TOUR TURKEY WHERE PAUL TRAVELLED AND THE GREEK ISLANDS
Let your bible come alive as we follow in the footsteps of Paul. I have been fortunate to visit Turkey 6 times, and going for cruises in a gulet, one of which is pictured above. Possibly the same sort of size of the ships that Paul travelled in. I will show the main places he visited in the mainly western half, from north to south starting from Istanbul in the north to Bodrum in the south, and also beyond to the various Islands such as Rhodes, Cos, Samos Patmos etc. Come with me as we imagine Paul travelling these places way back in time.
Lets start with Ephesus, which today is just ruins, but the new town is called Selquk.
This is the Roman amphitheatre where there was such a great uproar caused by the silversmiths. On the right is the harbour road, where the ships used to dock-but the water and river have long since vanished presumably by an upliftment of the earths crust. Turkey was prone to earthquakes
Next we have the library and lecture hall of Tyrannus, where Paul preached and taught for 2 years
This is the entrance to the town, or main street, called the curates way, and is behind the hill where the amphitheatre is. This is where the town clerk was in office when he heard the uproar in the arena and rushed to quell the riot.
This is the house, called Mary’s house by the Turks, where John brought Mary the mother of Jesus to stay, after His crucifixion-below is a long series of prayers on paper that are stuck under a washing line-the Muslim people all put their prayers there as she is considered Holy in the Koran!!
This picture shows the grave of John the apostle in Selquk, about 3 km away from Ephesus. Next to it is a baptism well the early Christians used, where people walked in from one side, baptised under water and walked out the other side.
The following pics are taken in more central west Turkey -the buildings here the Church at Bergama, or Pergama as called in the book of revelation
These pics were taken at Smyrna, also one of the churches in revelation, now known as Izmir. The theatre is one of many scattered all over Turkey built for the Romans for sports and entertainment, and where Christians were brutally martyred.
Also in Izmir, the church of Polycarp, whose story as a first century Christian leader and Bishop is well documented. When he was arrested at age 85, he refused to be tied at the stake to be burnt. It is said that the other Christians awaiting a similar fate looking out behind bars at the scene asked him to show them if they could expect any pain. The Romans started the fire and as it got higher and higher, there was a beautifaul smile on his face and the onlookers knew there was no pain. Even further in this case, a huge bubble formed around him, and try as they might, he was not being burnt. In desperation the governor said, who can kill this man? A soldier ran forward and stabbed his spear through the bubble and so Polycarp was killed.
Below is a picture somewhere between Hieropolis and Nicopolis (not far from Laodicea, of a lodging place for travellers. According to our tour guide, a professor of history, it was supposedly a lodging place almost like a pub or motel, where Paul stayed during his travels
And so, further afield in Cappadocia where Paul also lodged, is an underground city of caves 12 stories deep and stretching for 25km. In the book of Hebrews, and the end of chapter 11, we read that the Christians lived like animals underground, as they were constantly being hunted down
A typical aqueduct for conveying water over many kilometers
A typical hill of sandstone where people carved caves to live in as homes.
Even underground they built Churches, all carved out of the rocky mountains and hills; one can still see today the well preserved paintings and decorations, despite a life of extreme hardship. The writer of the book of Hebrews describes how people lived in those days and lived in caves and underground, at the end of Chapter 11.
Moving on to Troas, or Troy, where Paul asks Timothy to bring his jacket that he left there to be brought to him, situated on the west coast not far from Istanbul. On the right is ongoing excavations, and I was told that the diggings that you see has uncovered 12 layers of civilisations where over time each one was covered by debris and so went further below the surface, as it also happened in Israel etc.
Below are buildings also in central Turkey at a place called Cappadocia where Paul and his travelling companions stayed. They are called caravanserai where the camel caravans would spend the night locked inside the various stalls due to extreme cold from the snow-even the travellers would sleep with the animals to stay warm. This town was a very busy central stop over point for the spice trade from the east and to the coast.
Kusudasi-a beautiful place where I love to stay. Below is Ladies beach, very popular and warm waters a few kilometers from Ephesus.
More pictures of different biblical places will be up loaded as time permits
Trust you enjoyed the tour