Pamukkale

The day after I went to Ephesus, I took a day trip to Pamukkale, which is a few hours away from Kusadasi so it really took the whole day. Pamukkale means "cotton castle" and is named for the travertines. Because there are so many minerals in the water some people say it has healing properties and actually the Greek city Hierapolis, which was built at the top, was originally a hospital. The carbonate in the water give the terraces its white color and get deposited as limestone.

Limestone terraces at Pamukkale

The tour dropped us off at the top and we got to look around for two hours. The first thing I did was to go "swim" in the travertines - really they're not deep enough to swim, but you can sit/lie down and relax. It's very refreshing. At the bottom of the pools and a bit around the pools the calcium carbonate deposits turn into white mud which is fun to walk in. There's also a hot springs there, but it's closed off and you have to pay to get in - the price didn't seem worth it at the time when the pools were free.

The pools were relaxing and
also fun to walk around in.

Hierapolis is also on the top of the hill - it is almost all in ruins but in one spot there was an archway with Greek letter carved across the top. While I never studied Greek, as a scientist I've learned some of the Greek letters so I could make out "...MNASIO" which was the remnants of "GYMNASION" or the gymnasium (and baths). There's also an amphitheater in the ruins - its not as large at the one at Ephesus, but the one at Ephesus has been largely reconstructed, and the one here was 90% original.

The amphitheater at Hierapolis is in the background.

The weather was probably just as scorching as the previous day had been, but because I got to dip in the water it felt much milder. I was glad I had gotten to see some of the natural landmarks of Turkey rather than just historical buildings - human history is fascinating but I like having a bit of both. Cappadocia didn't make it on my itinerary this time, though, unfortunately - maybe someday.