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Article: Mighty Aphrodite is rite for spring.(Travel)
- Article from:
- The Washington Times (Washington, DC)
- Article date:
- March 24, 1996
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1996 News World Communications, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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When spring hits Aegean Turkey, almonds and apricots burst into bloom, wild anemones and poppies splash the countryside red, crops pop up, birds sing in chorale competitions and the rich valleys become a lush green. Snow caps mountaintops, and the vast stretches of olive trees rustle silver in the wind. It is as splendid as spring can be.
North, east and south of Izmir (the former Smyrna and, some legends say, the birthplace of Homer) spring makes the ruins of fabled Greco-Roman cities even more spectacular. Aphrodisias (named after Aphrodite) and Ephesus (center of the veneration of Artemis), to name just two, are now inland in rural areas, although they once ...