Selçuk, Pamukkale & Ephesus - (14th - 16th April)
We arrived into the small town of Selçuk at around 2pm and walked around the main streets quite quickly – it is not very big here, however a good base to visit Ephesus and Pamukkale.
We booked a day trip out to Pamukkale, after weighing up the pros and cons of visiting Pammukale ourselves via train or bus, vs a tour which included all transport directly there, entry fee, English speaking guide and a buffet lunch. For a difference of around 20TL ($10AUD) we chose to go with the all inclusive tour, for peace of mind. We paid 100TL ($50AUD) per person.
Pamukkale was breathtaking and we had an amazing day.
The beautiful warm (36 degrees
Celsius) spring water comes gushing out of the inlet at the top of
the travertines.
The water makes its way right down to the bottom, all the
while entering the travertine pools on its way. The beautiful pools
are sky blue and look amazing, against the cotton white walls.
We just had to have a swim in
the travertines #YOLO! We were amazed at how lovely and warm the
water was and with the clay like consistency of the bottom of each of
the pools. This is a natural infinity pool and you could spend hours
here admiring the amazing view over the white calcium travertines and
further down into the green Meandros Valley.
Hieropolis is the ancient
city in Pamukkale with some poorly preserved ruins at the site. Many
earthquakes have destroyed much of the historical city with little to
actually see, other than the roman theatre and some tombs. We
enjoyed more spending time on the natural wonder of the travertines.
Ephesus was also on our list
of places to visit while in Turkey, so we made a trip there from
Selçuk. It was only a 2KM walk from our hotel, so we decided to
visit Artemis Temple on the way.
The Artemis Temple has been
significantly damaged and is in quite poor condition with only one
column having been repaired and still standing. Originally
constructed in the 8th Century BC, this temple was
dedicated to the goddess Artemis and is one of the ancient wonders of
the world.
We visited the ancient city
of Ephesus, originally an ancient Greek city which was inhabited
since 1500 BC. The ruins here are well preserved and the sight is
well maintained with good explanations of each attraction in English,
Turkish and German languages.
Entry fee is 30TL ($15AUD)
per person. Audio tours are 20TL ($10AUD).
The church of the virgin Mary
The Theatre
A friend I made while at the Theatre...
A beautiful fig tree, full of fruit however just short of being ripe...
The Harbour road, tiled with marble and lined with beautiful columns
The public latrines
The Library
The detail of the library columns
Ephesus and Pamukkale were highlights of our trip through Turkey!
