Pamukkale, part two: hot-air balloons and ancient spa-resorts too!

Hi folks!

Pamukkale’s known for its travertine terraces, but that’s not all; it’s also known for the hot air ballooning that goes on here aplenty. 100% Must-do. The only problem for some folks – you have to get up at the crack of dawn to experience it… ->

Even how they inflate the balloons before dawn is a spectacle worth seeing. First it’s all quiet, calm and peaceful. Then they start up the noisy furnaces! And slowly, several, then a dozen, then scores of hot-air balloons all start bulging and rising up from their sides into the air (with the basket still on the ground). And they get big. Real big! ->

Close up, the process is just as fascinating. Here’s our balloon:

But don’t confuse this hot-air ballooning location/experience – at Pamukkale – with its big-brother hot-air ballooning location/experience at Cappadocia (been). At Cappadocia around 150 balloons fly up (100 at 6am, and then another 50 at 07:30). All the same – wonderful here at Pamukkale too! ->

We were lucky – our balloon flew directly above and past the white terraces. At one point we were just two meters away from them:

Then higher we go – for the broader, panoramic views:

Over there – some archeology. About that in a bit…

And there’s the path upon which tourists stroll and photoshoots take place on:

The main terraces, with stalactites:

What views! ->

We almost touch the ground here. We were even asked not to make a jump for it!

Fantastic flight!

After our balloon ride, it was into an ancient swimming pool for a dip. And the water temperature was just perfect – around 40°C.

The baths at this spa-center were a hit even with… the Romans! Yes – they’re that old! They used to come here to take the healthful waters. Aha – I’ve found a remnant of that age of old: a Roman-looking marble/granite column! ->

Of course, such brilliant baths – they’re bound to be popular. But I wasn’t quite expecting a full-house bath at 8am! Ah – but then I recalled where we were – Turkey in the summer. Very hot. Accordingly, folks tend to get a lot done very early in the morning or late in the evening; it’s too hot for comfort during the day for many an endeavor outdoors – even half-submerged in a swimming pool!

Btw: from what I heard with my own ears, most of the tourists here spoke… Russian. Around a quarter spoke Korean, while I heard neither Japanese nor Chinese once. Re the latter – the one-to-two-week quarantine you have to endure upon returning to China – that’s probably what’s putting them off. I heard the occasional European (English, French, Italian) tongue, but very rarely. I heard German not once. I wonder, has Turkey – in particular, Pamukkale – become less popular with the Germans?

The cockerel – the locality’s symbol. Well, why not? ) ->

Now for a spot of the historical-archeological, as promised…

This spa settlement was popular even before the Romans. There were the ancient Greeks before them, and earlier than the Greeks there was some other civilization; however, who they were exactly is unknown. The earliest Greek constructions were collectively known as Hierapolis.