Days 17 and 18 - At Sea and Kusadasi

Wednesday was our last day at sea on this voyage. Finally recovered from a nasty bug which Blake now has (as has the entire ship's population it seems). We had so many sea days at the beginning of the cruise during which we took full advantage of the lovely weather and all this lovely ship has to offer that now we don't feel like we need to do anything at all. Spent most of the day watching movies, out in the whirlpool, ordering room service and catching an evening show. All is good.

Our second to last stop was Kusadasi and we had a half day tour to Ephesus planned. Ephesus is a wonderful ancient Roman town in the Southwest coast of Turkey. The town was finally destroyed by earthquakes and mosquitos (malaria killed so much of the population) in the 3rd century AD but it was the city from which Christianity spread to the rest of the world. The most significant of the ruins include the famous Library of Celsus (not very different from the Treasury at Petra except that the Library was built of stone whereas the Treasury was carved from the rock), an amphitheatre, a smaller theatre called the Odeum, and the fantastic Terrace Houses. The Terrace Houses are a very recent discovery and excavation and restoration work is still ongoing on the six "townhouses"; each different from the others reflecting not only the importance and wealth, but also the taste of their owners. Beautiful frescoes and mosaics remain that provide the visitor with a vivid glimpse of how people lived and how they went about their lives and businesses.

 

We spent the afternoon walking around Kusadasi, getting a feel for this lovely seaside town full of restaurants, bars, caffes and all kinds of stores. Turkey's population is 90% muslim and although it feels very European, it is evident that women do not quite enjoy the type of freedom and public life men do. Nevertheless, Turkey is a vastly prosperous country, the only one in Europe which is totally self-sufficient when it comes to its agricultural and other food needs. It has a diversified economy and a land mass similar to two times California. We were in Istanbul a couple of years ago and it is an amazing place; Kusadasi is also great in a different way.

Seabourn had planned one of their signature events in the evening, a classical concert under the stars at Ephesus.  It was a really magical event elegantly set up and catered and for Seabourn guests only.  We had a lovely time listening to the Aegean Chamber Orchestra, sipping wine with the Roman amphitheater as the backdrop.  As we returned to the ship we were greeted by the entire crew and the band at a dockside welcome party where we handed hot chocolate with Baileys.  What a way to end the day!