Pisidian Antioch and Perga
This morning we drove from Konya to Pisidian Antioch - through more of the Toros mountains and into the Sultan mountains.
Paul visited here during all three of his missionary journeys. Acts 13:16-41 records a sermon Paul delivered at the synagogue in Pisidian Antioch. We hiked to the remains of a Roman aqueduct that brought water from the Yalvik River into the city. The area is pastoral and surrounded by mountain peaks. Met a few sheep, shepherds and sheep herding dogs.
Next we turned south on a road around Lake Egirdir - a route that Paul would have used when going from Perga to P. Antioch. This mountain lake is large, deep blue, and no doubt Paul would have eaten fish caught here.
We had a bit of a longer layover by the lake than expected to retrieve one of our drones that landed on a mountain side. Lots of climbing and sliding and thorns but all ended well.
We ended the day in the beautiful Mediterranean port town of Perga. This is a port used by Paul a number of times. The archeological site of the city of Perga has evidence of use back to Hittite times but mainly excavations of a Hellenistic city from 300 BC which came under Roman rule in 188 BC. There are 1st century gates that Paul would have walked through to enter the city. There is a theater and stadium that date to later than biblical times , 2nd century AD, and much of the city business district (agora) has been excavated. It was a truly stunning place to visit.
The modern city of Perga is also beautiful, and while the hotel lacked a few other amenities - the view from the balcony is spectacular!
