We drove up into the mountains near Efes where Marie apparently lived the last of her days. There was a bit of a shrine in the house she was meant to have lived in. There were a fair number of people having a look around. It was certainly a nice shady spot to think.
After a busy day we made sure to take a break to relax. We also started packing as we had to drive back towards Istanbul. It was nice to take it easy and stay put for a while. We weren't the only ones either.
We visited the Efes Archaeological Museum to take a look at some of the well preserved artefacts which were discovered in the ancient city. We also liked the idea of going into a nicely air conditioned place after the heat of the morning. The statues were impressive and some of them very well preserved. The museum wasn't very big but it was interesting although some of us enjoyed it more than others.
As we left the terraces we came back out into the heat and now multitudes of people as the tour buses disgorged their masses. We still managed to find a few quiet spots to take in the views and pat some animals. The public toilets were not all that popular but turned out to be interesting. One of the open plazas also contained equipment used to excavate the site and a few stories about the archaeology. It inspired KT to philosophise on her rock in the forum area. It also made us wonder why a city second only to Rome in its peak would go into such decline and be all but forgotten for a long time. Turned out that it was a busy port which eventually silted over which led to its decline. We really enjoyed our time there.
We made sure to go see the terrace houses of Efes because they are so well preserved. It was certainly worth the extra money to see the spectacular site. Some of the mosaics are very pretty. The most striking aspect of the site was its totally though. How much of it was preserved and how well.
We walked down some of the main boulevards before we reached the library. The façade of the library is well preserved and is quite an impressive sight. We really enjoyed exploring this part of the Efes site as the buildings were so well preserved. It was starting to get warm though so we needed to take some breaks in the shade to keep our energy up.
