Vera Prince Ada Kusadasi

... and are clearly marked in English.

You can even pay for things in Euro (however, the price is significantly hiked for those travelers).

What is NOT touristy about this? I have to wonder what the travelers who are looking for 'touristy' places are really looking for?

Tried to get away from some of the hype by going to the local bazaar. Wandering among the 100's of stalls selling a plethora of fruits and vegetables ...

... very nice.
As we drove back to the ship, many dozed as it had been a long day in the sun. The driver did something I'd never seen. He took a freeway exit and said yikes! There was too much traffic for him at this exit. And even though we were halfway down, he threw the bus in reverse and backed onto the freeway! It was terrifying, but no accidents. Whew!
So we loved Turkey and it's people. This would be a place to return to for sure.
Tomorrow, a sea day.

... The next morning I rode a bicycle down to the the ancient Roman town of Ephesus. This town was over 4000 years old and was known for being a strategic Roman port town, previous capitol of Asia Minor and having been conquered by Alexander the Great. It is well known for being the best preserved Roman ruins in the world. Unfortunately, that brought hordes of elderly folk walking in slow motion through the ruins. Getting pictures devoid of ...

... br>
Upon discovering significant ruins, an excavation was considered but could not be started because too many people still lived in the town on the site. Soon after, however, an earthquake struck and the townsfolk were then “encouraged” to leave. Once the town’s population was reduced, the excavation of Aphrodisias began.

When we went to Aphrodisias, it was again about 100 degrees and this time a little more humid. We arrived at the site just ...

... swim. Tonight we have a 30 minute cocktail party for Contiki where all drinks for 30 minutes are free, even the ones that we would have to pay for on our drink cards. Then it is dinner in the Restaurant which will be Greek cuisine as tonight on the ship it is Greek night. Oh my goodness, what a super fun night. Our cocktail party was fun, I tried to beat Ryan and Patrick in chugging a Stolli but was out manned and lost by a ...

... they had fallen for the antique coin scam, although I don't believe they were cognizant of the scam until I did them the pleasure of bringing it to their attention. Basically it involves wandering a bit away from the throngs of tourists on the grounds of any given ruins or historic site and stumbling upon a maintenance worker, complete with tools, who calls you over and says that he's been working on the site for some time now and has managed to keep ...

... thought they had, and I was sitting there all on my lonesome enjoying the peace and quiet: "Oy Jim, you was avvin' a larf, royt?" "Naaah, honest pet..." Jim never got a chance to put his side of the story across, as I screwed my face up in concentration and managed to teleport both of them instantly into the centre of the Sun. So there you have it. Istanbul is next, bit concerned about rooms as Ramadan ends on Friday and it's all going to be mad, but fingers crossed. Adios!

... a quick lunch and so we ate at a place I would bet you can't find in the states, Burger King. Ok, maybe you can find one, but not one that has a view of the sea on 3 sides of the terrace! After walking the boardwalk here for a short while we decided to head back to our hotel which of course was easier said than done. Can't believe I didn't start with our other trip before visiting Kusadasi since we explored Ephesus. It was quite ...

... way. I would say that the cost of gas is probably very responsible for this fact. Likewise gas conserving mopeds & motorbikes are popular. In the cities it was the same; I passed through Söke. The streets were empty (of cars) so I didn't have to stop much. I was driving a Fiat Pilo (standard, with so little foot space that I couldn't really break and put the clutch all the way down; okay when you don't have to stop; although otherwise...). There were tons of pedestrians on ...

... the baklava shops in every town; Turks make their baklava light, flaky, and filled with whatever the regional nut is - hazelnut, walnut, or pistachio - my personal favorite. They all taste differently, and are unique in their own way. On this trip, there will always be a couple of boxes of baklava from the last port sitting in the main salon, on the sideboard. It goes fast. The Turks onboard - Hassan, Jahmal, Mahmet - don't like to eat baklava unless it is fresh, so they watch ...