June 8-16, 2016 —
Debby arrived in Marmaris to sail with us around the southwest corner of Turkey and up to Didim. 
From there we planned to leave the boat and head off to Ephesus then Istanbul together. After a day of showing Debby the Marmaris open market and finishing a few projects, we left beautiful Marmaris bay and started west. After several days of great downwind sailing and a nice anchorage in Bozburun we arrived in Bodrum where we spend a couple days exploring this popular holiday spot and dining along the waterfront.
Another day of nice sailing west and we arrived in Didim. We pulled into Didim Marina which is only a few years old and beautifully designed, complete with a fancy swimming pool. Given the high temperatures, we took full advantage. .
The following day we rented a car and drove to Ephesus, said to be Europe’s best preserved ancient city. It was founded in the 10th century BC. Once the capital of Roman Asia Minor, it had 250,000 residents and was a major port of trade. Ephesus was so important and wealthy that its Temple of Artemis was the largest in the world and one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. 
Christians settled here, including St. John and the Virgin Mary. This is where St. John wrote his letter to the Ephesians.
The port at Ephesus began to silt in and, despite efforts to dredge and even divert the silting waters, the bay became blocked, and the port no longer operational. While it remained a significant Christian base, the important shipping economy was lost.
Excavations started over 150 years ago and, at this time, only 18% has been uncovered. What has been unearthed reveals a lot about the lifestyle of the day. A huge library, marketplace, streets of shops, terraced houses, gymnasium, and stadium are easily identifiable. Of particular interest to many are the latrines, 42 seats situated elbow to elbow surrounding the edges of the building.
In one corner there was space for a musician who played not to entertain the visitors, but rather to drown out the sounds of the building in use! 
Not much privacy either.
On our way back to the marina we stopped at Didyma to watch the sun set over the ruins of the Temple of Apollo. Back at the boat we had a quick dinner and we all packed. We will be off to Istanbul the following morning.