First visitor + Ephesus (incl pics)

My lifelong friend Larry Denver flew in from Florence where he was attending a conference and spent last weekend with us.


We had waited until his visit to see Ephesus with a professional tour guide along and all I can do is add our voices to the chorus of others who rave about the ancient Roman city.






I've included photos below and can hardly get over the size and stature of what used to be the NYC of this part of the world. I certainly have a new mental picture of Paul's visit to Ephesus in the New Testament book of Ephesians.

Prior to the weekend I think I more or less imagined Paul's Ephesus as a small city with some rocky dwellings that look like the old Hollywood movie sets from Ben Hur or Spartacus.

Fuzzy at best with no idea that Ephesus was a sophisticated, wealthy and well-ordered Roman city with in-door plumbing, a huge library, an amphitheater that held 25,000 people and on and on.

Frescoes from the dwellings on the slopes (early condos with an ocean view).

The wealthy of Ephesus were patrons of the arts and seemed to have an insatiable appetite for new buildings honoring various gods and goddesses and of course themselves.

The original slave, warming the seat.

Earliest backgammon game?

Kids in the cheap seats and lovin' it.