BIBLICAL SITES OF TURKEY

ST PAUL CATHEDRAL AND MELITOUR PRESENT
A JOURNEY THROUGH THE BIBLICAL SITES OF TURKEY

ANATOLIA is the cradle of civilizations. Numerous cultures have blended together to create new,
revolutionary ideas and thoughts. Being Anatolian, Paul’s teachings bear a true reflection of this accumulated culture.
As St. Paul traveled around Anatolia on his three Missionary Journeys, he stopped in many cities and instructed people about Christian thought and faith. Today’s travelers may still feel something of Paul’s time in the ruins, the relics, and the living traditions. And like Paul some Anatolians still sit by their wooden looms and weave black goat hair into nomadic tents.

Tour Dates
Friday Sept. 12, 2008 - Sunday Sept. 28 , 2008

For more information and sign up please contact
Pamela Schmaling pschmaling@comcast.net

Blue line flight from Istanbul to Adana / From izmir - Istanbul
Red Line bus route Main tour and tour extension

ITINERARY

Day 01 Sept. 12, Friday ISTANBUL
Arrival in Istanbul Ataturk Airport.
Transfer to Hotel Ayasofya. Please check arrival info for details.
Arrival in Istanbul Ataturk Airport. Transfer to Hotel Ayasofya. Hotel Ayasofya is located in the Old City, where most houses remain as they were 200 years ago . The hotel is situated within walking distance of all the must-see places in Istanbul. Following check-in and a brief rest, tour will start at 5.00 pm. After a brief introduction, we will begin by visiting the Blue Mosque (Sultan Ahmet Mosque).
Dinner will be served at the Blue House, also in the Old City. From the terrace,we can see a magnificent view of Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, and the Asian coast of Istanbul. For dinner, we will have a typical sampling of Turkish food.

Day 02 Sept. 13, Saturday ISTANBUL

In the morning, we will visit the Byzantine Cistern and the Turkish Islamic Art Museum.
The visit to the Turkish Islamic Art Museum, especially the ethnographic section, makes a perfect introduction to what we will see in the countryside.After lunch visit Hagia Sophia, the grandest standing monument from 1500 years before our time; the Topkapi Palace, the residence of the Ottoman Sultans from 1453-1856. At 06:30 PM we will have a group meeting at the lobby of the hotel to go over
the tour and to answer the possible questions of the tour members. Dinner will be served at Kumkapi, a very colorful quarter of Istanbul, where the ambiance is just as memorable as the food we will be served in this seafood restaurant. Overnight at Hotel Ayasofya ISTANBUL

Day 03 Sept. 14, Sunday ISTANBUL

Today, we will begin by visiting the Church of St. Savior in Chora(Kariye Museum),
a beautiful 6th c. Byzantian Church, decorated with 11th c. wall paintings depicting scenes from the Bible. Next, we will visit the hub of Istanbul’s trade activity for 5 centuries, the Grand Bazaar (Kapali Carsi). After lunch, we will see one of the masterpieces of the 16th c. chief architect, Mimar Sinan. The mosque he built for Sultan Suleyman the Magnificient, The Suleymaniye Mosque, is one of the landmarks of the Istanbul skyline with its four minarets and cascading domes. Next, we will visit the See of Greek Orthodox Christianity, the Patriarchate in Fener on the shores of the Golden Horn. Lastly, we will take a walk under the 500-year old domes of the Spice Market (Misir Carsisi). We will relax and enjoy the beautiful sky line of Istanbul in a private tour boat that will take us up and down the Bosphorus, on the shores of which we will see magnificent palaces, private kiosks, castles, etc. Dinner will be served at a wonderful place where we will enjoy the moon light dancing on the waters of Bosphorus

Day 04 Sept. 15, Monday ADANA & ANTAKYA

MORNING FLIGHT TO ADANA Antioch of Cilicia (Antakya) is where St. Stephan and Barnabas organized the first followers of Christ. This is also where St. Paul met Barnabas for the first time, after his epiphany on the road to Damascus, and his proselytizing work in Namibia and in Damascus. St. Peter also traveled here from Jerusalem to resolve the disputes between the Jerusalem fathers and the “Greek School” led by St. Stephan. This is also where the followers of Christ were called Christians for the first time.We will visit the mosaic Museum of Antakya which reveals the wealth and grandeur of the Roman city at St. Paul's time. OVERNIGHT IN ANTAKYA at Antik Beyazit Hotel

Day 05 Sept. 16, Tuesday TARSUS
Visit St. Peter's church. Drive to the Monastary of St Simon
After lunch Drive to Tarsus, birthplace of St. Paul. Dinner by a water fall. Overnight in Tarsus

Day 06 Sept. 17, Wednesday GUZELYURT (CAPPADOCIA)
Drive from Tarsus, birthplace of St. Paul.Drive through the Cilician Gates, just like Paul and Barnabas did on their first journey into Galatia “to deliver unutterable expressions into a strange land” (II Cor 12:2-4). At Nigde, we will see the oldest known Madonna and the Child scene on a wall of a 1,100 year old church. We will continue to where St. Gregory was born and established the oldest monastery on earth. In the beauty of the Monastery Valley, one can imagine the monks contemplating to find the best way of passing the word of God to the fire worshippers of the region. OVERNIGHT AT HOTEL KARBALLA in GUZELYURT . For those who might be interested in home stay we can arrange a home stay with a mother and a daughter.

Day 07 Sept 18 Thursday Uchisat CAPPADOCIA

From Guzelyurt, we will driv to Cappadocia, where we will visit the underground city of Kaymakli and the oldest Monastary of Turkey.The Christians of the first through fourth century had to hide away from the Romans who were persecuting Christians . The underground cities were excellent refuge for those who were determined not to convert. After christianity was accepted as a state religion, the same underground cities were used to hide from the Arab invaders. We will visit the locals in their natural homes, carved out of the peculiar land formations in the volcanic ash, called Fairy Chimneys.Overnight at Lalesaray HOTEL, in Uchisar

Day 08 Sept. 19, Friday UCHISAR (CAPPADOCIA)

In Cappadocia, Creator and man competed in creating the most unusual and the most beautiful. Enjoy the moon-like landscape with endless forms of work of art, natural and man-made. The colors of the frescoes of the twelve hundred year old churches are just as fresh as the colors of the carpets woven in the region. The rock formations are just as striking as the local pottery made of the clay obtained from the old river beds. St Paul visited the region, called Caesarea, on his 1st Missionary Journey. As one visits the colorful "churches" of Cappadocia and admires the surrounding forms of thrilling art buried in nature, it becomes easier to imagine how the ideas and teachings of St. Paul sprouted into life and affected the Cappadocians for two thousand years. We will visit the carpet cooperative to learn more about the Turkish carpets, which are inseparable part of the Turkish life. Dinner & Overnight at Museum Hotel. In the morning easy hike to Zelve to see the 10-11th century churches, monasteries and houses carved in the rocks. Visit villagers at their rock dwellings. We will visit the astonishing Goreme Open Air Museum, with its numerous monasteries and see how each monk had interpreted, in their wall paintings, the history of Christianity. Overnight at Lalesaray HOTEL, in Uchisar

Day 09 Sept. 20, Saturday KONYA
We will begin our day with a visit to Avanos, on the banks of the Red River, to see how the potters perform the
thousand-year old tradition of ceramics. After lunch , we will continue to Konya (Iconium) on the old silk road.
Following the foot steps ofSt.Paul we will appreciate the distances that St Paul had to cover on foot or on his donkey.
En route, we will make a couple of stops at the Caravanserais, where Camels used to take a break on their long journey from China to the Mediterranean.
Dinner and overnight at hotel BAYKARA in Konya

Day 10 Sept. 21, Sunday ANTIOCH OF PISIDIA /PAMUKKALE
Start the day with a visit to the Museum of Mevlana (Rumi) in Konya, known as the ancient city of Iconium. After lunch drive to Antioch of Psidia where St. Paul had visited twice. At the Temple of Agustos where St Paul was not allowed you can now have your service. Drv e to Pamukkale via Collesea ( region) where two of St. Paul's letters were addressed.
Stay overnight at Pamukkale Thermal Hotel.

Day 11 Sept. 22, Monday MILETUS/KUSADASI/Pamukkale

The most unusual natural pheno
menon of Turkey, formed of snow-white calcite deposits,
cascading down hundreds of feet and washed by mineral-rich hot springs. in Pamukkale. For those who want to have a early morning hike at the ancient site, we will leave at 07:00 am before it gets crowded and hot while those who choose to have a late morning can wait for the hikers to return.
Visit Miletus (Act 20:13-17), which was the major rival of Ephesus, until the silt carried by the River Meander slowly
filled the Ephesian harbor and pushed Miletus to prominence. Overnight in Kusadasi.

Day 12 Sept. 23, Tuesday EPHESUS/KUSADASI

Today, we will visit the ancient site of Ephesus, the Ephesus Museum and the house of the Virgin Mary. Ephesus was the 4th largest city of the Roman Empire, after Rome, Alexandria and Antioch of Cilicia. Today, Ephesus is the largest Roman excavation site in Turkey. The grand avenues and intact social buildings help one build the city in their imagination with not too much of an effort. As one walks in the theater, which had a seating capacity of 24,000, the sounds of the enraged Ephesians, led by Demitrius the silversmith, can almost be heard. According to Acts 19 St Paul, who visited Ephesus twice, was never given an opportunity to speak in this theater when the Ephesians were reminded that St Paul and his teachings were a threat to the way they made their living. So Paul wrote everything he had to say to the Ephesians in his letters. Thus Ephesus is mentioned not only in Acts but there is a whole big chapter in the Bible named the ''Epistle of Apostle Paul to the Ephesians.'' Overnight at Kismet hotel in Kusadasi

Day 13 Sept. 24, Wednesday PERGAMUM/AYVALIK
We drive north along the Aegean Sea to Pergamum, which reached its zenith in the second century B.C.E. and equals Ephesus in importance. Pergamum wasone of the Seven Churches of Revelation. Here we visit the Acropolis; the library that rivaled Alexandria; and the Asclepion, a great medical center that peaked under the celebrated physician Galen, who was born here. We continue our drive through a pine nut forest and mountain villages to Ayvalik, Overnight at Ayvalik

Day 14 Sept 25 Thursday ASSOS
We drive all the way around the Bay of Edremit,enjoying the coastal scenery, then visit the Temple of Athena, in Assos. (Act -20)We continue to the nearby picturesque village of Yesilyurt. Here we stay overnight in the most luxurious accommodations of the trip -- a hotel overlooking the mountains where mythology tells us that Hera and Zeus married

Day 15 Sept 26 Friday TROY/BURSA
Today our adventure takes us first to Troy. Several ancient cities have been excavated here, but the site’s real romance comes from the decade-long Trojan War, in the thirteenth century B.C.E. The face that launched a thousand ships, the Achilles heel, the wooden horse -- all of it happened here, in Homer’s telling of the war in the Iliad.
Our next stop will be Bursa, the first capital of the Ottoman Empire. We will enjoy the Early Ottoman architecture and how they have contributed to the Islamic art with their calligraphy and tiles.

Day 16 Sept 27 Saturday ISTANBUL
Visit Iznik, Ancient Nicea. Walk through the same gate where hundreds of council men walked in to Aya Sophia Church to decide on trinity in the first Eucemenical Council.
Make a home visit to the house of the grand son of the Ottoman Sultan and chat with his "doll maker" wife who is a wonderful person. FERRY TO ISTANBUL OVER NIGHT IN ISTANBUL

Day 17 Sept. 28, Sunday End of the tour fly to the USA
Transfer to the air port

WHERE TO FIND
THE BIBLICAL SITES OF TURKEY
IN THE BIBLE

NOAH: THE FLOOD - MOUNT ARARAT

ABRAHAM

Genesis6:5
Genesis6:11
Genesis6:14
Genesis 8:4
Genesis8:11

Mount Aratat

HARRAN Genesis 11:31
CANAAN Genesis 12:7
NIMROD Genesis 10:8
UR Genesis 11:28,
NE 12:27-8

Harran

ADAM AND EVE -GARDEN OF EDEN

URARTU ( Kingdom of Ararat)

Genesis 2:11
Genesis 2:9
Genesis 2:13

Gerden of Eden - fresco from Akdamar Church

GE   8:4
EZR   4:7
ISA   37:3

Urartu Castle

HITTITES

Genesis 10:15,20
Genesis 23:09-39
JDG      1:26
ISA     26:6
EZE     16:3

EVENT OR PLACE		REFERENCES IN THE KING JAMES VERSION OF THE BIBLE
Paul was born in Tarsus	Acts 21:39; 22:3	Phrygia and Galatia	Acts 16:6
Cilician Gates	Acts 15:41	ANTIOCH AD ORONTOS	Acts 16:7
Mysia	Acts 16:7,8	Iconium	Acts 14:1
Antioch (in Pisidia)	Acts 14:14	Lystra and Derbe	Acts 14:6
Myra	Acts 27:5	Patara	Acts 21:1
Colosse	Coll 1:2	Philemon	Philemon: 8
Assos	Acts 20:13,14	Troas	Acts 16:8,11; 20:5,6; 2 Cor 2:12; 2 Tim 4:13
Perga	Acts 13:13,14; 14:25	Miletus	Acts 20:15, 17
Attalia	Acts 14: 25	Ephesus	Acts 18:19,21,24; 19:1,17,26,35; 20:16,17; 1 Cor 15:32; 16:8; Eph 1:1; 1 Tim 1:3; 2 Tim 1:18; 4:12; Rev 1:11; 2:1

THE BOOK OF REVELATION
Ephesus 2: 1 - 7 Smyrna 2: 8 - 11 Pergamum 2 : 12 -17 Tyatira 2: 18-29 Sardes 3: 1-6 Phyledelphia 3: 7-13Laodecia 3: 14-22