As we left the port in Kusadasi Turkey we immediately found our tour guide from EKOL and we were off to see Ephesus. We really lucked out, our guide was not only knowledgeable, but he was experienced in archeology and worked on site for quite some time. They also picked us up in a quite large BMW van.

The ruins of Ephesus are amazing and really give a feel for how things may have looked. The best part, by far, was the Terrace Houses, which they are still in the progress of uncovering. Then again, they theorize that there is many years more of uncovering to do in the area. The Terrace Houses had so many painted walls and mosaics that were still intact. Definitely an excellent tour.

Now, everyone always complains about the stops to push carpets on tourists, but they're expected in Turkey. Our first stop was at a leather coat manufacturer where we had a private catwalk show of some of their offerings while enjoying a sip of Turkish apple tea (which was quite good). I did it... I bought a leather jacket and I am totally in love with it. It's unique, it's me, and it's an awesome memory of this part of the trip. We also stopped at a carpet factory and yes, I of course adored the most expensive style/coloration. It was neat to learn how they make them and I had a cup of Turkish coffee here that warded off the afternoon slump, but we all left blissfully carpetless.

Now, back to the port for some shopping. THAT was a treat. They were every bit as pushy as they are in Jamaica, which I loathe. Seriously, you'd think they'd learn/recognize that with some people the less pushy you are the further you get with them. The few places that offered help and left us alone are the ones I went into.

The coffee didn't hold off sleep long. We headed back to the ship a bit earlier than we needed to where Kirk and I fell asleep by the pool in the Solarium until the horns of both a neighboring ship and our own blared. Later in the evening as we chilled to some karaoke Kirkus taught me how to play backgammon.