~The {LOVE} Boat...Days 7, 8, 9 & 10 ~

~Our fifth port stop was in Kusadasi, Turkey - so much different than our stop in Santorini, Greece... and we really did not have a lot of expecations.. but it ended up being one of the most fun days of the whole trip~


~You could tell you were in Turkey right when you got off the cruise ship. Lots of people begging for your business and wanting you to go in their shops. The most famous thing to do in this town is to see Ephesus. We were not sure if we wanted to.. but a little afraid we would regret it if we didn't. We got "taunted" the entire 5 blocks up off the ship about taxi rides. We continued to say no until we got asked by just the right person... He offered us a ride in his Impala taxi to see the ancient Turkish city of Ephesus... you would have thought the impala had a halo around it.... how can you pass that up?! Priceless :)~


~We know that you are all thinking... what the heck are they doing on these ancient ruin pedestals from 6 BC? But isn't it an excellent photo? Yes, we did get yelled at for our poor decision. No regrets!~


~Ephesus - ancient Greek city in modern day Turkey. Home to the Temple of Artemis, one of the seven wonders of that ancient world. And probably more relevant, home to the Ephesians, whom Paul wrote to in the New Testament while imprisoned in Rome~


~In front of the Library of Celcus in Ephesus~


~Library of Celcus~


~The Theater (Ephesus)
This magnificent classical theater is considered an important biblical site: the probable place where Paul preached to the pagans in Acts. It is still in use and can seat thousands~


~The Theater with other surrounding ruins~


~You cannot come to Turkey and not experience a real Turkish Bath. The boys came out with huge smiles on their faces and we still laugh from the events that took place inside :)~


~We had agreat time at Ephesus, in the fabulous Impala with Deniz our personal tour guide, lets not forget he famous Turkish Bath, and lots of good shopping... we loved Turkey~


~We loved the sunsets from the boat. Most of the time we would watch it from the hot tub, or from our balcony in our room... can I just go back tomorrow? Anyone want to join us on our next cruise?~


~Our sixth stop was in Athens, Greece. This is a huge and very busy city.. but you have to see the ancient sites. It was an easy metro ride to get us there~


~We made it to the Parthenon on the Acropolis... it was an amazing site~


~I am so glad that we got to see the Parthenon... an extraordinary creation. Dating back to 6th century BC.. the history of these sites is something else~


~Parthenon, Acropolis - Athens, Greece~


~One more country we grew to love.... we will definitely be going back to Greece~


~Do we look fat & happy or what? We cruised on Holland America and we really could not have been happier. The service was out of this world, the food was incredible, the entertainment and services..... I have never been treated like royalty until I stepped foot on this ship. We went here every night to listen to our favorite guitar player & singer~


~Our 7th port stop was in Sicily. I wish that we had more photos... between the donkey ride up and down, the scooter ride for 7 hours, and the game of volleyball at the very top of the boat for 3 hours.... I put out my back :( When we stopped here.. I could barely walk. This is all we got. Luckily we only had a few hours here so I didn't feel that bad~


~The towel creations were always a fun surprise to find when we would come in our room after they tucked it down each night for us. I miss not having to lift a finger~


~The workers on this ship were the hardest working people I have ever seen. The rooms were always perfect (cleaned a couple of times a day), the food was outstanding - so much fun to eat these fancy meals all day long, this was definitely the best way to celebrate our 10 year anniversary. So much fun!~