Tour Duration :
4 - 4,5 hours
Min.# of guests :
2 guests
Max.# of guests :
N/A
Meals :
No
Refreshments :
No
Walking Level :
Medium
Dress Code :
Comfortable
walking shoes with
rubber sole and a hat
with sunshade are reccommended. |
|
To begin this tour, you depart for Perge, whose fantastic ruins date back to around 1000 BC. Legend has it that the city was founded by two Trojan seers, named Mopsus and Calchas, who fled the long siege of their home city and sought the solace of a more peaceful land. Perge was not a very large city, but its theatre held nearly 14,000 people. Looking at the lower part of the stage, you may be able to make out beautiful marble reliefs, friezes, statues and carvings that once decorated the theatre’s entire stage facade.
The inhabitants of Perge, like those of Ephesus, worshipped Artemis, and the goddess became strongly associated with the city. As Christianity gained prominence, the Virgin Mary began to take her place, and it is thought that Perge may have played an important role in the early spread of Christianity. Looking around the ruins of an ancient Basilica, you will see this first-hand.
From here, it’s only a short trip to Aspendos, the next stop on our circular tour of highlights from the ancient world.
You climb a scenic hilltop to reach Aspendos, near the Eurymedon River with the splendid backdrop of the Taurus Mountains, which was a major port city in the Roman period. To date, only parts of Aspendos have been excavated, but the Roman theatre here is the best-preserved of any on the Mediterranean coast, barely deserving the by now perhaps all-too-familiar label, “ruin”. The theatre was built in the 2nd century AD during the reign of Marcus Aurelius. You may remember him as the pensive, brooding, and finally strangled old Emperor in “Gladiator”, the movie. Or perhaps the more literary will recognize him as the author of “Meditations”, the very first, and very depressing book in the Great Books series. The theatre he had built when taking time off from morbid philosophizing is dedicated to “the gods of country and the imperial house”, and holds over 20,000 souls. Walking around, it’s hard not to imagine what a show here might have been like in the time of Marcus Aurelius. Ataturk, founder of the Turkish Republic, once did so, and had his dream turned into a reality, demanding that the theatre be used rather than converted into a museum. A performance here, where the acoustics are so perfect that microphones are often not even used, is really an experience not to be missed. If you’re lucky enough to be there at the right time, take advantage of it.
Nearby the Aspendos theatre is a marvelous aqueduct that used to supply the city, which you will be able to see from the road. |
