Kanlidivane

Ciara on the edge of the "Holy Chasm"

Today, I got my adventure on.  A group of us from school decided to celebrate the end of the term and go on a little day trip to Kanlidivane (Kahn-lay-DA-VA-ne).  On this site we saw a bunch of ruins from the Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine eras.  The really cool thing about this site is that all of the ruins border a sunken volcano.  The pit is about 60 meters deep.  Go here for more details.

It is said that criminals risked being tossed to their death from the edge of the pit in this neck of the woods.  

Ciara, Bonnie, Ann, Oriana, and Christy.

Christy and Oriana are like mountain goats.  They climb on everything.  Christy managed to get into this window of a Byzantine basilica and the rest of us followed.

"Lost Symbol" of the Papylos basilica?

Have you read the Dan Brown book that talks about the Christian cross being super imposed on the Jewish star?  I think it was "The Lost Symbol", but I'm not sure.  Well this is one of the places in the world where that symbol shows up.  It is on this lintel piece that may have been the main door to the basilica.  You can see the window that we were up in if you look through the portal.

Check out the tree growing out of the roof.

 This site has lots of graves.  This particular tomb once held a family.  These people must have had a ton of money to have this huge building for just three bodies.  No bodies were inside when I looked, so I wonder if the money they paid for a peaceful eternal rest was worth it.

Contemplation?

 
This is Matt, looking roguish, and Oriana, looking distracted.  Adam and I have really clicked with these two and will be happy to support them when they get married in April.  Shortly after this shot, Matt was posing for me and his jeans ripped across the back of his bum.  What had he asked Oriana about earlier that day?  He thought the pants had had it, but she thought they had one more day of life.  Sounds about how things go with Adam and I sometimes!

Close-up of tomb corner

 This is a close-up of the tomb that I was perched in earlier.  I thought the corners were really cool and the plants growing off of the roof adds a bit to the age of the area.  It takes a long time for stone to turn to dirt, or moss to grow and die, or birds to leave enough droppings for plants to take root.  On the other side of this corner there was a little tree growing out of a crack between the stones. 

The original arches, not the golden ones.

 Arches, with no mortar, from the Byzantine era.  The arches looked like they could fall at any time, but I think they will last longer than I do.  They have been there for nearly 2000 years and haven't fallen yet.  It was tempting to climb on them, but my good sense got the better of me.  This being a country that doesn't believe in guard rails and all, climbing on them was an option.
 

Muslim graves from the 20th century.

These are contemporary graves in the midst of all of the ruins.  I was using the "miniature" feature on the camera, so I included this shot.  I think it is a weird combination of reality and unreality.  Both the visual effects of the camera and the graves amidst the ruins seem out of place but work together.

Armaronxas Family's relief

 This is a carving from in the pit.  It is about midway up the height of the wall from the pit floor.  I guess this family wanted to be remembered for ever. 

The Warrior's relief

 This relief is about on the same level as the family relief.  It makes me wonder if their had been a plan to ring the Holy Chasm with images of big donors.  I can see this being a money maker for the basilica and a way for people who could not afford the big tombs to get some eternal remembrance. 

Mich, Ann, and Oriana

 

The Holy Chasm. 

This shot is mostly for Jerome, my geologist buddy.  The fact that the pit is a sunken volcano is interesting, and the rocks do this interesting whorl down to the bottom. 

Papylos basilica

The Papylos basilica from across the Holy Chasm.  The red in the rocks against the green trees and blue sky is really nice.

So, the day was a success.  After the two and a half hours we spend tromping around, we went to a late lunch right on the Med.  The sea was literally 10 meters from the windows of the restaurant and we were watching the waves pulse and crash on the rocks under the window.

Not a bad day.