We stayed in Tarragona which is 1 hour west of Barcelona while we were getting ready to board the ship. Once on the ship we prepared for a two-week crossing on Royal Caribbean Rhapsody. We had two ports in the Mediterranean Sea before going out into the Atlantic and stopping at two of the Canary Islands.
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When we took Israel off our travel plan so had two weeks to go somewhere (without spending lots of money). We decided to spend 8 nights in Istanbul and 5 nights in Spain outside of Barcelona. This increased our time in Turkey to 47 days.
We spend a day in Ephesus, and it was a highlight of ours, walking and visiting the same place that Paul preached was amazing. While in Ephesus with visited the house of Mary that John the Apostle built for her to live out the remainer of her life. When Mary died at the age of 64, she was buried in a cave near her house and when the tomb was opened it was found empty. After this miracle the House of Mother Mary was converted to a small chapel.
We loved our coastal towns, so we continued to Bodrum and took a day trip over to the Greek island of Kos. Then moved on to Akyaka a very small village and another boat ride before moving to Fethiye for 5 nights. We had the best apartment in Fethiye with a balcony overlooking the plaza and beach boardwalk. Our last days in Turkey were in Istanbul, a BIG city! We stayed inside the walls of the old city and of course visited the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia along with the many other sights in Istanbul.
Ephesus
Ephesus
Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia
100-year Turkey party Dancing at a wedding
We took almost a month on the cruise ship to return to California, then we flew to Alabama. We had so much fun on the ship. Being home for...
