Turkiye 2023: House of the Virgin Mary, Museum Visit, & a little taste of Izmir
The second half of day 8 started with lunch, which was at a nice buffet restaurant nearby.
Lady making dolmas.
My first plate, notice the dolmas.
The House of the Virgin Mary is located in the hills of Selcuk. It is believed to be the last residence of the Virgin Mary. Tourists and pilgrims make this a must visit spot.
This is new, not present on first visit in 2009.
Just us in the line.
It's in and out, a very small place, no photography allowed inside.
Spring water.
Wishing wall.
The Museum of Ephesus was a surprise, a bonus, since it was not in our itinerary. Another museum? You'd think I would be tired looking at artifacts, but surprisingly these artifacts in Turkey I find so interesting. This museum is small but packed.
Artemis
Temple of Artemis
Once we got back at the hotel, there was plenty of light left. We were to have a group dinner at a restaurant, but that would be hours away. Itchy feet, many of us chose to spend time exploring this part of the city. The hotel was a block away from the Gulf of Izmir, which is an inlet of the Aegean Sea, and that was the first place we went to.
Fishing spot and chilling spot.
A visit to a grocery store followed, then our companions wanted to rest, while we continued our exploration.
Two of our tourmates were relaxing in one of the many restaurants.
So, this is what we found out. Businesses selling the same thing are right next to each other; thus there's a block of only pubs, another for just clothing, and so on. We were told by the TM that this would give the consumer easy way to comparison shop. So this block is all eateries.
Bars and pubs on this block.
That evening we walked a block or so to the restaurant.
We all got the same thing, pre-arranged by the TM.
Appy.
A lot of meat, apparently the best shawarma in town. It was delish.
We stayed two nights here in Izmir. The first night, we took photos from the balcony.
Turkey has been one surprise after another. I loved this trip and we haven't been to the place where I really looked forward to yet.
Lady making dolmas.
My first plate, notice the dolmas.
The House of the Virgin Mary is located in the hills of Selcuk. It is believed to be the last residence of the Virgin Mary. Tourists and pilgrims make this a must visit spot.
This is new, not present on first visit in 2009.
Just us in the line.
It's in and out, a very small place, no photography allowed inside.
Spring water.
Wishing wall.
The Museum of Ephesus was a surprise, a bonus, since it was not in our itinerary. Another museum? You'd think I would be tired looking at artifacts, but surprisingly these artifacts in Turkey I find so interesting. This museum is small but packed.
Artemis
Temple of Artemis
Once we got back at the hotel, there was plenty of light left. We were to have a group dinner at a restaurant, but that would be hours away. Itchy feet, many of us chose to spend time exploring this part of the city. The hotel was a block away from the Gulf of Izmir, which is an inlet of the Aegean Sea, and that was the first place we went to.
Fishing spot and chilling spot.
A visit to a grocery store followed, then our companions wanted to rest, while we continued our exploration.
Two of our tourmates were relaxing in one of the many restaurants.
So, this is what we found out. Businesses selling the same thing are right next to each other; thus there's a block of only pubs, another for just clothing, and so on. We were told by the TM that this would give the consumer easy way to comparison shop. So this block is all eateries.
Bars and pubs on this block.
That evening we walked a block or so to the restaurant.
We all got the same thing, pre-arranged by the TM.
Appy.
A lot of meat, apparently the best shawarma in town. It was delish.
We stayed two nights here in Izmir. The first night, we took photos from the balcony.
Turkey has been one surprise after another. I loved this trip and we haven't been to the place where I really looked forward to yet.
A fascinating virtual tour for us! Thank you!
ReplyDeleteHow lovely! I'm keen to visit...#WWoT
ReplyDeleteGreat shots.
ReplyDeleteI like the photo of the lady in picture #2!
ReplyDeleteNight time the place looks like fairyland.
ReplyDeleteTurkish food...yummmmm
ReplyDeleteAmazing series of photos, foods looks good
ReplyDeleteAs a devotee of the Blessed Virgin Mary, I've always wanted to see her house where she spent her last days. Thank you for sharing it with us.
ReplyDelete