you went on this trip. I was so jealous. Actually, I'm jealous of almost all your travels, save for the Disney cruise with potential family t-shirt wearing. :-)

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    1. You have kids; I travel. Either way, we're both happy and can live vicariously through the other.

      And you totally want that t-shirt, don't lie. :)

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  10. Great photos. Looks like something out of Raiders of the Lost Arc.

    http://joycelansky.blogspot.com/2013/01/wordless-wednesday-my-baby-is-twenty.html

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    1. I think that's one of the reasons I like it so much - it reminds me of Petra, which is where they filmed the end of The Last Crusade.

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  11. Super pictures. That must have been some trip. (I hope you were looking your BEST when you ran into your ex...)

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    1. Thanks, it was an awesome trip. And if I remember correctly, I was looking pretty hot that night. LOL

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  12. Hi, Sus,

    These pics are gorgeous. There is something so breathtaking to view structures built thousands of years ago. The lines, space and view is all empowering.

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    1. Thanks, Michael! Yes, the buildings are breathtaking. I could look at them all day.

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