From Kudasai to Pammukale

[bellagirl]

Hi-I knew I had just read something the other day about this,but can't seem to find it. Sorry for the repeat! We will have from 8am-11pm in the port of Kudasai and have already seen/done Ephesus. Will we have enough time to visit Pammukale? The cruise is too far out to see what shore excursions will be listed?

Has anyone used this time frame before? Thanks, Shelly

[cruisemom42]

Here you go; it was posted on the Greece forum for some reason:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1429965

 

 

You MAY be able to do Pamukkale from Kusadasi in that amount of time. Try contacting the well-recommended agencies and they'll be able to tell you if it's possible.

[bellagirl]

Thank you Cynthia-how did I know that you'd be the first to answer:D, but I've made a boo-boo. I meant to say Canakkale instead of Pammakale:o. Sorry! Can you still answer? I know the distance is much greater.

thanks! I can't even blame it on a Monday:D

[cruisemom42]

My gut feeling is that it would be too far to do in a day. I assume when you say Canakkale that you want to visit either Troy or Gallipoli? In order to complete the drive and have enough time to sightsee, I think you'd need an overnight.

 

But then again, I searched and did find this:

 

http://www.anzacdayreservation.com/en/TourDetails/219/Private-Day-Trip-to-Troy-from-SelcukKusadasi

 

So perhaps you'd want to contact them just to get details of what IS possible in a day.

[bellagirl]

Cynthia-thank you so much for all of your hard work!! I truly appreciate it! I have sent for more info but am really hoping the cruise line will have an excursion(only because of the time limit).

In all honesty, is there much to see at Troy? I love ruins and history and have spent hours in museums drooling over things that would interest no one else (but you:D), but at the same time, I know it's a long trip to make and I'm sure that just because we have been once to Ephesus doesn't mean that there won't be other fascinating things to see. I would really like your opinion.

Thanks again!! Shelly. Gosh, I wish we could meet over coffee:)

[Fit S600]

We went to Troy in 2004. I found it booorrrriiinngg. Too many dig sites, too many time periods. My notes say "nine different settlements over many centuries on one site". If I had taken a course in Troy history maybe it would have made sense.

It was a very hot day. I think we had spent the morning in Canakkale then driven down to Troy so also sleepy from the car ride. And then we find out that "they" believe that this is not the Troy from mythology.

So it all depends how excited you get looking at various piles of rocks and bricks.

[cruisemom42]

A few months ago, someone asked me a similar question about Troy. Here's what I emailed her in response, FWIW:

 

For me, it was an overwhelming experience, because of what it represents -- that moment where the "story" of the prehistoric past of a great civilization is proven to be not a myth but truth. I started reading a simplified version of the Iliad and Odyssey when I was around 9, so you can probably see where I'm going with this. Over the years, I had read so much about Heinrich Schliemann (good and bad), read the real versions of Homer's stories, read books about Helen of Troy. I also knew what to expect when I got there.

 

Troy is basically some dozen or more levels of cities built upon each other. Schliemann bulldozed a couple of paths through the middle of the site (unfortunately not only destroying a great deal of archeological context but also strewing things from different layers together) in his efforts to reach "Troy". However, there is a feeling about the site that is unshakeable. The walls are there, and they will awe you, if you have read Homer's descriptions. You can stand on the higher level and look out across the plain of Illium, imagining the Greeks encamped there. The remains of a large gate (if not quite so grand as Schliemann hoped) make it easy to picture the Trojans wheeling a large wooden horse into the city....and so on.

 

If you are expecting another Ephesus -- or the extent of a Pompeii -- it might be a disappointment. I think some on my tour were a little befuddled. The guide did a valiant job of trying to describe the still ongoing work of sorting all the various layers of history. The Hittite Troy of legend sits atop an earlier Bronze age Troy, and in turn it is topped with a Roman Troy, and so on. Except for the walls and a few pillars, very little is left upright. The whole site was basically covered with earth and forgotten at one point. Also, not having a museum onsite makes it tough, because you can't put together the artifacts with the setting so easily. Although having just seen many of the artifacts at the Istanbul museum a couple of days before, it wasn't so difficult for me.... Also, there is a little museum in Canakkale, where we overnighted. By the way, crossing the Hellespont on the ferry was also an experience. I sat at the bow watching the approaching coast, and there were small dolphins swimming and playing alongside us.

 

Anyway, I'm not sure if that really answers your question, but that's my take on Troy. I would go again in a heartbeat. And I'd gladly have a cup of coffee with you along the way. :)

[texancruzer]

And I'd gladly have a cup of coffee with you along the way. :)

 

Can I come ??? :D

[cruisemom42]

Can I come ??? :D

 

You, I'm having a glass of wine with. ;)

[cruisemom42]

Bellagirl, I just uploaded a few of my Troy photos to give you an idea of the extent and condition of the ruins there.

 

The famous Trojan walls (sloped, just as Homer described them):

 

 

 

The plains of Ilium where the Greeks encamped:

 

 

 

The ramp leading up to the gates of the Citadel:

 

 

 

A Trojan-era house:

 

[texancruzer]

You, I'm having a glass of wine with. ;)

 

 

 

:D Even better !!

[texancruzer]

Bellagirl, I just uploaded a few of my Troy photos to give you an idea of the extent and condition of the ruins there.

 

Thanks for these pics !!!!! I can see it all, long ago, in my head.

 

This is another place my dh would LOVE LOVE LOVE to go !!! Maybe someday.

[bellagirl]

Thanks for the pics. I definitely think this is the place for me! Shelly:)