Tour Description
Selcuk is a small town where famous Ephesus Ancient City is located. Our first stop is House of Virgin Mary, where she is believed to have lived her last days. We will then proceed to beautifully preserved Ephesus Ancient City. Ephesus is probably the best combination of Greek, Roman and Byzantine civilizations. With the mythological stories and spectacular ruins you will feel the life in ancient city. See the Fountains of Trojan, Polio, the Temples of Hadrian and Domition, Private House, the Library of Celsius, Various and Scholastic Baths, Bouloterion and the Great Theatre with capacity of 24,000 spectators. Now we are ready to learn to cook a Turkish meal for ourselves. Our first stop is the street market of the town (available only on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays – on other days ingredients will be provided by the restaurant) and do our shopping for fresh vegetables and other ingredients. Our menu may vary depending on season and your taste. We may learn to cook a nice vegetable cassarole, or a Turkish style pizza or some stuffed eggplants. After preparing, we will be using a stone oven to cook our food. After lunch, we will proceed to small and beautiful village of Sirince located up the hill. This village is famous with it’s fruit wines. You will have a chance to learn how fruit wines (cherry, peach, raspberry, melon, etc) are made and will also have a tasting session. You will also have a chance to walk around it’s narrow streets and shop from locals selling olive oil, soap, wine, food and souvenirs. Today, you will also have a chance to visit a nearby carpet center in order to learn and understand about this very important and traditional local handicrafts.
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Tour Details
Day 1 – Agricultural Day
Welcome to Izmir! Upon arrival you will be met by a Unison Turkey representative at the airport and escorted to your hotel. Today you will witness and be a part of the villagers’ and the farmers’ lives. Our first visit is to Sirince Village which is famous with it’s fruit wines. You will have a chance to learn how fruit wines (cherry, peach, raspberry, melon, etc) are made and will also have a tasting session. You will also have a chance to walk around it’s narrow streets and shop from locals selling olive oil, soap, wine, food and souvenirs. Rest of our visits will include Isabey Mosque overlooking St John’s Basilica and Artemis Temple, surrounding villages and some farms. You will have a chance to meet the local farmers to discuss and learn about the region’s produce and cooking habits.
Day 2 – Ephesus – Cooking Class
After breakfast in the hotel, we will drive to Selcuk. This is a small town where famous Ephesus Ancient City is located. Our first stop is House of Virgin Mary, where she is believed to have lived her last days. After a visit to the Ephesus Museum where you will see many important ornaments taken from Ephesus, you will then proceed to beautifully preserved Ephesus Ancient City. Ephesus is probably the best combination of Greek, Roman and Byzantine civilizations. With the mythological stories and spectacular ruins you will feel the life in ancient city. See the Fountains of Trojan, Polio, the Temples of Hadrian and Domition, Private House, the Library of Celsius, Various and Scholastic Baths, Bouloterion and the Great Theatre with capacity of 24,000 spectators. Now we are ready to learn to cook a Turkish meal for ourselves. Our first stop is the street market of the town (available only on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays – on other days ingredients will be provided by the restaurant) and do our shopping for fresh vegetables and other ingredients. Our menu may vary depending on season and your taste. We may learn to cook a nice vegetable cassarole, or a Turkish style pizza or some stuffed eggplants. After preparing, we will be using a stone oven to cook our food. While lunch is being cooked, you will have a chance to visit a nearby carpet center in order to learn and understand about this very important and traditional local handicrafts. After lunch, we will proceed to remains Artemis Temple, one of the former seven wonders of the world.
Day 3 – Piriene – Fishing Village
Our first visit today is Piriene Ancient City, one of the most active ports of the Lonian Federation. The city is the oldest example of geometric city planning. While you are here, see the Temple of Athena, which was built by Architect Pytheos, responsible for the construction of the Mausoleum at the Halicarnassus, considered to be one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Visit the Stoa, the Agora, the Market Place, the Temenos of Zeus Olympic, which dates from the 3rd Century BC., the Bouleuterion, the Prytaneion where municipal or state council representatives met, the Theatre which still retains most of its Hellenistic features, the Sanctuary of Demeter which was dedicated to the deities of Plenty, Demeter and Kore. Also see the Archbishop's Church, the Upper Gymnasium and the Stadium, North-East Gateway, the Temenos of Kybele and the House of Alexander the Great where he stayed during his siege of Miletus in 334 BC. After our visit, we will proceed to a nearby fishing village, Doganbey, to get to know the villagers and enjoy a fish lunch by the waters of Aegean. The fish is freshly caught by the fishermen and the is always accompanied with olive oil mezes and a rich green salad. You may want to try traditional alcoholic drink of Turkey – Raki (A.K.A. Lion’s Milk) which is made of ANASON and is a very popular drink to accompany a fish meal. On our way back to our hotel we will be taking occasional stops to get to know the local life better and purchase some food (nuts, dried fruits, olive oil, etc) along the way. This afternoon, you will be transferred to the airport for your flight to the next destination.
Price Details
Price Includes:
Pick-up & drop-off
Entrance fees as per itinerary
Air-conditioned vehicle
Cooking class and lunch
Professional English speaking tour guide, fully licensed under the Ministery of Tourism
