Cotton Castle? Well ok.

Monday, November 24, 2008
Travel from Pamukkale to Selcuk, Turkey

I found this sign funny considering the number of stray dogs that wander around Turkey.

So I had a bit of an eventful night as the toilet in my room broke…and I mean literally........I actually pulled a piece of it off….and they couldn’t fix it so I had to switch rooms just before midnight…which is probably ok since I was not going to sleep before midnight anyways. (Sorry that was a long sentence). Once that was settled though I actually had a pretty good sleep. The new room was much warmer than the original one.

Before we headed out of Pamukkale we had to check something out. We headed up to Ancient Hierapolis (Holy City) which happens to sit above the white terraces formed from the hot springs. The calcium deposits look like snow but they are not. They also call the formations the Cotton Castle but as we learned first hand a bit later, they are not that soft.

A few of the ruins you will find at the Hierapolis.

Anyways, getting into Hierapolis proved to be slightly difficult…for me anyways, as I nearly killed myself slipping down a set of wet stairs. You will be happy to know that I was completely unharmed so I don’t need to sue (look, I have been living in the US long enough to add that sentence to my vocabulary) and it did not affect my day at all.

Yes... the group posing for a picture.....so unlike us. This one we took with camera timers so everyone (including Ergun) could be in it.

Hierapolis was founded in 190 BC but was devastated many times by earthquakes and by 1334 people moved away and basically never came back. The ruins are spread over a wide area and you can see the remains of the necropolis (cemetery) the agora (market place) and of course the great theatre.

Just looking at this picture makes me sick.

I was still feeling a little hesitant to hang out up there after my experience in Aspendos but I did manage to take a few pictures and even looked down once or twice. This theatre would have held over 12,000 people. It really was spectacular.

Me hanging out with some of the ruins. I think these were both taken in the necropolis.

We also made a stop in the Temple of Apollo and a spring called the Plutonium which is dedicated to the god of the underworld, Pluto. This spring was the inspiration for the oracle of the temple (similar the one in Delphi). If you listen close to it you can hear the toxic gas bubbling up from the waters below. Yeah that’s right toxic gas. Back in the day priests use to toss animals and birds in and watch them die to demonstrate its potent power. The gas was said to be deadly to all but the priests and I guess that is why people came to them for council.

One of the main streets in Hierapolis.

Taking a look at the view. I didn't stand there for long.

We then decided to head down the hill…....via the Cotton Castle and cotton it was not. Of course the white slopes come from calcium deposits from the hot water and form very hard little ridges.

I know it looks like snow but I assure you it is not.

Now some people had troubles with the calcium but I had a much bigger problem with cliff I had to walk beside. We followed a really little river of warm water from top to bottom…....well more correctly I got as far away from that little river as possible and had no problems wading through MUCH colder water to get away from the cliff edge. Plus that water got colder the lower we got so I really did not miss anything.

Liezel and Paul negotiating the trip down the hill.

The route the water takes actually changes from day to day depending on the weather. If the hot spring water mixes with rain water it causes some sort of issue (I forget what but it was something not pretty) and since it was raining they rerouted the water.

The group at the top of the Cotton Castle.

Eventually we all made it down the hill, although it certainly took a few of us a lot longer than some others (I was in the slow group along with Sam, Paul, Eva and Liezel and have no problems with that).

Once down the hill we made a stop for lunch (I assure you we are not going hungry) and then it was off to see some more ruins. This time it was at Afrodisias. It was a grand site but a little run down compared to some of the others we have seen and have yet to see. However the stadium was top notch. It would have held around 30,000 people although it is hard to believe that by just looking at it. I don’t think the seats had cup holders back then either.

If I am remembering correctly with was also called Hadrian's Gate. I found all kinds of things named after him.

Here are some of the remains of the Hadrianic Baths. It was built in the early 2nd century AD. It was eventually dedicated to Emeror Hadrian in 117-38 AD.

Me hanging out with a few more of the ruins.

A look at the theatre. No visit to ruins is complete without a trip to the theatre.

The view from the top of the ruins.

We also made a stop at the Afrodisias Museum. Of course it is full of artefacts found in the area. Lots of items very similar to what I have seen in other museums but it is always worth a little visit.

A few of the statues in the museum.

Another one of the statues in the museum. This one is not complete (the rider is missing) but part of his leg is there.

I still find this one interesting to look at.

We arrived in Selcuk after dark which is pretty usual for us. Some how I have ended up with a very cold room that does not actually seem to want to warm up (which also seems to be pretty usual....apparently I like really warm hotel rooms).

I am starting to be reminded how far away from home I am as a few people back home are having a hard time. Makes it hard to think about just having fun when stuff is going on and there is nothing you can do about it. I guess that is when it would be nice to disconnect from the internet for a while….no news means no worrying…although it is me and we all know I find it impossible to disconnect.

Julie