Moving from Selçuk to Pamukkale.
Today, I will travel from Selçuk to Pamukkale by bus.
This was a failure. I wanted to take the Pamukkale bus to Pamukkale, but the seats were narrow, and it was a terrible bus. I will never use this company again.
I should have taken the METRO bus. The price is almost the same, but the comfort is different.
Sometimes, you can see a nice bus of the same Pamukkale company, but this was a dilapidated bus.
It says "YATAGAN KOOP" on the bus ticket and on the bus itself, so I might have been put on an OEM bus.
They might be trying to make more money by doing things like this, but it doesn't matter anymore because I've decided not to use them again.
Also, the staff of Pamukkale company seem suspicious.
The Pamukkale company staff in Selçuk told a vulgar joke. "Hey, can you drive a bus? The bus driver drank too much last night. Please drive the bus." It was a strange joke.
By the way, the staff at the office of a different company next to Pamukkale said, "There is no bus to Pamukkale today," or "Wait for the bus tomorrow." But that's not the ticket I bought from you. I don't understand.
I investigated and found out that even with METRO, there are people who seem like scammers (people who are very generous), so you should be careful. That's the case, huh? Apparently, the staff at the METRO office in Pamukkale are scammers. Oh my. I'm going there soon.
So, I endured the cramped seats for about 3.5 hours and finally arrived in Pamukkale. Ugh.
When I was about to get off, someone came and said, "If you are going to the hotel, we will call you from the office. If you are taking a different bus, you can leave your luggage and go." So I went to the office to have them call the hotel, but the staff was busy and it would take time, so I gave up and decided to walk, as it was within a 10-minute distance.
My accommodation for this trip is:
Anatolia Hotel
2 nights in a dormitory for 20 euros, including breakfast (62 lira, approximately 2,840 yen).
Approximately 1,420 yen per night.
It has a pool, so it's a decent place.
It's about 700 meters to walk to the ruins, but that's not a problem.
While walking around, I saw the prices of restaurants and other places in town, and they are tourist prices.
The prices are about 1.5 to 2 times higher than in Selçuk.
This is not a place to stay for a long time.
It seems there are many scammers.
After arriving, I went for a walk to a pond near the ruins.
There are many ducks (?).
There is water flowing into the pond that looks like hot spring water, so I checked it, but is it really hot spring water? Or is it just regular water?
There is a fence, so I cannot reach the white area, but there was a place where water was flowing and accumulating, so I checked the water quality.
If you look closely, you can see bubbles that look like carbonation.
I heard that the water quality here contains carbonation, so it seems that this water is indeed hot spring water.
Although carbonation cannot be confirmed in the flowing water, it was confirmed in the stagnant water.
So, I thought about using that water for a foot bath... but because it's cold, it's more like a foot soak.
Even after soaking for a while, I don't feel anything. I checked it many times with my hands, but the impression is the same.
I don't feel the benefits of the carbonation, and I don't feel the goodness of the limestone. My skin tells me that this is "just water" (laughs).
I checked the water quality many times, but it feels like even though it contains carbonation, it doesn't have many other notable components. The carbonation doesn't seem particularly strong, but maybe it's stronger upstream?
It seems to contain lime, but the water is clear, so it's not cloudy.
The only unique thing about this place is the appearance of the white limestone, but the hot water itself isn't that impressive.
If you only consider the water quality, it's not a place that Japanese people who are blessed with hot springs would go to (bitter smile).
There are tons of places like this in Japan. In fact, it's almost just "plain water."
When I searched, a list of ingredients appeared. The pH is about 6.6, so it's neutral. I see.
If it's included in the museum pass, I'll go in and soak in the water, but if it's a separate fee, I probably won't go in just to soak in the water.
In my opinion, this is more like "water" than a hot spring (bitter smile).
Since it contains carbonation, you could generously consider it a hot spring, but I've never seen a hot spring with so few notable components.
People in Europe seem to appreciate this kind of water and come from far away to soak in it. I feel the difference in hot spring culture.
Since there are fish, it doesn't seem to be toxic hot water.
Or, perhaps it's fish that are resistant to it.
No, maybe I'm overthinking it. The most likely possibility is that it's simply a hot spring with water that is close to normal water.
This was a failure. I wanted to take the Pamukkale bus to Pamukkale, but the seats were narrow, and it was a terrible bus. I will never use this company again.
I should have taken the METRO bus. The price is almost the same, but the comfort is different.
Sometimes, you can see a nice bus of the same Pamukkale company, but this was a dilapidated bus.
It says "YATAGAN KOOP" on the bus ticket and on the bus itself, so I might have been put on an OEM bus.
They might be trying to make more money by doing things like this, but it doesn't matter anymore because I've decided not to use them again.
Also, the staff of Pamukkale company seem suspicious.
The Pamukkale company staff in Selçuk told a vulgar joke. "Hey, can you drive a bus? The bus driver drank too much last night. Please drive the bus." It was a strange joke.
By the way, the staff at the office of a different company next to Pamukkale said, "There is no bus to Pamukkale today," or "Wait for the bus tomorrow." But that's not the ticket I bought from you. I don't understand.
I investigated and found out that even with METRO, there are people who seem like scammers (people who are very generous), so you should be careful. That's the case, huh? Apparently, the staff at the METRO office in Pamukkale are scammers. Oh my. I'm going there soon.
So, I endured the cramped seats for about 3.5 hours and finally arrived in Pamukkale. Ugh.
When I was about to get off, someone came and said, "If you are going to the hotel, we will call you from the office. If you are taking a different bus, you can leave your luggage and go." So I went to the office to have them call the hotel, but the staff was busy and it would take time, so I gave up and decided to walk, as it was within a 10-minute distance.
My accommodation for this trip is:
Anatolia Hotel
2 nights in a dormitory for 20 euros, including breakfast (62 lira, approximately 2,840 yen).
Approximately 1,420 yen per night.
It has a pool, so it's a decent place.
It's about 700 meters to walk to the ruins, but that's not a problem.
While walking around, I saw the prices of restaurants and other places in town, and they are tourist prices.
The prices are about 1.5 to 2 times higher than in Selçuk.
This is not a place to stay for a long time.
It seems there are many scammers.
After arriving, I went for a walk to a pond near the ruins.
There are many ducks (?).
There is water flowing into the pond that looks like hot spring water, so I checked it, but is it really hot spring water? Or is it just regular water?
There is a fence, so I cannot reach the white area, but there was a place where water was flowing and accumulating, so I checked the water quality.
If you look closely, you can see bubbles that look like carbonation.
I heard that the water quality here contains carbonation, so it seems that this water is indeed hot spring water.
Although carbonation cannot be confirmed in the flowing water, it was confirmed in the stagnant water.
So, I thought about using that water for a foot bath... but because it's cold, it's more like a foot soak.
Even after soaking for a while, I don't feel anything. I checked it many times with my hands, but the impression is the same.
I don't feel the benefits of the carbonation, and I don't feel the goodness of the limestone. My skin tells me that this is "just water" (laughs).
I checked the water quality many times, but it feels like even though it contains carbonation, it doesn't have many other notable components. The carbonation doesn't seem particularly strong, but maybe it's stronger upstream?
It seems to contain lime, but the water is clear, so it's not cloudy.
The only unique thing about this place is the appearance of the white limestone, but the hot water itself isn't that impressive.
If you only consider the water quality, it's not a place that Japanese people who are blessed with hot springs would go to (bitter smile).
There are tons of places like this in Japan. In fact, it's almost just "plain water."
When I searched, a list of ingredients appeared. The pH is about 6.6, so it's neutral. I see.
If it's included in the museum pass, I'll go in and soak in the water, but if it's a separate fee, I probably won't go in just to soak in the water.
In my opinion, this is more like "water" than a hot spring (bitter smile).
Since it contains carbonation, you could generously consider it a hot spring, but I've never seen a hot spring with so few notable components.
People in Europe seem to appreciate this kind of water and come from far away to soak in it. I feel the difference in hot spring culture.
Since there are fish, it doesn't seem to be toxic hot water.
Or, perhaps it's fish that are resistant to it.
No, maybe I'm overthinking it. The most likely possibility is that it's simply a hot spring with water that is close to normal water.
The dried-up Pamukkale travertine terraces (thermal pools).
Today, I am going to see the travertine terraces (thermal pools) of Pamukkale.
I had heard rumors about it, but I was more surprised than expected by how much the water had dried up.
Approximately, less than 10% of the water remains.
The photos in the brochure are very different from the current state. I wonder when the photos in the brochure were taken. I heard that many of them are from the 1980s.
↓ It's like this: 90% of the water has dried up, and only 10% remains, which is just a small amount.
↓ By the way, this is a photo on the UNESCO website. It's an old, analog-style drawing, and since the World Heritage registration was in 1988, it seems to be a photo from around that time. The difference is too much (laughs).
http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/485/gallery/Copyright: © Ministry of Culture and Tourism
Author: Umut Özdemir
Rights Usage Terms: Read Usage Terms
The photos in the brochure are like this, but people might think it's a scam.
By the way, here are the photos on the official Pamukkale page:
http://www.pamukkale.net/Copyright: www.pamukkale.net
It seems they have stopped emphasizing the water, but you can still see a pool with about half water in it.
It's quite unpleasant (laughs).
There's hardly any water left, only 10%.
↓ Take off your shoes here and walk barefoot.
I'm glad I brought a bag to put my shoes in, but it might be troublesome if there's no bag.
Leaving my shoes here is not a wise choice. I need to walk a long distance ahead.
I chose shoes over sandals, which was the right decision because I'll be walking endlessly within the ruins.
If you're not going to the ruins, or if you're only visiting nearby ruins, sandals might be okay.
It's clear that they only provide a minimal amount of water to flow through the passageways.
Maybe, even recently, they only turn on the water when taking photos for the brochure. If this is the normal state, it's a scam.
There are many scammers in the city, and I guess this town is like that... Of course, there are also good people.
I have also heard rumors that the number of hot spring facilities has increased, and there is not enough water.
It seems like a common story in Japan.
I wonder what they are going to do by destroying the main attractions.
It seems that in the past, most of the pools had water in them and people could go in.
It seems like coming here wasn't worth it.
Ah, ah.
It's better to come and be disappointed and regret it than to keep the desire to come in your heart and continue to regret it. So, this is fine as it is.
After staring blankly for a few hours, there was a little bit of water where there was none this morning.
How strange.
Even so, only a little water has come in, less than 10% of the total. 10% might be an exaggeration. Maybe it's 5%...
↓ This is what it looked like this morning.
↓ The same place in the afternoon. Water is flowing.
The water quality is also low for a hot spring. Although there is a little calcium and a little carbonic acid, it is essentially just water. There is a slimy feeling from the calcium in the puddles, so perhaps applying it to the skin would have some effect, but there were no areas with accumulated calcium in the ancient pool, just clear water.
It seems that many people come from Europe, even though it is just ordinary water for Japanese people.
I feel the high level of Japanese hot springs.
I checked the reviews on Tripadvisor, and it seems that even this place, which is quite a scam, has high ratings.
Are they not seeing the photos and advertisements showing the original Pamukkale water overflowing?
If you think it is normal for it to be dry, then it might be considered wonderful to some extent, but I can't think of this state, which has been artificially dried due to excessive water extraction, as "wonderful."
The beautiful pools are now stained brown because the water doesn't flow, so dirt remains.
If you look at the edges of the property, grass is growing in the white limestone area, so if the water is not flowing, it is only a matter of time before this appearance changes significantly.
Currently, water is only flowing in the areas where people walk, and people seem to be happy about it, but are they thinking that everything else can be broken? They have, after all, prohibited people from entering, so they are maintaining it to a minimum extent, like a World Heritage Site. However, I wonder what the local authorities are thinking, as they are making the fatal decision of not letting the water flow, which prevents the calcium layers from growing over time.
When I entered in the morning, the water was coming to areas that didn't have much water, which means they might be stopping the water at night.
Do they no longer care about the calcium layers growing?
If they think that this appearance is sufficient for tourism, even if it remains unchanged, then it is extremely regrettable, but if they are not flowing water, then I suppose it is understandable.
If it is a World Heritage Site, I think that the water should be flowing properly 24 hours a day to allow the calcium layers to grow, otherwise the title of World Heritage Site will be lost.
It has ranked high on my list of regrettable ruins.
There is a pool available for an additional fee, but it seems to be excluded from the museum pass, so I didn't go in.
Actually, it seemed like the staff didn't understand what the museum pass was... Well, I wasn't that interested anyway, so it's okay.
After going around the entire area, I went back the same way to the exit.
I took off my shoes again and walked barefoot.
Only in this passage is there a reasonable amount of water flowing, but there are still places where no water comes.
I had heard rumors about it, but I was more surprised than expected by how much the water had dried up.
Approximately, less than 10% of the water remains.
The photos in the brochure are very different from the current state. I wonder when the photos in the brochure were taken. I heard that many of them are from the 1980s.
↓ It's like this: 90% of the water has dried up, and only 10% remains, which is just a small amount.
↓ By the way, this is a photo on the UNESCO website. It's an old, analog-style drawing, and since the World Heritage registration was in 1988, it seems to be a photo from around that time. The difference is too much (laughs).
http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/485/gallery/Copyright: © Ministry of Culture and Tourism
Author: Umut Özdemir
Rights Usage Terms: Read Usage Terms
The photos in the brochure are like this, but people might think it's a scam.
By the way, here are the photos on the official Pamukkale page:
http://www.pamukkale.net/Copyright: www.pamukkale.net
It seems they have stopped emphasizing the water, but you can still see a pool with about half water in it.
It's quite unpleasant (laughs).
There's hardly any water left, only 10%.
↓ Take off your shoes here and walk barefoot.
I'm glad I brought a bag to put my shoes in, but it might be troublesome if there's no bag.
Leaving my shoes here is not a wise choice. I need to walk a long distance ahead.
I chose shoes over sandals, which was the right decision because I'll be walking endlessly within the ruins.
If you're not going to the ruins, or if you're only visiting nearby ruins, sandals might be okay.
It's clear that they only provide a minimal amount of water to flow through the passageways.
Maybe, even recently, they only turn on the water when taking photos for the brochure. If this is the normal state, it's a scam.
There are many scammers in the city, and I guess this town is like that... Of course, there are also good people.
I have also heard rumors that the number of hot spring facilities has increased, and there is not enough water.
It seems like a common story in Japan.
I wonder what they are going to do by destroying the main attractions.
It seems that in the past, most of the pools had water in them and people could go in.
It seems like coming here wasn't worth it.
Ah, ah.
It's better to come and be disappointed and regret it than to keep the desire to come in your heart and continue to regret it. So, this is fine as it is.
After staring blankly for a few hours, there was a little bit of water where there was none this morning.
How strange.
Even so, only a little water has come in, less than 10% of the total. 10% might be an exaggeration. Maybe it's 5%...
↓ This is what it looked like this morning.
↓ The same place in the afternoon. Water is flowing.
The water quality is also low for a hot spring. Although there is a little calcium and a little carbonic acid, it is essentially just water. There is a slimy feeling from the calcium in the puddles, so perhaps applying it to the skin would have some effect, but there were no areas with accumulated calcium in the ancient pool, just clear water.
It seems that many people come from Europe, even though it is just ordinary water for Japanese people.
I feel the high level of Japanese hot springs.
I checked the reviews on Tripadvisor, and it seems that even this place, which is quite a scam, has high ratings.
Are they not seeing the photos and advertisements showing the original Pamukkale water overflowing?
If you think it is normal for it to be dry, then it might be considered wonderful to some extent, but I can't think of this state, which has been artificially dried due to excessive water extraction, as "wonderful."
The beautiful pools are now stained brown because the water doesn't flow, so dirt remains.
If you look at the edges of the property, grass is growing in the white limestone area, so if the water is not flowing, it is only a matter of time before this appearance changes significantly.
Currently, water is only flowing in the areas where people walk, and people seem to be happy about it, but are they thinking that everything else can be broken? They have, after all, prohibited people from entering, so they are maintaining it to a minimum extent, like a World Heritage Site. However, I wonder what the local authorities are thinking, as they are making the fatal decision of not letting the water flow, which prevents the calcium layers from growing over time.
When I entered in the morning, the water was coming to areas that didn't have much water, which means they might be stopping the water at night.
Do they no longer care about the calcium layers growing?
If they think that this appearance is sufficient for tourism, even if it remains unchanged, then it is extremely regrettable, but if they are not flowing water, then I suppose it is understandable.
If it is a World Heritage Site, I think that the water should be flowing properly 24 hours a day to allow the calcium layers to grow, otherwise the title of World Heritage Site will be lost.
It has ranked high on my list of regrettable ruins.
There is a pool available for an additional fee, but it seems to be excluded from the museum pass, so I didn't go in.
Actually, it seemed like the staff didn't understand what the museum pass was... Well, I wasn't that interested anyway, so it's okay.
After going around the entire area, I went back the same way to the exit.
I took off my shoes again and walked barefoot.
Only in this passage is there a reasonable amount of water flowing, but there are still places where no water comes.
Hierapolis.
Leaving the travertine terrace area, we move closer to the area where the ruins of Hierapolis are located.
Although the travertine terraces are very famous, this area is not as well-known, but it is enjoyable in its own way.
Although the travertine terraces are very famous, this area is not as well-known, but it is enjoyable in its own way.
Hierapolis Archaeology Museum.
Visit the Hierapolis Archaeology Museum, which is quietly located in the same area as the travertine terraces (thermal pools, Pamukkale Thermal Pools).
