Bible Lands: Seven Churches

Fly from Atlanta to Istanbul.

- Monday, May 17

A shuttle will be available to take participants from FHU to the Atlanta airport.

Arrive in Istanbul

- Tuesday, May 18

Arrive at Istanbul Ataturk International Airport and transfer to the hotel. Istanbul’s original name is Byzantium then Constantinople. It is a most fascinating city, which actually crosses two continents: Europe and Asia.

Istanbul

- Wednesday, May 19

Discover the Byzantine and Ottoman treasures of Istanbul. We will visit Hagia Sophia, the Church of the Sacred Wisdom, converted to a mosque from a Christian basilica after the fall of Constantinople in 1453. We will see the Hippodrome and the Obelisk brought from Egypt. Then our next visit is the Blue Mosque with its six minarets. After lunch at Pudding Shop, we will enjoy a visit to the Underground Cistern and continue to the Egyptian Spice Market. Participants have the option to visit the beautiful Topkapi Palace as well.

Istanbul - Troy - Assos - Ayvalik

- Thursday, May 20

After breakfast we depart for Troy, the immortal city of Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, and see the various layers, which make up the nine cities. Afterward, we will visit Troas where Paul reached on his second journey (Acts 16:8-10) before receiving the vision of Macedonia asking for help. He left books, parchments and a coat at Troas and asked Timothy to bring them with him to Rome (2 Tim. 4:13) and Assos where Paul walked from Troas, while others joining him made the trip by sea (Acts 20:5-6, 13).. Paul sailed from Assos to Mitylene (Acts 20:14). We will finally drive to our hotel in Ayvalık.

Ayvalik - Pergamum - Thyatira - Izmir

- Friday, May 21

We will drive to Pergamum, actually called Bergama, one of the sites of the Seven Churches of Asia [Rev. 1:11; 2:12]. Here we will explore the Acropolis, the steepest theater in the world, the Asklepieion, the Altar of Zeus, the marble columns of the Temple of Trajan and the Library which was foremost in the world and a rival of the Library of Alexandria in Egypt. We will also visit the Red Basilica (St. John's Church). We will continue to Thyatira, now called Akhisar, another of the Seven Churches of Asia [Rev. 1:11; 2:18-24; Acts 16:14]. This hometown of Lydia (Acts 16:14) was originally a small industrial town and military outpost famous for purple dyes. We will visit the remains of a basilica and architectural fragments from the Roman period. Next, we will enjoy a panoramic ride of Smyrna, the third largest city in Turkey and one of the sites of the Seven Churches of Asia [Rev. 2:12-17]. We will ascend to Mount Pagus and visit the Citadel of Lysimachus, commander of Alexander the Great, erected in the 4th century BC. We will also see the Clock Tower.

Izmir - Smyrna - Sardis - Philadelphia - Pamukkale

- Saturday, May 22

Our first visit will be to Ancient agora in Smyrna. Then, we will depart to one of the most picturesque areas of any of the Seven Churches of Asia [Rev. 1:11; 3:1-4], Sardis, presently Sart. This was the capital of the ancient Lydian kingdom of the 6th century BC. We visit the great Temple of Artemis and the Temple of Cybele, which became a Byzantine Church. We will also visit the restored gymnasium and reconstructed largest Synagogue. We also see the last several meters of the royal Persian Road from Susa to Sardis built by Cyrus the Great and the “golden” river Pactolus. After lunch, we continue our journey to Philadelphia, now called Alasehir, another church of the Seven Churches of Asia [Rev. 1:11; 3:7]. Here we only see the remains of a Byzantine basilica built of brick, with a bit of high arch and some 11th century frescoes. We will continue to Laodicea, located near Colossae (Col. 2:1; 4:15) where we will see the ancient theater, the remains of a basilica and ancient stone water pipes.

Hierapolis - Laodicea - Kusadasi

- Sunday, May 23

We will drive to the healing city of Hierapolis, actually Pamukkale, the white “cotton fortress” where hot mineral water bursts from the earth and cascades over steep cliffs forming pools, channels and stalactites. Paul greeted this city in his letter to the Colossians (Col. 4:13). We will visit the Martyrium of the Apostle Philip where he was martyred during the persecutions ordered by Domitian. We will see the Gate of Domitian, the Arcadian Way, the 2nd century AD Theater, the Nymphaion, the Temple of Apollo, the Necropolis and the Plutonium, the entrance to the underworld before continuing to Kusadasi.

Patmos

- Monday, May 24

After an early ferry at 07:00 a.m., we will arrive at 10:15 a.m. to where the Apostle John was exiled and wrote the Book of Revelation. We will meet our local guide and board the private bus to visit the Greek Orthodox Monastery of St. John with a fantastic view of the island and the Grotto of the Revelation. After some free time in the port of Skala we will take our boat back at 2:30pm. Upon our 5:30/6:00pm (depending on sea & weather conditions) arrival at the port of Kusadasi, we will return to the hotel.

Kusadasi - Ephesus - Istanbul

- Tuesday, May 25

We will visit the ancient city of Ephesus and tour the spectacular ruins where excavations continue in this once great and important city, which was founded in the 10th century BC. Walk through history along marble streets lined with wonderful public buildings, among them the Baths of Scholastica, the Library of Celsus, the Temple of Hadrian and the Theatre. The Temple of Diana of the Ephesians, another of the seven wonders of the ancient world, was built in this city. We will also visit the Basilica of St. John before driving to Izmir Airport and flying to Istanbul. After arrival in Istanbul, we will transfer to our hotel.

Fly from Istanbul back to Atlanta

- Wednesday, May 26

We will be picked-up from the hotel and transferred to Istanbul International Airport for the flight back home to the USA. A shuttle will be available to drive participants back to FHU.