amukkae
pamukka
pamukkale
pamukkale
pamukkale
pamukkale
Pamukkale was confusing at first because it’s really two different sights in one location. Pamukkale (Cotton Castle in Turkish) is famous for the white limestone terraces formed by calcium-rich water dripping over them since antiquity. Hierapolis, the ancient Roman spa city, was built on top of this.
Our bus deposited us on the barren hilltop overlooking Pamukkale, and Taylan oriented us to what we would see. It’s a huge area, and though we were given a generous amount of time to see it, choices had to be made.
The glossy travel posters show water cascading over snow white terraces under blue skies, but I walked everywhere and never found this.
There are wide expanses of white limestone terraces, but the water that day was confined to one shallow, tourist-clogged wading pool and several small streams flowing down narrow channels in the limestone.
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The pool with ancient Roman columns is still beautiful. Another swim opportunity!
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great to have an archeologist leading us
This map gives an idea of the size of ancient Hierapolis.
After I returned home I read more about Pamukkale, and now I understand the reason I didn't see water flowing into multiple pools like in the old travel pictures. UNESCO is trying to preserve the site. By rotating which pools have water, the empty pools will be bleached white by the sun, something that's only possible when they're empty. The point is to reduce the algae and pollution. OK.
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whirling dervishes
Rumi's followers are known as Whirling Dervishes for their practice of whirling as a way to connect with God. As a Sufi order they were banned when Turkey became a republic in 1925, but they are now allowed to perform in public as a tourist attraction. I think they may actually be in some gray area between religious order and tourist performers.
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What we watched felt more like a religious ceremony, but at the end, several returned for a short performance of whirling that we were allowed to photograph. The flute music accompanying them is very hypnotic. Taylan took a pass on this one because he said it puts him to sleep.
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They spin on their left foot with their right palm facing toward heaven and their left palm pointing at the ground. The ceremony ends with a recitation from the Quran.
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our pamukkale hotel
We had a one night stay tonight at the Lycus River Hotel, across the street from the Whirling Dervish tent, and a group dinner at the hotel's big, multicultural buffet. This is a big, sprawling tourist hotel that caters to groups. We had huge, modern rooms, great beds, cold AC, and fast WIFI. You could shut your door and not know if you were in a hotel room in Turkey, or Kansas. Charm is sometimes overrated. This hotel had none, but it was a great overnight.
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Not sure if it was by design, but we were situated near the end of a long, long corridor, so were blissfully spared the endless parade of rolling carts and luggage that lasted til late and cranked up again early.
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One almost comical picture was the lobby early morning at check-out. Here was our RS tour group pulling little carry-ons in the midst of big tour groups pushing enormous, identical spinners the size of steamer trunks.