"Videos of Trip Regions" Tentative Trip Date: March-April 2010

Izmir Smiling faces, welcoming places, the pearl of Aegean Sea.

Izmir Slide Show An excellent slide show about Izmir, Turkey, with background music clip "Kordon Boyu Faytonlar" by Ege, a famous Turkish popstar from Izmir. The song is also about Izmir.

19th Century Izmir (Smyrna) The pictures reflect the multi-ethnical landscape of Smyrna in the 19th century. Most non-muslim minorities of Smyrna left the city in 1922 and the following years. Most Jews emigrated, after Israel was created.

Ephesus Panoramic Ephesus is the best preserved classical city of the Eastern Mediterranean, and among the best places in the world enabling one to genuinely 'soak in' the atmosphere of Roman times.

Cappadocia contains several underground cities, largely used by early Christians as hiding places before Christianity became a legitimate religion..

"Sacred Treasures of Western Turkey" Tentative Trip Date: September-October 2010

Join us on our inaugural visit to Izmir, Turkey as we form an international bridge linking...

• Business
• Cultural
• Social and
• Educational worlds of two special cities.

This special Trip Itinerary is prepared for the Rolling Hills Covenant Church. We will experience and celebrate the mystical treasures of Asia Minor, the region where the Christiany spread first...

"Sacred Treasures of Western Turkey"

Day		From	To	Depart/Arrive	Activity
Day 1		LAX	Istanbul Overnight in transfer	Depart: TBA Arrive: TBA	Our Turkish adventure starts on board Turkish Airlines.
Day 2		Istanbul	Overnight stay in Izmir	Depart: TBA Arrive: TBA	We will be met at the Istanbul International Airport and escorted through our change of planes for Izmir. Upon arrival in Izmir, we will have time to rest and freshen up for our first local culinary feast. We will meet and mix with friends of Izmir-Long Beach Sister Cities. Planned Hotel: Izmir Hilton
Day 3		Pergamum Thyatira Sardis Overnight stay in Izmir	We’re off to PERGAMUM, home to one of the Seven Churches on our airconditioned luxury bus. NIKE, the goddess of Victory was the symbol of the city. We will visit the Acropolis in Pergamum. The throne of Satan from the Bible is here! We know it as the altar of Zeus. The 10,000 capacity Hellenistic theater is the steepest theater in the world. Pergamum is home of GALEN, the doctor! We visit the 2400 year old school of medicine; Asklepieion. After lunch in a village restaurant in BERGAMA we will head to ancient THYATIRA; one of the Seven Churches in city of Akhisar. We will travel to the pyramidal tomb city of the ancient Lydians, to SARDIS, one of the Seven Churches of the Apocalypse! Sardis where Coinage was invented, was home of King Croesus. The expression, “richer than Croesus” originates from him. Sardis has the largest Roman Gymnasium extant and we will visit the well preserved ancient synagogue. We will enjoy the gorgeous setting at the Temple of Artemis. Late afternoon arrival in IZMIR. What a fabulous day! Planned Hotel: Izmir Hilton
Day 4		Ephesus House of Mary Overnight stay in Kusadasi	Today, we’re off to EPHESUS, home to one of the Seven Churches and the end of the caravan routes to the interior region of Mesopotamia. From here the ships sail to ROME and beyond! Ephesus is the best preserved classical city of the Eastern Mediterranean, and among the best places in the world enabling one to genuinely 'soak in' the atmosphere of Roman times. Among the highlights of the city is the Library of Celsus with many secrets (Robin tell us all of them!), the Theatre, the Curetes Way, the Temple of Hadrian, the Odeon and the State Agora, the Square of the Temple of Emperor Domitian, the Temple of Artemis which was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World and the Basilica of St. John and site of the tomb of the St. John. The Terrace Houses will open our eyes to the Romans and their "art" of living. Fascinating! After lunch in the village of SELCUK, we stroll through the local market and visit the Archeological Museum. Next, we will visit House of Virgin Mary in the mystic and quiet atmosphere of Mount Aladag. This place of pilgrimage visited by thousands every year, maintains its holiness for the Moslems as well as for the Christian world. People believing in the godly qualities of the Virgin Mary come here and drink from the water believed to be sacred. Another fabulous day, and we have many more ahead of us! Afternoon arrival in KUSADASI where we will enjoy a glass of wine on the terrace under the trees and overlooking the best view of the port. Tomorrow we will sail away for a day trip from that port following the route of St. JOHN on his way to PATMOS to write Revelation! Planned Hotel: Kismet OR Charisma Deluxe (Video)
Day 5		Patmos Overnight stay in Kusadasi	Early in the morning, we will depart by special charter boat for PATMOS where JOHN wrote the last book of the Bible. Patmos is located on the eastern part of the Aegean sea. The ferry boat journey to the holy island from Kusadasi is short. The port of Patmos is called Skala. On the top of the cliff is the beautiful Chora, the capital of the island with white houses and narrow roads overlooking the whole Aegean. In the middle of this landscape, dominates the enormous Byzantine monastery of St. John Theologos which was built in 1088. In the monastery's safe, there are Byzantine icons, jewellery and emperor's presents, while in the library there are 3,000 books and rare manuscripts. On the route between Skala and Chora is the Cave of St. John, believed to be the location where John of Patmos received his visions that he recorded in the Book of Revelation. In 17th century, a monastery was built around the cave. In 1999, UNESCO declared the cave a joint World Heritage Site together with our next stop, the Monastery of Saint John "the Theologian." We will enjoy meal on the lovely waterfront of Patmos. Overnight stay back in Kusadasi, Turkey. Planned Hotel: Kismet OR Charisma Deluxe (Video)
Day 6		Didyma Miletus Overnight stay in Kusadasi	After early morning breakfast at KISMET in Kusadasi, we will take our arirconditioned luxury bus to the port of Altinkum. We will continue to DIDYMA and visit the Temple of Apollo. We will drive to the ancient port city of Miletus, now six miles inland from the sea. St. Paul spoke to the Elders who traveled from Ephesus just to see him. (It was too dangerous for PAUL to return to Ephesus). St. Paul's words are preserved for us in the Bible. Our next stop is Priene, an ancient Greek city of Ionia at the base of an escarpment of Mycale, 25 kilometres (16 mi) from ancient Miletus. Formerly on the sea coast, Priene possessed a great deal of famous Hellenistic art and architecture. The city with around 5 thousand inhabitants was arranged into political, cultural, commercial and religious districts. Overnight stay back in Kusadasi, Turkey. Planned Hotel: Kismet OR Charisma Deluxe (Video)
Day 7		Overnight stay in Cappadocia	This morning, we will take our luxury airconditioned bus to travel deep into Asia Minor, to Cappadocia. We will arrive in Cappadocia in the afternoon. The area is a famous and popular tourist destination, as it has many areas with unique geological, historic and cultural features. Demonstration of pottery making and lecture on Turkish hand made rugs will be part of our activity. Cappadocia is mentioned in the Biblical account given in the book of Acts 2:9. The Cappadocians were named as one group hearing the Gospel account from Galileans in their own language on the day of Pentecost shortly after the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Acts 2:5 seems to suggest that the Cappadocians in this account were "God-fearing Jews". See Acts of the Apostles. Planned Hotel: Cappadocia Cave Suites OR Yusuf Yigitoglu Konagi
Day 8		Urgup Uchisar Zelve Overnight stay in Cappadocia	Today, we will spend the full day discovering the Biblical history of Cappadocia Our first site will be Urgup, known for its famous hotels built right within caves, for its wines and hand made carpets. It is the most important tourism center of the Cappadocia region. Our next site is Uchisar, a sleepy little town. Uchisar's fortress offers fine views for miles around over the surrounding countryside. A strong contender for favourite place status, the Zelve monastery complex lacks the elaborate frescoes of Goreme and other sites but there's still plenty here to see. Planned Hotel: Cappadocia Cave Suites OR Yusuf Yigitoglu Konagi
Day 9		Kaymakli Avanos Göreme Overnight stay in Cappadocia	Today, we will spend another full day discovering the Biblical history of Cappadocia. The first Christians escaping from the persecution of Roman Empire in the 2nd century B.C. came to the Cappadocia over the Antakya and Kayseri to settle here. They found refuge in the underground cities without going out for long duration. We will visit two of such sites, the Kaymakli and the Avanos. Cappadocia's most famous attraction is the Göreme Open Air Museum, a complex of medieval painted cave churches carved out by Orthodox monks. In the 4th century, Cappadocia became known as the "Land of the Three Saints" because of three remarkable theologians who are still collectively known as The Cappadocians: St. Basil the Great, his brother St. Gregory of Nyssa, and St. Gregory of Nazianzus contributed a great deal to Christian doctrine in general and Eastern Orthodox thought in particular. Planned Hotel: Cappadocia Cave Suites OR Yusuf Yigitoglu Konagi
Day 10		Overnight stay in Ankara	This morning, we will take our luxury airconditioned bus to Ankara. We will arrive in Ankara in the afternoon before the rush hour traffic of the 4 million populated Turkish capital city. Tonight, we will meet and mix with friends of Izmir-Long Beach Sister Cities and other Ankara based groups! Planned Hotel: Gordion OR Sheraton Ankara
Day 11		Overnight stay in Ankara	Today, we will visit the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations situated at the entrance of Ankara Castle. It consists of the old Ottoman Mahmut Paşa bazaar storage building, and the Kurşunlu Han. It is an old "bedesten" (covered bazaar) that has been beautifully restored and now houses a unique collection of Paleolithic, Neolithic, Hatti, Hittite, Phrygian, Urartian, and Roman works as well as a major section dedicated to Lydian treasures. The museum was started in 1921 because of Atatürk's desire to establish a Hittite museum. It is one of the richest museums in the world. The rest of the day will be dedicated to shopping in Ankara. Planned Hotel: Gordion OR Sheraton Ankara
Day 12		Ankara Istanbul	LAX	Depart: TBA Arrive: TBA	We end our Turkish experience until next time on board Turkish Airlines... Welcome Home!