Bayram Vacation, Part 5: Ephesus

(Read Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, & Part 4.)

Another exceptionally cool thing about the resort we were staying at is that it was only 10 minutes away from the site of ancient Ephesus by public transportation. It was so amazing to see this historic, beautiful, biblical site! We were very happy that Elias gets to say he got to go there, even if he probably won't remember it.

Justin and Elias in front of the Great Amphitheater

Elias and me inside the Great Amphitheater (See Acts 19 for one thing that happened there!)

We went fairly early in the morning (for Turkey, at least), but we were surprised how many people were already there. This is obviously a destination for tour groups, and it's easy to see why. This place was cool.

The Temple of Hadrian

Elias and me in front of the Library of Celsus.

Looking down on the commercial market

Elias and Justin in front of the fountain outside the Amphitheater

An unexpected thing about Ephesus was that it was absolutely full of stray cats! (Most places in Turkey have too many stray dogs for there to be many cats about.) Elias, of course, adores cats, so this was definitely his favorite part.

Elias trying to climb onto a ledge to visit a kitty inside the Library of Celsus.

At one point, I put my backpack down to get some water out, and I was immediately accosted by a meowing cat who tried to get in my backpack! This seemed like strange behavior until we later saw this man who was carrying around a bag of food and feeding the cats. When I put my bag down, the cat must've thought I was him!

  

Justin had been to Ephesus in 2009 but was glad to take his family this time. We didn't get to hit Selçuk to see the Church of John, House of Mary, or the Ephesus museum, so perhaps another time.