Ephesus Day 1

In April we took the "fast ferry" from Istanbul to Bandirma, a town on the other side of the Marmara Sea. From there we drove 3 or 4 hours to the town of Selcuk, where we rented a house for a few days in order to visit the ruins of Ephesus, and surrounding environs. When we arrived, we explored the town, and specifically the ruins of St. Jeans (Johns) cathedral, where the apostle John and Mary (Mother of Jesus) supposedly finished out their mortal days. The ruins were beautiful, and the citadel situated behind the ruins made for a lovely backdrop and an even more beautiful sunset.

The citadel

Ruins of St. Jeans Cathedral

Jake and Josie pedestal hopping

The fam

Jakie

Above the cathedral

T-Bone

Walking to the Castle

Turkish Girls at Play

I really enjoyed watching these sweet girls at play. They were returning home from school and each had an umbrella. They walked up and down the path that led to the castle, laughing, giggling and playing with their umbrellas. Their play was simple and innocent and so enjoyable for them. It was apparent that they would spend a lot of their time after school in the great outdoors; no television or video games or anything of the kind. This is common to see in the villages, and Ryan and I have noted the simple objects the children find to entertain themselves; that day it was an umbrella, the next day, we watched children outside with balloons tied to the end of a stick, playing like that for a long time (as though they were kites). I have to ask myself, have we created a simple upbringing for our children, or one of excess and overstimulation? Hmmm...I'm thinking we could make a few improvements...