Scoutmaster trip to Eurpoe 2007

Friday, September 28, 2007

Ataturk, the President of Turkey, gave an inspirational speech at the opening of the National Battlefield at Gallipoli. The Turkish people have traditionally had an amazing record of toleration and of accepting people different from themselves. At Gallipoli, despite the terrible losses suffered on both sides, and despite Ataturk’s personal involvement in the battle (he was actually shot, but his pocket watch stopped the bullet), here’s what Ataturk said to dedicate the memorials and the cemeteries.

“[To] Those heroes that shed their blood and lost their lives … You are now lying in the soil of a friendly country. Therefore rest in peace. There is no difference between the ‘Johnnies’ [ANZAC soldiers] and the ‘Mehmets’ [Turkish soldiers] to us where they lay side by side here in this country of ours … You, the mothers who sent your sons from far away countries, wipe away your tears. Your sons are now lying in our bosom and are in peace. After having lost their lives on this land, they have become our sons as well.” Atiturk, 1934

What a moving tribute this is from a man who, in my opinion, seems as farsighted a leader, and who, in many ways, reminds me of Nelson Mandela in South Africa.

I am on the road again. I took the bus further into Turkey today; my destination, Bergama, is the site of the ancient city of Pergamon. The bus ride took more than five hours, and I was left off at a road intersection near the main bus station watching as my bus continued on to Izmir. I made my way across the road toward the bus station, and a taxi pulled up beside me before I even crossed the road. It was around 6:00 p.m., and the weather is still quite warm here, and so I hopped into the cab and told him to take me to the Odyssey Guest House. That is where I thought I had made an Internet reservation several days ago. However, it turned out that I had not made a reservation there. The owner of the Odyssey Guest House suggested that I might have made a reservation at another place a few blocks away, the Acropolis Guest House. So the taxi driver took me there. The Acropolis had a nice courtyard with a swimming pool, and although they had room for me, they had no record of my reservation. I checked in and later went on the web to find out where I was supposed to be. Of course, my Internet reservation was at a completely different place, so I sent an email to cancel my on-line reservation. However, I think I am going to have to get a cerebral implant so that my brain is continuously connected to the Internet. In the old days, I would have written a little note to myself. I may start doing so again.

Saturday, September 29, 2007

In Berlin, the most impressive museum of antiquity is the Pergamon Museum. Now that I am actually visiting Pergamon, it is interesting to see what is still left on the site as compared to what was taken to Berlin. This morning, after a traditional Turkish breakfast that includes a hard-boiled egg, slices of cheese, tomato, cucumber, olives and lots of excellent bread, I headed out to see Pergamon. The same taxi driver was waiting for his prey, i.e., me, right in front of the hotel! I told him that I would walk today. My thought was that there must be some public transportation to the “Akropol,” high above Bergama where the ancient ruins of Pergamon are located. As in Athens, and in many other places, I guess, the acropolis is where ancient temples to Greek Gods, royal palaces, and fortifications were built. So it is at Pergamon Akropol.

The local bus stop, just down the hill from the hotel, did not run public busses to the Akropol. The people at the bus stop said only taxis and tour busses go up the hill to the Akropol, but they also said that I could walk. So that’s what I did, I started walking up the hill, about five kilometers up the hill, at a five percent grade or more. Actually, I had thought I’d walk anyway and came prepared. Thankfully, it was morning, and although the weather was already quite warm, it was not at hot as it got by later in the afternoon. I had almost two liters of water with me, and I had my hat on for protection from the direct sun. There was little shade on the road going up to the Akropol. The elevation change, I would estimate, was between fifteen hundred and two thousand feet; that is quite a climb, but since people in the first and second century, B.C.E., climbed it, I figured I could climb it too. And so I did!

At the top, a parking lot full of tour busses ended with a row of stalls selling Turkish trinkets, an open-air café, and the ticket booth to the historic site. The entrance fee is 10 YTL, new Turkish lira. About a year ago, Turkey switched its currency from the “old” lira to the “new.” The former was in denominations of a million, so there were lots of millionaires in Turkey. People exchanged one new Turkish lira for one million of the old lira. Even today, many shopkeepers ask for millions of liras, but tourists get used to what they are saying, and pay in new liras.

The ancient Pergamon site is spectacular, and it covers a vast area on the top of the mountain overlooking the town of Bergama. Despite having had many artifacts taken to Berlin, much still remains at the historic site, and I am glad I came to see it. The most spectacular ruins are the remnants of the ancient alter to Zeus with magnificent marble columns built in 180 B.C.E. A few weeks ago, a fellow hostel mate used an expression to describe what she had seen on her travels. She said that she saw “jaw dropping” places. Well, Pergamon definitely deserves to be described as a “jaw dropping” place.

Sometime after Alexander the Great, Pergamon became a prominent place in the ancient world. Several Greek rulers developed the Akropol, and later, when the Romans ruled the Greeks during the Hellenistic period, Pergamon was indeed a powerful and wealthy place. Essentially all the major buildings, art, and sculpture developed during this Hellenistic time. Pergamon had a temple to Athena, and a library containing two hundred thousand volumes, the second largest library in ancient times. I am told the Pergamon library collection was given to Cleopatra as a wedding gift from Mark Anthony. She must have enjoyed reading a lot. Actually, the library became part of the library of Alexandria, one of the ‘seven wonders of the world.’ Another interesting story is that when Egypt prohibited the export of papyrus, the people of Pergamon developed parchment. The people used pumice to rub goat or sheep hides, and then they slit the skins into thin sheets to write upon. The theater at Pergamon is supposed to be the steepest Hellenistic theater in the world, and it can hold ten thousand people. Like all Greek theaters, it does not have a stage, and if you stand in the upper row, looking down the mountain, it can be an intimidating experience.

As in the Sultanahmet district of Istanbul and the older areas of Canakkale, when I walk through the streets of Bergama two things are likely to happen. Shopkeepers and boys on the street talk to me. They always ask me the same questions in English: “Hahlo, what’s your name?” or “Hahlo, where are you from?” Shopkeepers also ask “Would you like to come look at my carpets (or whatever)?” From the boys, the next question is “money, money” with a hand outstretched. Some time ago, I discovered that I could avoid being hassled by kids, if I had some candy to give them. So I now carry candy in my backpack, and when the boys say “money, money,” I offer candy. It always works; I get a big smile.

Sunday, September 30, 2007

I went to the hospital today. Actually, I took another long walk to visit Asclepion, built in 150 A.D., and named after the son of Apollo, Asclepios, the god of healing. It was an important health center in ancient times. The regimen at Asclepion included mud baths, sports, theater, psychotherapy (hypnosis), and mineral waters. Tall marble columns line both sides of a long street leading into Asclepion. There is a passageway in the center near the “sacred spring.” I was told that patients were cured by the sound of running water and by priestly hypnosis.

Another ancient place in Bergama is the Red Basilica; it’s about three blocks from my hotel. It is thought that ancient Egyptians may have built the place as a temple to their God of the underworld, Serapis. The basilica is supposed to have been built in the Egyptian architectural style, and since it is facing west, it is supposed to be about death and the underworld. The Pyramids are on the west side of the Nile, and that’s where the dead were entombed. There were two pools inside Red Basilica that indicate ritual cleansing might have been practiced. The Greeks and Romans did not use ritual cleansing as part of their religious ceremonies, but the Egyptians did. The basilica turned into a Christian church during the Byzantine period, and was dedicated to the Apostle John. Pergamon was one of the seven churches (Christian communities) of Asia Minor described by John in the Book of Revelation. There is no longer a Christian community in Bergama. Most of the Red Basilica is now a crumbling ruin, but an intact tower-like building, near one end of the ruins, functions as a mosque.

After seeing the Asclepion, I visited the small archeological museum in the center of town. Then, I took a local minibus to the main bus station, the ottogar, on the outskirts of town to inquire about transportation to Selcuk (Soul-chook). I will have to change busses in Izmir. My plan is to leave tomorrow morning for Selcuk, and spend the next few days exploring other places in Turkey around Selcuk. I also made a hotel reservation on the Internet, and will definitely remember where I am going this time. It is a place called the Artemis Hotel.

Monday, October 1, 2007

I arrived in Selcuk around 2:30 p.m., after transferring to a smaller bus in Izmir. Many people visit Selcuk, and they use the town as a base from which to see other places in the area, the most famous of which is Ephesus. I plan to go there tomorrow. However, I did have enough time to walk around the town and visit two other historical sites, the Church of St. John and the Temple of Artemis.

Reading about the church, I learned that the Apostle John came to Ephesus with Mary around 40 A.C.E., and both spent the rest of their lives here. John is supposed to have been buried under the church. Also, the Apostle Paul also came to Ephesus about a decade after John. After preaching Christianity, John was exiled to the Island of Patmos, but returned to Ephesus where he wrote his Gospel and Letters. The Crusaders stopped here as a Pilgrimage, and in the 1300’s part of the church was turned into a mosque. The buildings have been subject to earthquakes and have been rebuilt several times. Since 1974, the Turkish government has taken over the preservation and excavation of the site.

The Temple of Artemis another one of the ‘seven wonders of the world’ has essentially been taken to London; all that remains standing is one column! Even in ancient times it had been destroyed, and Alexander the Great offered to rebuild it. However, the local people were too proud, and rebuilt it themselves. When it stood, it had 127 massive columns and occupied the space of two American football fields. There’s not much there today, though.

Philip Sternberg
Scoutmaster, Troop 1131