The Daily Diary of a Wandering Restaurateur
Exploring Ephesus

Another overcast day, another breakfast on the terrace. I must find out more about the bread. We smell it every morning but I can't imagine they are baking it here. It is wonderful stuff, though.

Having blown off Ephesus yesterday, today was the day for the big one. Figuring we would have the best experience if we got there before the tour groups started to arrive, we were buying our tickets a few minutes after 9am. We rented an audio guide for Margene and off we went.

The excavated part of Ephesus is mostly an inclined site. There are two entrances. The north entrance is at the top of the hill and the south entrance, not surprisingly, is on the downhill end. The busses drop their tour groups at the top, then drive around and wait for them at the bottom. We started at the bottom (there is almost no parking at the top) and headed uphill.

We were OK for about half an hour until we met the hordes coming down the hill at us! They were relentless! We fought our way uphill through the crowds of tourists (they travel in packs, you know), feeling like we were in the middle of the car chase scene where they all drive the wrong way in traffic! Whatever the wonder the place may have held was lost amidst the teeming masses, all of whom are funneled down one main road maybe 30 feet wide.

To illustrate my point, I snagged a photo off the Internet showing what the main drag looks like without any traffic ... and what it looked like this morning as we gazed up at it. Yikes! Here they come!

Here is an idea of what Ephesus looks like. Full disclosure. I had photos of all these spots, but I went online and replaced a few of mine with images that showed things more clearly. That is to say, fewer people and sunshine. They must have been taken when the place was closed to the public! The last photo is of the public latrine -- a 48-holer! We are told there was a musical group that played in the center of the room to mask the noise. Live music ... now THERE'S something that would make the restrooms in your restaurant the talk of the town!

As seems to be true in most tourist sites around the world, there was a gauntlet of vendors to run before you could actually enter the site. Shops lined both sides of the approach to the ticket booth, along with men pitching everything from souvenir coins and guide books, to taxi drivers offering to drive you to the top so you could join the flow of humanity headed downhill.

The last supper at Natureland was as pleasant as ever. The meze was the same combinations as last night and the main course was lamb meatballs stuffed with potato, a stewed okra-like veggie with tomatoes, rice and green salad with tiramisu for dessert. Gotta love it! This was really like dinner with the family ... except that the family wasn't eating with us. They were there, however, providing family ambience! The Turks love their tea (so do we!) ... but how about THIS for a tea bag? Size matters!

Finally, a few odd pictures to clear out the camera. Natureland is located at the bottom of a steep slope, below a small mountain. Whether that is good for the olive trees or not, I can't say ... but it sure makes it tougher to automate the harvesting procedures. Then there is a curious fragment of what looks like an old aquaduct a few hundred yards away. And finally, our hostess, Seval, who has taken very good care of us these last couple of days.

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