Day 11 - Kas to Denizli - 16 October, 2015

Weather - Sunny and very warm

Accommodation - Colossae Thermal Spa Hotel

We moved north from the Mediterranean coastline to the inner Aegean area known as the Denizli Provence in southwestern Turkey. It was about a four hour bus trip to reach the area. The drive didn't seem long as we had a morning tea break and lunch as we drove through rural farming areas prior to reaching our goal for the day which was Pamukkale. This means "cotton castle" in Turkish and is a natural area of hot springs and travertines which are terraces of minerals left by flowing water. People have been coming to the hot springs for thousands of years. It's impressive and nothing like we have ever seen before. 

Along with the Pamukkale is Hierapolos, an ancient Greco-Roman and Byzantine site built alongside the Pamukkale. It was made a World Heritage site in 1988. The ruins which are a result of a series of devastating earthquakes are extensive and cover a large area. The ruins include an amphitheatre and long Roman roads. 

We walked on the Pamukkale in our bare feet which was a requirement. It was quite slippery in parts and we took great care. We felt like we were walking on a glacier with the white minerals left behind by the hot springs and the glare coming off them.

Funda arranged for a mini-bus to transport us around Hierapolos and she gave us a commentary of the site. Funda has a Masters's degree in archaeology is very knowledgable on all the ancient sites we have visited. By the time of the tour it was quite hot and we wondered how anyone could visit the site in the height of summer. 

We arrived at our large hotel at four o'clock and had a short rest before heading out to see the Whirling Dervish ceremony at six o'clock. It lasted approximately 45 minutes and was fascinating. Their head-dresses represent the ego's tombstone and the white skirt represents the ego's shroud. At the end of the ceremony we were able to take some photos. 

We were booked in for dinner at the hotel at 7.30pm and couldn't believe the number of people at dinner. We anticipated about 400 people were seated in the large dining area. The buffet was wall to wall food. 

Carol, Henk and I went joined Lindsay and Anni at the hotel's thermal spa after dinner. It was a relaxing 31 degrees. The hotel's internet was not working and this seemed to cause some angst with the people at the hotel. Henk was able to work out the intricacies of the dual network so we were able to connect and post the blog.