It’s about time to rescue Selcuk from the shadow of its famous neighbour Ephesus. It annoys me when I hear people say: “Oh, Selcuk. Isn’t that where you pass through on your way to Ephesus?” Yet it is confusing as the Ephesus Museum is in Selcuk.

Well, yes, that’s true but there are several reasons for not ignoring one of my favourite European destinations which is a town full of important Turkish history and three archaeological  sites deserving  a day trip to Selcuk for its own sake.

Selcuk is located 20 km NE of the lovely coastal town of Kusadasi where many cruse ships dock for a day, so a visit to Selcuk makes it a nice day trip. Arriving at the town center, just make you way towards Ayasoluk Hill and there you have all three sites close together.

The slopes of the hill are steep and so is the access road, so make sure you wear comfortable footwear.

The lowest site is the Basilica of St. John. For some reason it’s indicated as St. Jean, but just follow the sign. You enter the complex through huge stone arches, climb up part of the hill and roam what’s left of a once massive basilica.

Legend has it, that this is the place where St. John, the apostle was buried and Emperor Justinian and his wife Theodosia ordered a huge basilica construed above the supposed tomb. Particularly during the Middle Ages the vast church became a holy place and destination of thousands of pilgrims.

With the decline of the Byzantine Empire and the ascend of the Ottomans, a mosque was built in place of the church in the 13^th century and finally, Tamerlan, the Mongol ruler, destroyed the whole structure  in the 14^th century. However, extensive excavations and restorations have been conducted and you can see several original features as well as a sketch of what the original basilica looked like, which must have been nearly as impressive as Istanbul’s Hagia Sofia.

Turn left and walk along a winding path and you find monument #2: the Isa Bay Mosque. This mosque which dates from the 14^th century is the earliest representative of a mosque with a colonnaded courtyard in Anatolia.

My absolute favourite  however is the Great Fortress which sits atop the hill. It never fails to surprise me how many people I have spoken to have said: “Castle? In Selcuk? What castle?” I can’t  understand how you can possibly overlook such a massive fortress compared to which the much more famous one in  Bodrum seems like a mere ‘burg.

The castle dates from the Byzantine as well as the Ottoman periods and the huge outer walls are dominated by 15 towers, all of them intact.

Inside there are stone paved streets, cisterns, a church  as well as a mosque and several other buildings.

On my last visit, a few weeks ago, the castle was closed because further excavation is under way. I was told that it will re-open to the public in September 2010.

Then of course, back down the hill and turning right, is the Ephesus museum which is well worth a visit.

Pamucab, close to Selcuk is the place where in winter, the camel wrestling championship takes place. So, if you visit in winter, check it out.

As many people just pass through Selcuk on their way to Ephesus it has remained a nice and quiet town with pedestrian areas criss -crossing the center lined with several very nice cafes where you can rest your feet.

Last, but not least you might get lucky and see a few migrating storks. Selcuk is a famous resting place for the birds on their way to hotter climates, so do as the storks do and spend some time in Selcuk.