Acropolis in Bergama

September 9

       Today we spent the whole day at the Acropolis in Bergama. We took a gondola up to the site, which reminded me of the one in Palm Springs. The definition of acropolis is a citadel or fortress on a hill. We explored, drew, and painted this citadel for seven hours. The columns were amazing and it overlooked the city and a lake behind. Some columns were clearly reconstructed, but we were allowed to sit, stand or do whatever we wanted on the ruins. It was so awesome to experience a site that was built in 334 B.C. Although many things were in ruins, the theater was fully in tact. We walked down and ran up the 215+ stairs. Elissa and I also tried to crawl through a tiny hole/tunnel, but there were way too many spiders. The acropolis was beautiful and it gave us a taste of what we will be experiencing in Athens.

         After a long day in the sun we hopped in the pool at the hotel. Some how we managed to fit about 15 people in a 3 by 7 meter pool. Playing marco polo lasted about 2 minutes. Then we walked on over to a restaurant called Birtat Kabob Salon U which was delicious. Our bus driver, Izzet, who we have for the next two weeks took us there. We are very grateful for him. Now we are back at the beautiful hotel relaxing, uploading photos, and catching up on work.