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Published: August 8th 2007
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Pamukkale pools at Sunset
The area took our breath away at every step The Travelblog site has been down the last week so not sure if this will ever see screen time. Important to us however is the recording of our adventures so we will continue. We did a whirlwind tour of Pamukkale. Getting off the overnight bus from Cappadocia at 7am, we considered it a victory just to have made it, given the current state of the troop’s intestinal tracts. Not being able to get into our rooms until 11am, we wandered in a fog and just vegged (sp?) in the Turkish lounge of the Venus Hotel. Sleeping our way through the early afternoon and swimming in the pool, Karyn gave us a ride up to the top gate of Pamukkale at 4:30pm. We had hoped to beat the heat and the crowds by going to the cliffs later in the afternoon. For those not familiar with Pamukkale, this incredibly stunning and unique geological place (that seems to be a repetitive statement in Turkey) is a massive, white, calcified cliff that has been formed through the deposition of calcium from the springs that come out of the side of the hill. These calcium cliffs form a spectacular set of pools and ledges that
Wallowing in water
Pools and mini waterfalls provided endless loads of fun (and great pics) truly take ones breath away. This relatively obscure historical place became an overnight destination for tours and tourists in the 1980’s. Trevor had been here in 1989 and was unsure of what to expect as there had been rumours of the water slowing to a trickle and the guidebooks had not been particularly kind to Pamukkale (suggesting it was all very disappointing). All that being said, the Connors had a blast and were blown away by the beauty of this part of creation. The local park organization has restricted much of the access in order to preserve the area but there is still a lot to see which astounds the eyes.
Karyn, from the hotel, had suggested that when we run into crowds, go elsewhere and explore different parts of the area. This was the best advice that we could have ever received as we found an area that the groups seemed to avoid which was the most breathtaking part of our whole visit. The pools absolutely glistened in the early evening light and needless to say we took just a few pics. The kids climbed the white walls and lazed in the pools until the sun went down,
Calcified cliff climber
It's a big cliff! She can do it?? then a short walk back to town and another four course Turkish dinner at the pension. One night was enough here however as there is not a lot else around and the town consists of just a few restaurants. It provided the perfect break in the trip back out to the west coast.
The next day, we caught a 9am bus for the 3 hour ride to Selcuk (pronounced SelCHook). Upon arriving in Selcuk, we were met normal Turkish bus service as they immediately asked where we were staying and within 10 minutes, Hussein from the Akay hotel was there to pick us up. We have been unsure whether to use the term “hotel” or pension. These wonderful little establishments have tended to be 10 - 15 room converted old houses with an open roof top. Marla had done extensive research before we came (TripAdivsor is a must for anyone looking to plan where to stay) and most of the rooms have been pretty basic but clean and perfect for our needs. The Akay hotel had a wonderful great new section with a pool and a surrounding grassy area (not a knoll in case you were wondering). This new
Happy travellers
Although only in Pamukkale for 24 hours, it was definitely a highlight area proved perfect for us as we had a 9pm departure on our last day but were able to use the pool and change area during the day until we left.
Selcuk is a wonderful quiet town and our three days there allowed us to get to know the area quite well. We enjoyed wandering aimlessly around the streets (well, not completely aimlessly as there were a number of little purchases) as well as exploring a great Saturday market (we have never seen so many shoes in all our lives). One of the great parts of our ventures in Turkey have been the fact that most of our stops have been in places where Turkish life goes on as normal and the tourists are an add-on. This was certainly the case in Selcuk so you felt like you were really experiencing the “norm” for the Turkish people.
The main reason that people spend some time in Selcuk is to visit Ephesus (3 kilometres away). Hussein again, very graciously drove us up to Ephesus and we were met by a first for us on our trip. We have never really been overwhelmed with crowds so far (in fact we
Creative formations
Nature has created an endless array of different calcium spectacles always commented how lucky we had been to miss this big group here or that one there). Well, it all caught up with us in Ephesus as we were bombarded by what we learned were the cruise ship mobs from both Kusadasi and Izmir (they can have anywhere between 2 and 10 cruise ships in port and apparently it was a 16 cruise ship day - at least that is what it felt like). They say that Ephesus typically has 5,000 a day and this day there were over 10,000 people there. In order to combat this, we knew we needed a plan and we made a quick decision to hire a guide that we encountered at the front gate. This was definitely the best decision of the day. Our guide took us throughout the incredible Roman ruins of Ephesus and gave us an enthusiastic and thorough lesson that we would not have otherwise. Ephesus is quoted as “the best Roman ruins in Europe” and it did not disappoint us on that day.
The Romans were quite incredible architects and engineers. The huge marble columns are beautiful not only aesthetically by also functionally. The restoration of the city includes
Ephesus arches
The Roman architecture was displayed in fine form all over Ephesus (Corinthian Columns we understand from our guide) the parliament, 3 large main streets that run the length of the city, Roman baths, a huge section of terraced houses, the incredible Library, and of course the most well-known and spectacular theatre (seats 25,000 people and even hosts modern day concerts due to its incredible acoustics). We tried out the acoustics and were able to hear each other (despite the buzz from the other thousand people there) from the stage all the way up to the highest seats. This is quite amazing to think that they built all of this over 2,000 years ago without the use of technology or machinery. Every house in the area had heated floors and as well as plumbing in the public toilets (our guide remarked that this is impressive when one thinks that Italy did not have a sewer system developed until the late 1800’s - I think he said that). The ornate carvings in the marble attest to the artistic nature of the Romans. Medusa was prominent in her place over one area while the God of Victory was also honoured (who is the God of victory you ask - well it is NIKE). We certainly didn’t know that. The carving also
Decorative doorways
Detailed marble carvings over every doorway. Quite amazing had the Nike “swoosh” that is prominent in there advertising. St Paul preached here for 3 years until he was imprisoned and St. John was said to have lived here in his latter years along with Mary (as Jesus had entrusted her to him). We ended up staying in a pension just below St John’s Basilica. Ephesus had been a port town of 250,000 and as such was a very important place of trade and commerce. It was the capital of Asian minor and was the 3rd largest city in the Roman Empire. Nature’s blessing on Ephesus was also here downfall as the river that ran through the area ended up depositing so much silt over time that Ephesus is now approximately 4 or 5 kilometres from the ocean (not great for a “port” town).
We thoroughly enjoyed our time in the quiet and wonderful area. Our last day was spent taking a local bus down to the tourist trap on the water called Kusadasi. It was worth our 2 hour visit and then we retreated back to our wonderful sanctuary in Selcuk. The remainder of the day was spent swimming, catching dinner and then preparing physically as well
Famous library
Trevor could have spent a lot of time here in the old days. as mentally for our last 10 hour bus ride of the trip. It turned into a 12 hour trip in the end but we were relieved (and somewhat saddened) to arrive in our final destination, Istanbul.
P.S. Sorry about the plethora (Scott’s word) of pictures but the choices were too difficult as we now have so many professional photographers in the family.
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Della
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Thank you
Thank you trev, Mar, Matt, Syd and CC for taking us on a truly spectacular journey of special places in Greece and Turkey. Your descriptions of the people, sites, food and all that you did plus the excellent pictures made us feel a part of your holiday. You all have such an adventure for travel, getting the most out of each day and having so much fun. Welcome home and again thanks for the entertainment with your travel blog. Mom and Dad