Walking in the steps of Paul

Walking in the Steps of Paul - A Trip to Antayla, Turkey 12-19 April 2011

Tuesday 12 April
We booked our travel on Turkish Airlines flying from Berlin to Antayla through Istanbul. As our first international trip from Germany, the time was special for both of us. We were quite impressed with the service we encountered on Turkish Airlines. We received a meal on each leg of the flight and enjoyed lots of legroom. A real plus for Craig. One American lady that we met on the flight to Antalya was a great help to us. Her name was Lise and she had been living in Antalya for about a year. She has an Iranian husband and had lived with him in Iran until this move. She was returning from a month long visit to the states to see her Mother after her Father died and left her Mother all alone. She was very chatty and encouraged us by saying that our hotel choice of the Crown Plaza was great and she goes walking past it every day. She also said Budget car rental was good and rented reliable cars. She then asked if we were Christians, and informed us the only English speaking church in Antalya was St. Paul’s Cultural Center. This was the same information Craig had already received from his friend, Mark Wilson. Lise provided a wealth of information on recommended tourist areas and the area in general. The entire plane ride to Antalya was smooth and we arrived safely at our destination We proceeded to go through customs easily and obtained our rental car. As we walked from the terminal to the parking lot, we found that the attendant had the car pulled out and was waiting for our arrival. Although Craig was apprehensive about driving in Turkey he was comfortable with the brand new Hyundai Accent we received, even though it had a standard transmission. We had requested a small car for ease of driving. He had carefully reviewed the directions and drove without difficulty and we easily arrived and parked at the Crown Plaza on Konyaalti Beach, which was on the opposite side of town from the Airport! By the time we arrived at the hotel at about 8 PM, we were exhausted and just unpacked and relaxed and decided we had had enough to eat on the plane. The internet worked and we were able to check our email and plan our adventure in Turkey.

Wednesday 13 April
Taking the advice and directions of our friend on the plane, our first stop this morning was the Turkish Tourist Information Bureau. We found the parking garage (Otopark) that she recommended and walked about a block up the street to the Information Center. We picked up some maps and brochures there, but at that point really had no questions for the personnel. We headed out and located an ATM machine which took VISA and procured some Turkish Lira. We then walked to the ancient city part of Antalya which is called Kaleici. This is the area surrounding a marina which was the harbor where Paul landed when he came to this area. Today there are many boats and harbor tours from this part of town. There are also many street vendors aggressively marketing their wares to the unsuspecting tourists. They approach you in Turkish, English and German just to get your attention. Once you even begin to look you are bombarded, so we mainly ignored them and walked around. We heard the sounds of the city including the announcements from the mosques calling everyone to prayers. Islam is definitely the dominant religion, although the majority of the population was dressed in western clothing. We spent the entire day taking in the sights and sounds of the Kalechi area. The Mediterranean waters are so blue and beautiful. We just couldn’t take enough photographs to remember the sights. We located the St. Paul’s Cultural Center so we would know where to come back for worship on Sunday. We stopped and had lunch and then continued to explore the area. On our way back to the hotel we stopped at the Antalya Museum, however after visiting the Museum Shop and purchasing a few books, we decided to come back and visit the museum later in the week. We also stopped at a new local mall and purchased snack foods and drinks. This was a very new and beautiful mall called Migros and I planned to visit it again later in the vacation. We returned to our hotel and after a rest we came out again and located a restaurant overlooking the sea and had dinner.

Thursday 14 April
Thursday morning we were ready to go and visit the sights of Paul. We started out with the closest site which was Perge. This is located about 5 km from the modern Antalya Airport. Actually it is 17 km east of the port where Paul would arrive. Many of the statues and artifacts from Perge are now housed in the Antalya Museum. The excavation of the city is sufficient for one to feel the layout of the ancient town. It includes a 15,000 seat theatre and a 12,000 seat stadium. There is a rectangular planned agora and remnants of bathhouses. Paul’s travel here is documented in Acts 13-14. Oh yes, it was raining during our time in Perge, however we had raincoats and the rain was not sufficient to deter our visit or our enthusiasm. Or rather my enthusiasm. Craig was a little down about the rain, but I pushed him to keep his spirits up and press on to our next stop. Later, he thanked me for the encouragement and said we make a great team.
After finishing at Perge, we drove further east about 48 km to Aspendos. We first stopped at the Aspendos Bridge. This Roman Bridge was restored in 1996-1998. There was a restaurant there and we were ready for lunch. After eating, we went on and visited the ruins of the ancient Roman city of Aspendos. The Aspendos Theatre was built during the reign of Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius (161-180). The seating capacity is 15-20,000 spectators and is the best example of a Roman ampitheater in that part of the world. It continues to be used today for the Aspendos International Opera and Ballet Festival. We also noted that Hillary Clinton recently spoke from this location. As we were leaving the area, we also saw the Aspendos Gladiator Arena which hosts chariot races and other venues during tourist season. We returned to the hotel and rested and then had dinner at the hotel’s Dinner Buffet.

Friday, 15 April
To further our pursuit of Paul’s travels we headed out Friday morning to Antioch of Pisidia. This is the modern town of Yalvec. This is about 4.5 hours inland and north of Antalya. On the way out of town, Craig was hoping we would be able to stop and see the original Roman Road the Via Sebaste as it should have been on the route we were taking. We stopped at the top of a mountain pass and Craig hiked around but was unable to locate the ancient road. After this brief stop, we continued on and drove on to Yalvec. Upon arrival in Yalvec due to poor signage we initially couldn’t locate the archaeological site. However, we eventually stopped a group of high school boys and asked if they knew where it was. They were proud to practice their English and one of them drew us a map. We were only a few blocks away, however the site is above the road and the fenced area looked more like area Islamic community center rather than an archaeological park. We found it and were able to visit the site. Part of the time we were the only ones there. Eventually, a tour bus caught up with us. This archaeological park was huge and included the entire city. The theater was in poor repair, but the streets were evident and knowing you were walking where Paul walked was very humbling. Being able to visit the location of Paul’s missionary effort in Acts 13 made the long drive worth it. After another 4.5 hour drive (Craig still thinks it was longer, but, of course, he was driving), we returned back to Antalya and this time walked from our hotel to a nearby restaurant called Shakespeare Bistro. The American hamburger and French fries served there were very tasty and welcome! I think our lunch had been munching crackers in the car while driving.

Saturday 16 April
Happy Birthday Tim. We thought of you and celebrated this time by driving west down the coast of Turkey. The scenery on this drive was to die for and we know that Tim would have gone nuts trying to photograph it all! Our goal on this drive was 140 km to the Turkish town of Demrie. In the Bible this location was Myra. On Paul’s journey to Rome he sailed past Cyprus to Mrya (Acts 27:5). The ruins here have a well preserved Theatre. Saint Nicholas was the bishop of this Mediterranean city during the 4th century and died here in 342 AD. They have a St. Nicholas Commemoration Ceremony here every December, which is undoubtedly a major tourist attraction. And, yes, this is the same St Nicholas whose story evolved into our modern day Santa Claus. After visiting the ruins, we had lunch at a rather rustic café. We drove back toward Antalya and also stopped at the ruins of Phaselis. Phaselis is situated at the foot of Mt. Olympos and its three harbours were the reason for its historical role as a commercial centre. Paul didn’t visit here, yet the Roman ruins are nonetheless impressive and well worth the stop since everything is set in a picturesque evergreen forest. Following our return to Antalya, we had another dinner at the Shakespeare Bistro.

Sunday 17 April
Sunday morning, we decided we had time to spend 1.5 hours at the Antalya Museum before going to church. We headed there and were able to see the treasures of Perge. There was an amazing amount of items saved here. Again, this is definitely not a place to miss. Then we headed to the St Paul’s Cultural center for a worship service. Although this was a denominational mix of Christians there was still quite a bond of those in attendance. There were about 80 in attendance and worshiping in this Islamic dominated area has given them their share of trials. They currently are unable to use their facility because they are having difficulties with the architect releasing the facility back to them. They are unable to call themselves a church thus the terminology of Cultural Center. We enjoyed meeting people who live in Antalya and enjoyed going out to eat with them following the service. We had a group of 8, one American couple and one Aussie couple that live in Antalya as well as another Aussie couple on vacation. It was a highlight to visit with these couples and get a personal feel of living in Antalya.

Monday 18 April
Following more research and a consult with Mark Wilson, author of Biblical Turkey, we headed north of Antalya to again seach for the Via Sebaste, an old Roman road. We now knew where to find it. Instead of driving the new highway, we turned before ascending the mountain and drove through the countryside. After parking, we got out of the car and walked about 1.5-2 hours up the mountain. We were able to follow the more complete directions from Mark and located the ancient Roman Road. We believe it is likely the road that Paul took on his travels to and from Perge. Although the hike was difficult on the unsteady upward climb we pursued finding the location of a particular mile marker. As we hiked, we were accompanied by the mountain goats who inhabit the region! Finally I couldn’t hike anymore and Craig said he was going on just a little further. After some rest and continued hiking, I noticed the mountain goats were following me. Fortunately they were compliant with the photography and weren’t attack goats. I then saw many sheep coming from the other direction and there was Craig shepherding the sheep back down through the pass. After more photography of Craig and the sheep we headed back down the mountain! Craig said he found more of the road but never could find the mile maker for which he was looking. He knew he was in the right area, but just couldn’t find the written inscription.
We returned to Antalya with just enough time and energy for a stop at the Migros mall again. I was able to purchase some Turkish delight candy and pistachio nuts to take back to Germany. Then as we walked around the mall, we saw our favorite restaurant, Shakespeare Bistro, so we decided to go ahead and have dinner!

Tuesday, 19 April
We rose early and packed up, checked out and drove to the airport for our 8 AM flight to Istanbul and Berlin. Actually we did this so well that we were put on an earlier flight leaving Antalya. The down side we figured out was a longer layover in Istanbul. However, it all turned out as we were sitting in the airport at Istanbul, Craig reviewed his slides from Monday’s hike and he found he did find the milestone marker he was looking for. It WAS there in his slides and as he blew up the photo we was able to read the inscription! (Or at least some of it) That just really made the trip for Craig. We boarded the plane and returned to Berlin without difficulty. Actually the plane was not full, and we were able to stretch out with an empty seat in our row. We again were pleased with the service of Turkish Airlines and returned to Berlin, ready to be home, but also hopeful for a return trip to Turkey, probably Ephesus at a later date!