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Turkish Take-aways from the Seven Churches

By on March 26, 2011 in General, Slideshowable

The Celsius Library, Ephesus

One of the beauties of travel is the insight gained on so many levels.  Visiting Turkey opened our eyes in so many ways.  We loved our stay in beautiful Istanbul.  The city on two continents.  Booking luxury accommodation in Istanbul is simple and plentiful.  We spent quality time there, but our favorite part of our Turkish experience was our visit to the Seven Churches of Revelation.  You certainly do not need to be a scripture historian or be an extremely religious person to enjoy following the path of these important cities.  Although so much more can be gained by looking to these with a secular and a sectarian view.

  1. Ephesus (Revelation 2:1-7) – the church that had forsaken its first love.

Far and away the most widely known and visited location of all of the Seven Churches.  Located on the outskirts of modern day Selcuk, Turkey.  The location’s vicinity to both international airports and cruise boat moorings make this one the popular stops for those taking in the western Mediterranean.  Ephesus used to be located on the harbor, but now silt and natural sediment has made the area landlocked.

Ephesus today is a collection of finely preserved ruins including a coliseum, extensive and finely preserved living quarters, a communal commode and of course the most recognizable feature, the Library.  Our advice is to visit Ephesus during the shoulder tourist season May or Sept.  This place can become cram packed with sightseers, especially those right off of a cruise.  Get there as early in the morning as possible, to avoid the throngs of people, and the light is so much better for your pictures.   Start at the top of the hill and work your way down.  The entire city is the shape of a giant L.

The two highlights for us were reading the story of Paul whilst sitting in the very coliseum that he plead to the idol worshiping throng.  Acoustics in the stadium are perfect.  Seats and stage are really well preserved.  The view from every seat was perfect, and sound really carries.  It is so easy to envision what it would have been like to listen to Paul, and the intimidating scene facing the thousands that were gathered there.

The other highlight was definitely visiting the Celsius Library. The façade has been restored and statues seen in the niches between the doors, are copies of the originals which were taken to Vienna during the years when the library was being excavated. As the inscriptions on the bases indicate, the statues symbolized the WISDOM (SOPHIA), KNOWLEDGE (EPISTEME), INTELLIGENCE (ENNOIA) and VIRTUE (ARETE) of Celsus.

Take Away-The biggest take-away are twofold.  First, the value of learning.  The center of this remarkable town was the Library.  A location to share knowledge and acquire the same.  Maybe there were some couple fights there?  The other thing that we took away was the courage of Paul.  He stood for his beliefs in the face of stiff opposition.

We spent a half day in Ephesus with our tour guide and then came the next day to get some more pictures. If you are there as a couple wait for the cruisys (our nickname for people who take cruises) to go by then continue to marvel while they are onto the next ruin.

2. Smyrna (Revelation 2:8-11) – the church that would suffer persecution.

Can’t finding Synrna on a map?  It’s because there is not much there.  Today, the bustling port city of Izmir was built over the historical location of the city.  We really didn’t get a chance to see any ruins at this location.  We stayed our first night in Izmir when we flew in.  The Hilton in Izmir has a commanding view of the ocean and city.  We highly recommend.

Of note in marking Smyna, one of its most famous citiziens, Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna.

We learn of Polycarp:  Writing to Polycarp’s flock, Ignatius another bishop in Asia at the time, had called him a “godly bishop.” (Smyrnaeans 12:2.) In his letters Ignatius shared spiritual and practical advice, encouraging him to pray, be diligent, and individualize his attention for each member: “Not all wounds are healed by the same plaster.” (Polycarp 2:1.) Moreover, Polycarp was not to allow those who “teach strange doctrine [to] overthrow you; stand firm as a hammered anvil.” (Polycarp 3:1.) Polycarp’s life fits the metaphor. Martyred in the middle of the second century, he had borne testimony of youthful contact “with John and with the others who had seen the Lord,” thus sharing his personal knowledge of the apostles’ preaching and witnessing “about their miracles.”Learn more

Take Away- In the secular realm: Development happens.  The progress for the sake of progress. What was once a great city, with wise and progressive citizenry…now is  a completely  new great city with wise and progressive citizenry.  Spiritually, we take strength in the Bishop’s dedication and courage to face opposition and hold fast to our faith.

3. Pergamum (Revelation 2:12-17) – the church that needed to repent.

Truth in advertising…we didn’t get to visit Pergamum.  It was simply too far, and our time was too limited. But our tour guide says it’s a must visit.

Things were hear with visiting in Pergamum: the Temple of Trajan

Some impressive remains of this 2nd c. A.D. marble temple dedicated to the emperor have been restored.  It sits next to the library which housed 200,000 volumes and was the second largest in the ancient world after Alexandria.  Parchment was invented in Pergamum after relations with Egypt soured and papyrus became difficult to obtain.

Noteable cisizens include: Galen of Pergamon a prominent sceientist  and physician.

Galen was also a highly skilled surgeon, and he performed surgical operations on human patients. Many of the procedures and techniques that he utilized would not be used again for centuries. Of particular note are procedures that Galen performed on patients’ brains and eyes. In order to correct cataracts in patients, Galen performed an operation that was similar to what is performed by contemporary ophthalmologists. Using a needle-shaped instrument, Galen attempted to remove the cataract from behind the lens of the eye. -Wikipedia

Take away-We need to make another trip to Turkey!  Take away number two…we hate needles…just thought you should know.

4. Thyatira (Revelation 2:18-29) – the church that had a false prophetess.

Ok…this is the other church that we didn’t get too.  Again, sorry.  A few interesting facts and a little history about Thyatira.

Arch Bishop Gegorios

The city was known as “Pelopia” but it was named Thyateira by king Seleucus I Nicator in 290 BC because being at war with Lysimachus and hearing that he had a daughter born, called this city “thuateira”, from Greek “θυγατήρ”, “θυγατέρα” (thugater, thugatera), meaning “daughter”. In classical times, Thyatira stood on the border between Lydia and Mysia. It was famous for its dyeing and was a center of the indigo trade. Among the ancient ruins of the city, inscriptions have been found relating to the guild of dyers in the city. Indeed, more guilds are known in Thyatira than any other contemporary city in the Roman province of Asia (inscriptions mention the following: wool-workers, linen-workers, makers of outer garments, dyers, leather-workers, tanners, potters, bakers, slave-dealers and bronze-smiths)-Wikipedia

In 1922 the Patriarch of Constantinople appointed an Exarch for Western and Central Europe with the title Archbishop of Thyateira. The current Archbishop of Thyateira since 1988 is Gregorios Theocharous. The Archbishop of Thyateira resides in London and has pastoral responsibility for the Greek Orthodox Church in all of the United Kingdom. Cool huh?

Take away—Again, we need to visit Turkey again to see this location.  So another take away might be…we need to hear from you if you have been.  Tell us about it.

5. Sardis (Revelation 3:1-6) – the church that had fallen asleep.

Fallen asleep? How can that be?!  The center of any visit to Sardis will revolve around the awe inspiring Gymnasium.  The Greeks and Romans strongly believed in the development of both the body and mind.  They would devote equal time to the development of both.  The folks from Sardis must have taken this a bit more one sided…with the construction of a two story temple to building the body! It is no wonder that they became great warriors.

Since 1958, Harvard University has sponsored annual archeological expeditions to Sardis. These excavations unearthed perhaps the most impressive synagogue in the western Diaspora yet discovered from antiquity, yielding over eighty Greek and seven Hebrew inscriptions as well as numerous mosaic floors.  These floors are simply amazing.  During our visit, we pretty much had the entire place to our self.  This is one of those sites that doesn’t make it on the mainstream tour agenda.  It is a must see.

They Gym at Sardis

Take away-our first tongue in cheek take away, is don’t leave your camera on a stone while climbing around on the rocks.  (It  can cause a fight and it did for us).  Ok serious again…the great gymnasium reminds us of the importance of developing both a strong body and a strong mind. Sardis was by far our favorite “church.” It’s literally in the middle of a field. It’s a stunning site and we were the only people there. Access to ruins in Turkey is far less guarded than in Europe. We climbed on columns and jumped off rocks.

The Arch at Philadelphia

6. Philadelphia (Revelation 3:7-13) – the church that had endured patiently.

Prior to our trip, we invested a lot of time learning more about Islam.  As practicing Christians, living in the rural western US, we have had limited exposure to the Islamic faith.   Turkey is an incredible mix of religions.  We took a tour in Istanbul that began at a Muslim Mosque, went through the Jewish Quarter, and ended at the mighty seminary of the Orthodox Christian Church.  Our tour was led by a guide that was Protestant who was married to a Muslim!  How is that for a melting pot?  Nowhere in our travels with the contrast in beliefs as great as in Philadelphia.  All that remands of the huge church that once was located here are huge arches and a very interesting cemetery.  The entire church complex is surrounded by mosques.  While we were visiting, there was a call to prayer. The entire area was ringing with the chant.  Here we were, at the onetime capital of Christianity in the religion and the strength and dominance of another religious perspective.

Warning:  Getting this can take some time.  This is the furthest afield of all the 7 locations.

Take Aways- You don’t have to agree to get along.  You can disagree without being disagreeable.

7.  Laodicea (Revelation 3:14-22) – the church with the lukewarm faith.

One of our favorite sites out of all the churches was Laodicea.  The ancient city…now just a collection of stones is across the valley from the white cliffs of the hot springs of pamukkale.  Anciently the city received some of its water supply piped across the valley from these springs.  By the time the water arrived, it has lost some of it’s steam.  It was now lukewarm.  John in Revelations plays on this analogy, comparing the lukewarm faith of the believers in the city to the water that was made available for their use. You can see the hot springs from the ruins of site. Be aware that pamukkale doensn’t look like the brochures. It’s amazing to see but if you are expecting cascading water rushing over the hill, it’s just not there. Most of the thermal water has been piped away for local hotels.

Take Away- Don’t be mediocre!  Be someone great.  Live your life to the fullest.  Take pride in your work. Focus on what is important and do big and great things.

Take a visit to the Seven Churches.  So much is to be gain and “taken away.”

Our favorite quote from the Book of Revalations:

Revelation 22:17

And the Spirit and the bride say, Come.  And let him that heareth say, Come.  And let him that is athirst come.  And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.

Stay in a Castle! In the States?

By on March 1, 2011 in General, Slideshowable

When you say hey….I stayed the night in a castle, visions of a Cinderella type mountain top postcard shot come to mind.  Well you don’t need to go to Austria or Switzerland to cross this one off you bucket list.  Just head to the beautiful pacific northwest.  Manresa Castle is one of the most enchanting bed and breakfast we have found.

We rolled up to the Castle late on a misty evening.  We were stunned the next morning to throw open the drapes and we were overpowered by the dramatic view.  Perched on an overlook of the San Juan Islands-the view is simply not to be missed.

The Castle is steeped in history, and finely restored.  From the Castle’s Website:

“The Castle was completed in 1892 as the home of Charles and Kate Eisenbeis. Mr. Eisenbeis was a prominent member of the early Port Townsend business community. His business interests were diverse including a bakery, brick works, lumber mill, brewery, bank and a hotel.

In keeping with his status in the community, Eisenbeis built what was the largest private residence ever built in Port Townsend, consisting of 30 rooms. Locals referred to the building as the “Eisenbeis Castle;” its design was reminiscent of some of the castles in Eisenbeis’ native Prussia.”

The rooms are spacious with “bizzillion” foot tall ceilings.  Room furnishing are a bit understated.  But the common rooms, especially the library and the bar are impressive.

What would you expect? The food is fit for a king!  Chef Chad Woodland is a master!  Loved the fresh pacnorthwest seafood!  Here is a link to the menu.

We kept saying to each other…wouldn’t this be such a cool place to get married.  You bride to be’s looking for a great place for a location wedding..look no further.  Imagine the bragging rites:  Yeah…I got married in a Castle.

Port Townsend is a quaint Victorian seaport, located across the sound from Seattle, WA.  The area is chock full of fun.  Port Townsend has it all: wineries, golf, whale watching, and even a rain forest!

Getting there is half the adventure:

Seaplane

Ferry

By car: From points south, you follow Highway 104 across the Hood Canal bridge and take the SR 19 exit to Port Townsend. If you are coming from the west, follow scenic Highway 101 to the SR 20 turnoff to Port Townsend. From points north, you can take the coastal roads on Whidbey Island and board the ferry at Keystone.

5 Things Every Woman Should Know About Men…While Traveling.

By on February 24, 2011 in Best of the Fighting Couple, Slideshowable

Love We collected a few tidbits of advice for those traveling women who get a little frustrated with their man.  We broke them down into 5 simple rules:

1 Hunger-One of the intriguing features of male physiology is the constant need for…..food.  In the bible of understanding all men aka: The Godfather, note when big decisions need to be made…food is included ie  “Leave the gun bring the cannoli.”  A little known fact is that 61 scenes  involve food.  Why?  Men need Man Fuel.  It makes everything go much better.  Those little mini-meals they serve on long haul flights?  Not gonna cut it.

How to deal with the food issue?  A little planning can go a long way.  Want to hit that French “chic” resterauant that is all the rave?  You know the one.  Where the portions are super tiny and the plates look like a work of art?  What to do?  The solution is simple. Hit a burger joint for lunch earlier in the day.  Even better yet all you can eat wings!  Problem solved.


2 Directions-Just like the pitiful scene of Napoleon at  Waterloo or  Lee at Appomattox, asking a man to hand over his sword and ask for directions is just as humiliating.  Admitting defeat, even in the face of insurmountable odds, is next to impossible!  Instead, might we suggest that if possible you approach by using rule number one.  “Hey I am starving…is there anyway we could stop by this store/café and grab a quick bite?” (see rule #1)  At the same time… this will give you a chance to inconspicuously ask for some pointers on where the heck you are.  The invention of GPS has quite possibly single handedly saved our marriage.  It is now a travel must.

 

3 Shopping– One of the key factors in maintaining our man card is preserving our dignity while shopping.  Key to men’s primal instincts in the notion of hunting and gathering.  We hunt something.  We kill it.  We drag it home.  The faster the better.  We view shopping as no different.  Enter store.  Find item.  Buy said item.  Done.  The thought of spending countless hours comparing the fairy wings on a half dozen winged porcelain figurines is so counter to our instincts.

In order to counter this predisposition ladies…give us something to occupy our time.  “Why don’t you grab some food and wait for me in the bar and watch the game?” (see rule  #1)  Better yet..make it our idea aka the Jedi Mind Trick.   FEMALE:  “This is going to take awhile…”I bet you don’t want to hangout here and look for hand bags with me.”  MALE: “I don’t want to stay here and watch you drool over patent leather, I will meet you back at the hotel.”

 

4 The Interest Gap– This rule is best understood by reliving one of our greatest fights.  The setting was west of London at what is thought to be Jane Austen’s home.  AKA Female mecca.  AKA Male purgatory.  We pulled up to the thatched roof home to giggling shrieks of delight from Luci.  When she started to bounce up and down and do the little happy clapping motion with her hands…I knew this was not going to end well.  I smiled and pretended that this was what we had come to this God forsaken land for.  I made it to the ticket counter where the asking price to look at a door that squeeks and a couple of old rocking chairs was explained to me.  “There is no way I am spending that much for that.  I am headed to the pub.”  Enter a little pouting and zoooom she was gone to join the tens of other gleeful gals who were doing similar happy clapping.  The men’s congress was convened at the pub next door.

As this experience illustrates…we have found that you need to budget your time to allow for things that may only interest one of you.   In addition to doing the “together” things.  We have found that going our own ways on vacations to see items of interest is just fine.

 

5 Cave Dwelling-In the Dr. John Gray’s book: Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus we learn that men need their cave time.  They need quite time to reflect.

“When a man loves a woman, periodically he needs to pull away before he can get closer.” Dr. John Gray.

Vacation often creates situations that as a couple you are alone together for long patches of time.  At times men need to commune with our inner Neanderthal.  We need some alone time with out thoughts.  We need those long lulls in the conversation.   When we are quiet, we are not upset.  We are not giving you the silent treatment.  We are just pondering the expanse of the universe or the defensive scheme for our fav football club.  This will pass and all will be well.

 

We hope that these few insights give you some ideas on how best to deal with men on vacation.  Any other tips that we missed?

Swaziland-A window into Hope and Desperation

By on September 22, 2010 in Slideshowable

Sometimes what you expect to see and reality can be so dramatically different.  Unknown to us, we found Swaziland is a hauntingly beautiful land of undulating mountains.  Huge tracts of domesticated forests at different points of growth and harvest dominate most of the country.  Amid this striking setting, people cling to life in dire poverty.  Nearly a quarter of the county is infected with HIV/Aids.  The living conditions and mortality rate is dire.

In prep for our visit we had done our homework on the tiny Kingdom located almost entirely in South Africa.  As a part of our research we watch Without the King.  A documentary on the Monarcy, and specifically the King’s eldest daughter, Princess Sikhanyiso.  The movie portrays the masses as being on the verge of a overthrowing the ruling body.  We did not witness any outward evidence of civil unrest.  We witnessed a people eking out a meager existence.  A people clinging to life in anyway possible.

So why visit Swaziland?  We truly count our visit there as a blessing.  Amid difficult circumstance there is hope.  We met hope in the people with whom we interacted.

We stayed at the Forester Arms Hotel outside the capital, Mbabane.  Roughly a 30 min. drive through the mountains and forest to an isolated tree plantation.  This charming retreat is very comfortable and the food was very good.  They serve both dinner and a full to order breakfast.  The hostess of this impressive oasis is an amazing woman.  Our interaction was limited, as we only stayed a night, but we witnessed the kindness she exhibited to her extensive staff was only exceeded by her graciousness to us as guests.

You really must visit Swaziland.  The natural beauty is compelling.  Swazi crafts are also impressive.  But most of all, go to Swaziland to learn about yourself.  So many life lessons are learned when you witness happiness and hope amid abject poverty.  The Swazi situation is difficult to witness, but you will be the better human for the experience.

7 Questions with Our Momentary Lapse of Reason

By on August 15, 2010 in General, Slideshowable

Our Momentary Lapse of Reason

From their site:  ”Beginning in June of 2008 we (Tracy & Jason) left our families, friends, house & jobs in Denver to follow our dream of traveling the world. This website is a chronicle of our 2 year journey.”

When we started asking our fellow couple travelers to awnser our 7 questions, our hope was to really capture a glimpse into how and why they travel.  What makes them unique.  Our latest couple gives us that reflection.

Tracy is truely a fine photographer.  Her pics of India with their use of color and story telling are truely not to be missed.  We are also very impressed with their fighting skills!  Please enjoy.

1) How many countries visited between the two of you?Over 50

2) If you had to travel with someone else besides your travel partner, who would it be? (this person can be living, historical or mythical?.)

He Said:  I like Anthony Bourdain.  If I could have traveled in the 60′s-70′s, Tony Wheeler (LP author) would be a good companion as well.  Both are insightful and a little edgy.

She Said: Hmmm, I like Jason’s choice!  Imagine a personally escorted food tour by an international celebrity.  I could wrap my mind around that pretty quickly.

3)What has been your favorite destination in your wanderings?

He said: I have to answer this in groups:  The Galapagos Islands have to be my favorite wildlife spot.  Angkor Wat has to be the most under appreciated ancient site but the place that keeps calling for more exploration is India.  It has to be the craziest place on earth and there were moments where I hated it with a passion but the more I have time to reflect, the more I miss it.

She said: That’s such a difficult question to answer.  We always tell people that we enjoy different places for different reasons.  SE Asia is our favorite region and within that region we love Indonesia (though we still have much to explore there), Burma & Laos.  Aside from SE Asia, we love eating in Thailand, Italy & Argentina :-)  The wildlife viewing in the Galapagos is amazing & diving Sipadan is a real highlight.  For natural beauty it’s hard to top Patagonia but we haven’t been to New Zealand yet (the USA is no slouch either of course!).  I could go on and on…I agree with Jason that India is high on our list to return to.

4) If you had to eat one last meal, what/ where would you eat?

He said:  WOW, so many choices on this.  I have to go with what first pops in my head – Steak and wine in the breathtaking mountains of Patagonia, Argentina.

She said:  Lets see, it would have to include an incredible red wine, perhaps a goat cheese souffle appetizer followed by a blue cheese & tomato salad then a rare steak with crab legs.  For dessert, I love ice cream!  Thanks for making me hungry with that question :-)

5)How do you pick the places you visit? Spontaneous vs. planned?

He said: “SO, where are we going tomorrow?”  She picks the places, I plan the logistics of how to get there.  Of course, we both daydream all the time about our next adventures.

She said: I”m the A-type person in our world so usually I like to have a plan but I”m totally ok with changing it as we go (which we almost always do).

6) If you could solve one problem in the world what would it be?

He said: Lack of Tolerance.  If everyone just showed a little more tolerance for people of other backgrounds/religions/countries etc. the would would be a nicer place.

She said:  Wow, that’s a pretty difficult question.  When we were traveling around India it apparent that the lack of available fresh & clean water was a huge problem.  If I could solve one problem, I think I would bring the world plenty of clean water for consumption & agriculture.

7)You knew it was coming….What has been your greatest travel fight/disagreement?

She said: We took a Transatlantic cruise from Harwich to Boston to round out our Middle East & Europe segment of our trip and one day we stopped in Cherbourg off the coast of France.  Having read a lot about the amazing war & peace museum in Caen we decided to before hand to visit it despite the fact that it was 90 minutes away by train and our ship was only docked for 8 hours.  The ship was an hour late docking and on our way out we stopped and asked the information desk about trains to Caen.  We were told there was one leaving in 30 minutes and the train station was 25 minutes away with a return trip that would get us back into Cherbourg with a few minutes to spare!  We raced off, determined to make that train.  By that time I was thinking that it wasn’t such a great idea to head all the way to Caen (90 minutes away by train) and as we were racing to the train station I told Jason that I thought we should stay in Cherbourg for the day, after all, spending 3+ hours in transport just to see a museum when we only had 7 hours didn’t really seem worth it.  We thought we would have more time and I thought there was enough to do in Cherbourg.  Well, Jason’s the type of person that has a one track mind and while I was talking I could practically hear him thinking “Train, train, must get to the train.  Can’t miss that train.”.  He told me in no uncertain terms that we already decided to go to Caen and it was too late to change our mind…and so we went to Caen.  We arrived at the museum and enjoyed 2 hours there (which was probably less than half the amount of time we really needed as it was probably one of the best museums we had been to).  After racing around the museum trying to take it all in we raced back to the train station to buy our return tickets to Cherbourg.  DOH!  The train we planned on taking back was a summer train that expired on Sept. 1st and it was Sept. 5th…the next train was an hour later and would have gotten us back to Cherbourg AFTER our ship sailed.  We hightailed it to the bus station where they politely told us to take the train.  We thought about renting a car but we never would have made it.  Our last resort was a taxi…at a princely price.  As we raced down the highway watching the Euros add all the way up to 191.20 E (all the while converting it into dollars at 1 Euro = $1.50 USD) I muttered, “wow, that was a nice museum.”    It was certainly the most expensive!

He said: I don’t think many people realize how hard it is to travel…not vacation/holiday…but long term travel.  I can’t really remember a knock-down-drag-out fight but three weeks in, we were walking down a street in Malaysia about ready to call the whole thing off.  We both calmed down however and it all worked out in the end.

For more visit:  Our Momentary Lapse of Reason