Didyma (Δίδυμα)

Didyma (Greek: Δίδυμα) was an ancient Ionian sanctuary. Although it predates the Greek Ionian colonization, the sanctuary from Didyma was famous in the Hellenistic world for the temple and oracle of Apollo - the Didymaion, being the most significant sanctuary of this kind after the oracle of Delphi. Didyma lies about 17 km from Miletus and was connected to the Hellenistic city by the Sacred Way. "Didyma" can be translated in Greek by "twin", referring to the twin gods - Apollo and Artemis (the Temple of Artemis was in the nearby city of Ephesus, while the much more important Temple of Apollo was in Didyma).

Part of the classical Miletus, Didyma shared much of the town's rich history and destruction, being rebuilt during the time of Alexander the Great.

Nowadays the temple can be found in the middle of the modern town of Didim. The town is a peaceful place, but the archaeological site can get rather crowded sometimes due to its small size (so for more tranquility I'd recommend visiting Miletus). Much more information about the archaeological site and temple of Apollo can be found on didyma.com or sacred-destinations.com.

The location on the map is here and some of my personal photos follow.

Miletus (Μίλητος)

Miletus/Miletos (Ancient Greek: Μίλητος, Milētos; Latin: Miletus) is probably the most famous city of the Ionian League. It was an important Ionian center of arts, science and culture, the place where first known philosopher and mathematician lived - Thales of Miletus, and the Greek metropolis with the most founded colonies.

Although in antiquity the city possessed a harbor at the southern entry of a large bay, on which two more of the traditional twelve Ionian cities stood: Priene and Myus, over the centuries the gulf silted up with alluvium carried by the Meander River, so that by the Christian era Miletus became an inland town too. A great map of the Miletus Bay silting evolution can be found on Wikipedia:

Miletus has a very rich history, with the first archaeological findings dating back to the Neolithic. It was a flourishing city, being destroyed and reconstructed several times and continued to be populated until the Ottoman Empire abandoned it because of the definitive silting. More details of the ancient history of this great city can be found here.

Nowadays, one can visit among the ruins places such as:
- The Miletus Museum
- The Delphinion (Apollon Delphinion)
- The Temple of Athena
- The Baths of Faustina
- The Bazaar
- The Theatre
- The Stadium
- The Bouleterion
- The Capito Bath
- The Ceremonial Road
- The Grain Hall
- Kalabak Hill
- The Michael Church And The Temple of Dionysos
- The Hellenistic Heroon
- The Roman Heroon
- The Ionic Stoa on the Sacred Way
- The Mosque of Ilyas Bey
- The Monument of the Big Port
- The Mycenaen Settlement
- The North, West and South Agoras
- The Nymphaeum
- The Synagog
with details on each here and here.

Much more information can be found on ime.gr and Wikipedia

The location on the map is here, and below some of my photos:

Priene (Πριήνη)

Not too far south from Ephesus, one can find another ancient city of Ionia - Priene. It is situated inland on a high ground, although it was originally a port city. Because of the continuous silting caused by the Meander River that blocked the city's access to the sea, around 350 BC the citizens built the city on the current location.

Some of the main interest point inside the archaeological site are: The Upper Gymnasium, The Prytaneion, The Byzantine church, The Sacred House, The Fountain, The Provision market, Ionic Temple of Zeus, The Byzantine castle. A nice map of the archaeological site can be found here. I bet the Acropolis gives you a splendid view of the surroundings, but getting there might need some more time (than the one I had for example :( ).

One more thing I would like to mention - depending on the day of the week, one may visit Priene (as Miletus for that matter) in a quiet atmosphere, where no (or very few) touristic group tours are organized. In my opinion this is the best way, when you can enjoy the tranquility of the ruins. 

More information can be found on Wikipedia and Priene.net.

Ephesus (Efes) - Selçuk

Ephesus (Efes/ Ἔφεσος) was one of the most important cities in ancient Anatolia (Asia Minor), which makes it nowadays one of the most important touristic attractions (especially for travelers on Mediterranean cruises). There would be (too) much to say about it and its (partially debated) history. There are plenty of resources regarding Ephesus but for more details you could have a look on Wikipedia or visit www.Ephesus.us. For some very interesting information you should also check sacred-destinations.com.

Nowadays Ephesus is by far the most visited place in the area (a little too crowded for my taste - and I went there at the end of spring) and is constantly being restored. But a visit to Ephesus should mean the entire area nearby Selçuk town, not only the Ephesus ancient ruins outside of Selçuk, since the Ephesus town extended during different historical periods to different areas closeby.

I'll start though with photos from the House of Virgin Mary, a pilgrimage place for Christians situated on the top of the "Bulbul" mountain, a few km from Ephesus. It is said to be the place where Virgin Mary may have spent her last days. She may have come in the area together with Saint John, who spent several years in the area to spread Christianity. The Mass is held here every Sunday.

Coming down the mountain one can reach the entrance to the actual Ephesus site. There's plenty too see here, so make sure you are not in a hurry. Just to mention some of the main archaeological attractions :

• Upper/State Agora - surrounded by Nymphaeum, Varius Baths, Basilica, Senate House (Bouleuterion/Odeon/Small Theatre), Prytaneum, Temple of Domitian

• Walking down the street dedicated to the Kouretes, one can see, before reaching the Library of Celsus, the Temple of Hadrian, the Slope Houses with the well preserved fine mosaics, roman monuments and private dwellings, as well as the Brothel and Latrine.

• The Library of Celsus - the symbol of Ephesus, restored from rubble during the years 1970-1978. Its 30 bookcases held about 12000 scrolls.

• A marble road, made probably with materials from former temples, passes by the Lower Agora. The lower Agora can be accessed through a triumphal Roman Gate from the Library of Celsus.

• The Roman Theatre - has 25000 seats, from which can be deducted that Ephesus might have had a population of around 200000.

• The Arcadiane Way - a monumental street that leads to the now silted harbor. It was closed to the public during my visit.
  

• The Church of Mary (Meryem Kilisesi) - possibly the first church dedicated to the Virgin Mary in the world and the site of the Council of Ephesus in 431.
• Ruins of the stadium built by emperor Nero can be seen on our way to the national road.
  

Going around the visiting site, between Meryem Ana Yolu and Efes Yolu, one can find the Cave of the Seven Sleepers, on the eastern slope of Panayirdag hill. It is said that seven Christians were locked in this cave by the Romans in 250 AD, fell asleep, and woke up in the 5th century. It became a place of burial and pilgrimage, both for Christians and Muslims.

At the edge of the modern town of Selçuk one can find a single column, standing in the swamp, a column that was once part of one of the Seven Wonders of the World - the Temple of Artemis (Artemision/Ἀρτεμίσιον).

On the slopes of Ayasoluk Hill, just below the fortress of Selçuk, the Basilica of St. John can be visited. It was a great church in Ephesus, constructed by Emperor Justinian in the 6th century, over the believed burial site of St. John the Apostle. Unfortunately I got there too late in the day and what I saw was only the (closed) Gate of Persecution.

Basically these mentioned above and the Ephesus Museum (Efes Müzesi) are all that was related to Ephesus (oh ... and the Byzantine aquaducts throughout the town), but you can't leave Selçuk without visiting the Isabey Mosque - a beautiful example of Seljuk Turkish architecture, built in 1375 and restored in 1934, with columns that seem to have been part of the Artemision.

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