Turkey

"The land of the beautiful horses". Those who settled here in the past carved their homes
and storehouses into the stone, retiring there in the cold winter and in times of strife.

The geological formation of Cappodocia is a natural wonder of the world and results from two contradicting natural forces.
1) Volcanic outspurts of the region which lead to its coverage with lava, ashes, tuff, and volcanic residue forming shapley hills and valleys. 2) The territorial erosion caused by the winds, rivers and rains. Along with its extreme temperature changes.

Fairey Chimneys

"Fairey Chimneys" are another result of the rains and erosions of the 4th Geological Time. Some reach heights of 131 ft. They are conical in shape, and have a "hat" of basalt over them. Erosion thins out the neck underneath the "hat" which eventually falls off the cone. This phenomenon takes place continually even today and the very old chimneys get replaced by the younger ones.

The villagers, eager to escape the invaders, tunneled deep into the soft, easily carved stone of the plains, creating the underground cities of Kaymakli, Derinkuyu and Ozkonak, just to name a few. Located on the major crossroads of Asia Minor, armies marched the same roads as the traders, and on occassion the Cappadocians found it necesary to round up their food and cattle and seek shelter underground. Kaymakli spreads over 2,5 square kilometers, has 600 rooms, 7-8 floors and probably sheltered around 3,000 persons for about 2 weeks.

According to old legends, Ephesus was founded by female warriors known as Amazons. The name of the city is thought to have been derived from "Apasas", the name of a city in the "Kingdom of Arzawa" meaning the "city of the Mother Goddess".

The street of Curetes leading to the Library
of Celsus.

The Library of Celsus dates back to 117 AD. The accademics of the age would meet here to pore over the great collection of papyrus scrolls or, as rumor suggests, sneek through the secret tunnel that lead to the brothel across the street.

This advertisment found on Marble
Way shows the way to the House
of Love. The inscription of a woman, a heart, and a foot, is said to suggest
that if a man's foot is not of that size
he is not welcome inside the brothel.

The Theatre was built againt the slope of Mt. Pion around 50 AD under Emperor Claudius. It seats 25,000 persons and is 100 ft high. It was the largest theatre in the Aegean World.

It comes to life every May during the Ephesus Festival for concerts and performances.

The Temple of Hadrian dates back to the 2nd century AD. The front arch has the face of Tyche, the Goddess of Fortune, and the interior arch has Medusa, whose role was to protect the temple by turning vandals and miscreants to stone.

The Fountain of Trajan, erected in the 1st Century AD, had two stories decorated with twelve statues of Venus, Starun, Dionysus, and members of the Royal Family. The main statue showed the Emperor Trajan with his foot resting on the world, which was in the shape of a globe, proving that the Ancient Romans knew the true shape of the world even back in the 1st Century AD.

Fountain of Trajan

The Monument of Memnius was built in
the memory of soldier Memmius, the son
of Caius in the 1st century AD.

Toilets for Members Only

This L-shaped marble bench that consists of 46 holes once served as a restroom for the upper class. The latrines were built in order to obtain the uric acid used in tanning sheep and goatskins in the tanneries.

Nike - Goddess of Victory
"Just Do It"

Mercury
Messenger of the gods

Pamukkale, meaning “cotton castle”, is also the site of the ancient city of Hierapolis. A magical and spectacular natural site, unique in the world. The hot springs have been used since Roman times for their therapeutic powers.

Pamukkale was formed when a spring with a high content of dissolved calcium bicarbonate cascaded over the edge of the cliff, which cooled and hardened creating fantastic formations of stalactites, cataracts and basins. This formed into natural pools, shelves and ridges.

Hierapolis was established by King Eumenes II and was given the name of "Hiera" in the honour of the wife of Telephos, the legendary establisher of the ancient Pergamum. The city was destroyed completely by an earthquake in 17AD, in the reign of Tiberious. The reconstruction of Hierapolis was started in 60 AD, during the reign of Nero.

There are various types of sarcophagi, layers of mausoleums designed as houses for the dead, and remarkable examples of the stone cylindrical drum tumuli employed during Hellenistic times.

Aphrodisias was named after Aphrodite, the Greek Goddess of Love. It is one of the largest and best-preserved archaeological sites in Turkey. It is filled with marble baths, temples, and theaters. It blossomed under Rome, by exporting marble from its quarries and producing magnificient works from the Aphrodisian Sculptors.

This Greco-Roman Stadium dates back to
4th century AD. It is the largest and best preserved and was initially used for gladiator games. It measures 859 ft. x 194 ft and can seat 30,000 persons.

Temple of Aphrodite
was built in the 1st century BC

Tetrapylon - One of the most attractive features of Aphrodisias is the ornamental gate constructed in the middle of the 2nd century.

Mevlana, also known as Rumi, was a philosopher and mystic of Islam, but not a Moslem of the orthodox type. His doctrine advocates unlimited tolerance, positive reasoning, goodness, charity, and awareness through love.

The" Whirling Dervish" or Sema ceremony represents a mystical journey of man's spiritual ascent through mind and love to "Perfect". Turning towards the truth, his growth through love, desert his ego, find the truth and arrive to the "Perfect", then he returns from the spiritual journey as a man who reached maturity and a greater perfection, so as to love and to be of service to the whole of creation without discrimination of beliefs, races, classes and nations. More...

We stopped off at a nearby school in Aksaray, to join the children in a moment of silence. On November 10, people all over Turkey remember AttaTurk - Turkeys first President elected back in 1923. AttaTurk died at 9:05 am on 1938.