bergama

my bus from selcuk to bergama was actually two buses...one to izmir, and the second to selcuk...the transfer was easy...the driver from the first bus even walked me to the second bus at the izmir bus station...how's that for customer service?
bergama is the host town to two sets of ruins...one known as the acropolis, the other as the asklepion ...
i'd read the guidebook, and it said that there were two bus stations in bergama, an old and a new...the book said the new one was way out on the highway, the old was in the middle of town...i was able to figure out where we were as the bus was coming into town, after passing the new bus station...i got rather confused as we passed the old bus station as well...so apparently there are three bus stations in town...go figure...fortunately, the town isn't that big, and i was able to figure out where i was, and how to get to a hotel...the first place i looked for i missed completely (i found it later, and wondered how i'd missed something so obvious) but i saw another hotel in the same area, so i checked it out, and it seemed fine...checkin was quick and easy, woo hoo...
i walked toward the information office, only to find that the lady was at lunch...she came back from lunch 15 minutes late, which annoyed me, but she more than made up for it with the information she gave me...a couple maps, directions to a couple places, and a book about the area...yay...

the red basilica

my first stop was a place called the red basilica...as you can guess from the name, it's a red church...well, it was...it was originally a huge temple to several egyptian gods, built in the 2nd century...now, it isn't a large area to explore...you get to go in one of the rotundas, and the main cathedral area...according to st john, (who must've lived in selcuk at the time) this one was of the seven churches of the apocalypse...pretty harsh i think?!?! when christians took over the church, they didn't do any renovation...they just created a basilica inside the giant building...
on the way from the red basilica to the acropolis, i  passed what looked like a donut stand...there was a large fryer set up, and a machine that dropped batter into the fryer in a donut shape...i queued up, and just watched for a minute or two...a bag of the donuts was handed to me, and i pulled out my wallet...i didn't really want the entire bag, but that was what was handed to me...as i tried to ask how much, they indicated i shouldn't pay...i tried even so, but i wasn't allowed...who doesn't like free donuts? bergama was definitely looking fantastic, and i hadn't even seen much yet!!

on the way up to the acropolis

one of the sights you can see from anywhere in the city is the acropolis...on top of the hill overlooking the city, it's obvious why it was built where it was...to get to the acropolis, you have two choices...there is a cable car going all the way up the hill, or you can walk on the road which goes all the way around the hill...according to the guidebook and the information lady, it was a 5 kilometer walk along the road...as i walked along the road, a couple came through a fence, and started walking back down the hill...it turned out they hadn't wanted to go back to the official entrance and walk all the way along the road...they pointed out that i could go through that same hole in the fence and thereby enter the sight for free...i've done such things before, but this time i opted not to...maybe i'm crazy, but i actually wanted to walk the whole way...i am always conscious of the need to burn calories, and i felt as though i hadn't moved enough during the day...anywho...i'm not sure that walk would've seemed so appetizing in the middle of high tourist season...my guess is that nowadays most people take the cable car up and down...it's certainly faster...
i got all the way up, and really appreciated the view over the city...bergama is far from a spectacular city, but it's nice to be that high, looking out over so much land...i wonder if the people who lived up on the hill appreciated how nice that is...

the temple of athena

there is a giant temple up there, (the temple of athena) and several smaller temples, a giant theatre, (seating 10,000 people!) what little remains of a library, and more...there were information boards everywhere, and though there was always a portion written in english, it wasn't always easily understood to me...the information was mostly about the architectural details of the ruins, and those didn't mean much to me...i would rather know how a specific building is used, and who used it...oh well...it was still fun to wander around...i enjoyed meeting a german couple in the theatre, i took a photo for them...they told me they'd first seen this area in 1974...how cool is that? i wonder if i'll return to places 35 years from now? i wonder how different the area looks in general...there must be some changes, but in terms of the ruins, i wonder if the changes are as drastic as with the rest of the town (of bergama, that is - i'm assuming there must be quite a difference between bergama in 1974 and now)...

after exploring all over, i decided to take the road all the way back down to town...not surprisingly, it goes a lot faster on the way down, even though the angle isn't drastic at all...it was a beautiful day, the walk was lovely, and i arrived back in town right as the sun was going down...since i really try to avoid being out after dark by myself, this was perfect timing...as usual, when i have been moving around all day, i wasn't hungry when i stopped moving...so i didn't have much in the way of dinner...ice cream and water...i know i know, not healthy...ooops...i need to work on my eating habits...regular meals for one, and balanced food, for another...
the next morning i got up and walked to the asklepion...as with the acropolis, this walk was up a hill, and also as with the acropolis, i didn't see the entry gate until i was almost there...the walk was only 2 kilometers, not far at all...the asklepion is right next door to a turkish military base, and there are numberous signs reminding visitors not to take photos in the direction of the base...as i walked into the asklepion i could hear the soldiers yelling cadence...i'm so glad i'm not in the military:)...

the asklepion was a medical facility back in the day...apparently people came from all over to be treated...the doctors at the asklepion didn't accept people about to die, or pregnant women...what's wrong with pregnant women? given the length of the entry road, "sick" people couldn't have been that bad off, they still had to get to the place and be accepted...the doctors treated people with mud baths, hypnosis, enemas, sunbathing and dream interpretation...sounds kinda like a modern day spa to me:)
as with the ruins i saw in ephesus, the first part of these ruins i saw was a long entry road...the sun was such that the photo didn't turn out as well...there were guys trimming the trees, which meant it wasn't quiet...oh well...i'm pretty sure i was the first person to visit that morning, it was nice to traipse around all by myself...there was still frost on the ground...the signs in these ruins were a bit better, in that they were of more interest to me...describing what the buildings were, not just their dimensions and architectural specifics...

there was a theatre in these ruins as well, not nearly as big as the theatres i've seen already...much much much smaller...but the seats still climbed quite a bit vertically, it was nice to climb up to the top and look out over the area...the hill isn't as high as where the acropolis sits, but you can still see out a ways...with lovely weather, it's always nice to climb up high...
after exploring the asklepion i walked back to my hotel, checked out and hopped on a bus to my next destination...