As usual we had to be on the bus quite early so there was no time to enjoy a leisurely English breakfast in one of the guesthouses on the waterfront. So we had Turkish breakfast in our hotel and set out for the ancient spa town of Pamukkale. It was quite some distance and so we stopped for a late lunch at a wedding function centre on the way. Looking like it was still done up for a wedding, resplendent with chair covers with bows, it did have a pretty impressive bufe (buffet) – a selection of kebap, lots of different salads, pickled vege and just about anything else you could think of in that vein. It was however, pretty expensive by Turkish standards, especially the kiosk. Mentos were 2 Euros! I’m pretty sure they are less than 2 Euros in the eurozone.
We arrived at Pamukkale in the late afternoon, which turned out to be the perfect time. Most of the day tripping tourists were clearing out but we still had plenty of time to look around. Apart from the amphitheatre at Kas, and the Basilica Cistern in Istanbul, these were really our first pre-Byzantine ruins. And they were spectacular. The first stop was the museum where countless artifacts found on the site were preserved. Often the artifacts you find in these kinds of museums are either tools for hunting or objects of everyday life such as plates, cooking pots and eating utensils. Pamukkale though was a spa town, a place of pampering so there were some quite unusual artifacts to be had including manicuring tools. The gold head dresses and magnificent jewelry also emphasized this was a playground for the rich and powerful in Roman society.
The ruins themselves were also pretty spectacular – rows of what were once latrines still stood, as did columns from many of the buildings, There were more amphitheatres and beautifully preserved ruins and we could have kept walking for miles and seen more. But despite how impressive they were, it’s not the ruins that make Pamukkale unique. It’s the calcite cliffs where this place truly wows you.
As we wandered towards them and looked down to the modern town of Pamukkale, the view was spectacular. Much of the area is now closed off to protect the cliffs but it is still a spectacular vista. And, recognising that people want to touch and feel, there is still one large pool at the top of the cliffs that you are able to walk in. The only catch is you aren’t allowed to wear shoes. This may sound like a simple thing but the calcite cliffs are not like chalk, which is what I picture when I think of calcium after getting scarred for life by Mrs Marsh in the Colgate ads. The cliffs are actually more like the calcium on your teeth – hard and smooth for the most part but with sharp jagged edges that really hurt when they get you. Having said that, I wasn’t going to let that stop me so I ventured in at least a little way – Not sure I really needed to be wearing board shorts though. In order to enforce the no shoes rule, there was what we would describe as a cross between a ranger and a life guard (although it’s unlikely anyone older than five would drown in the pool – the water only came to mid calf. This guy’s sole job was to blow a whistle and direct people trying to walk in with shoes to get out. Sadly nobody really seemed to pay attention to him (or the signs).
It was then that we realised just how perfect the timing of our visit really was. The sun had just started to set and the lighting was spectacular as it disappeared behind the cliffs, reflecting across the water and throwing off all kinds of colour across the calcite shelves. It was a spectacular sight and I highly recommend making sure you visit at the end of the day to catch this spectacle. Not many people actually stay in Pamukkale when they come here so the place is actually quite empty at that kind of day.
After a million photographs, we wandered up to the top of the hill to what was the original spa in this spa town. There was a fee to get in but since it was so late in the day, the attendant let us in for the kids’ price. Surrounded by cafes and those offering beauty treatments – fish pedicure – no thanks – the original thermal spring was still there, even if a little dilapidated. Columns that had fallen into the rock pool during one of the many earthquakes that ravaged this area over the centuries laid there where they had fallen, growing algae and moss. Despite the algae blooms TC and I decided to take a dip in the ancient pond, sliding over the top of ancient columns and under the bridges constructed by the modern day owners of this attraction, all the while keeping our head above water so its healing powers didn’t make us sick instead. After that it was off to the gift shop where I purchased (of course) a snow globe. (Get Out of This – Dinosaur Jr. A band that was swirled up in the cacophony of endless gigs that defined my youth, Dinosaur Jr was a staple but not a standout. Many years on and they have proved themselves to be worthy of more of my time.)
After a brief pit stop at our hotel, we joined many of our fellow travelers for dinner at a local café where we sat around a low table sheesha style and enjoyed another serve of my second favourite Turkish street food – gozleme. The café was a haphazard place with stuff people had left behind on their travels adorning the walls – the kind of place you could imagine as a staple on the backpacker trail. Beers and gozleme and a stop for ice cream before we wandered back down the hill to our hotel and an early night.
