Day 05 - West Central Turkey: Aphrodisias, Philadelphia

This is the day that the Lord has made. I will rejoice and be glad in it. 

We are leaving the Doga Thermal Health Spa today. It's been lovely here. We take with us the excitement and delight of our first hot air balloon ride and Turkish bath. The temperature is cool in our room because we can leave our door open to the patio all night. Beautiful fresh air and safe because we are on the fourth floor. 

Today we went to Aphrodisias.

It is the largest and most complete township that we have seen so far: homes, stadium, amphitheater, political arena, bathhouse, streets- fantastic. It's my favorite place so far in Turkey. 

We went past Philadelphia, or at least where it was. That is one of the Seven Churches in Revelation that was not reprimanded for its behavior. 

Most of our lunches have been a pita with a choice of chicken or ground meat, like meat loaf. Today we had fresh mushrooms baked in individual dishes with a mild cheese.... So, so good. I have to say I like a glass of wine with my dinner but had not yet indulged in Turkish wine. It is wonderful! It was very flavorful and smooth. Hope I can find some back home. 

On our way to our next hotel, we stopped at some ruins of Sardis. Tomorrow, we will do a full tour. It dates back to 400 BC. It's much older than the the city of Aphrodisias which is about 100 AD. 

We arrived at our new lodging, Lydia at Sardis. Every part was busy: cafe, bar, lobby, elevators. Our room is small, about 10x10 with a 4x5 bathroom. Still much bigger than a tiny house.... But it has a view of the city. It's clean and all of our basic needs are met. And ended our day with another fabulous buffet. 

Are community of 30 travelers is growing closer and closer each day.