The cruise through the Greek isles was a fascinating trip and one of the most educational I've ever taken.
We visited ...
... Patmos, most known for its religious link to St. John the Apostle...
... the ancient ruins of Ephesus, where you actually feel like you're walking the streets of gold...
...Olympia, the site of the original Olympic Games
...and the Canal of Corinth, a man-made waterway built between 1881 and 1893 to shorten the journey between the Gulf of Corinth and the Aegean Sea.
Ephesus is located in Turkey, near the coast, south of Izmir. The closest town is Kusadasi, a port town.
Ephesus was the cultural and religious center of the ancient world, having at one time an estmated population of 400,000n to 500,000 people. It realized both success and prominence, but also suffered irreparable destruction by both enemy and earthquake.
It is no city today, only an archeological site. However, you can get an amazing sense of what it was like in ancient days as you walk the marble streets past the remaining columns and structures.
The amphitheater was used for not only musical performances, but for public meetings and even fighting by gladiators. Today it's still used by modern performers.
The acoustics are phenomenal. I remember distincly standing on the top row and very clearly hearing the tour guide on stage as she spoke to her group.
It's hard to believe a ship the size of ours (and it was, in fact, the largest that could) was able to squeeze its way through the narrow passageway of the Canal of Corinth.
But squeeze it did, having less than six feet of spare room between the ship and the cliffs looming on either side.
Most memorable was the silence. The ship's motors were turned off to be pulled through by tug, and the passengers simply stood in awe, marveling quietly and appreciating greatly such a wonderful experience.
Perhaps we were all just holding our breath!
The canal is 3.9 miles (6.3 km) long and 26 feet (8m) deep at low tide.
The width varies from 69 ft (21m) at the bottom of the water to 82 ft (25m) at the surface.
The canal is too narrow for most freighters these days, so it's used primarily by cruise ships. Ours, at 60 ft wide, was one of the largest to make it through.
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Olympia, the town, population of less than 15,000 people is not nearly as well known as the ancient site and ruins nearby.
That collection of ruins is one of the most important archeological sites in Greece and home of the first Olympic Games, held every four years from 776 BC to 393 AD.
Olympia was also a sanctuary site dedicated to the worship of Zeus. It is located on the western side of the Peloponnese peninsula.
