Our tour today is to the petrified white lime cascades above Pamukkale. Again we enjoy a leisurely pace and see the whole site as other groups race past us.
The ruins include Heirapolis and the largest necropolis amongst the landmarks. We can paddle in the thermal pools but there are so many tourists here you have to be careful not to slip on the slippery limestone as you navigate around them. It seems as though the numbers of visitors would be damaging the pools. Thankfully some are off limits so they can be preserved for the future. When we continue on we are the only group visiting the necropolis so we get to appreciate the size and beauty of the town. How lucky we are to walk along a road that was built BC. The large number and huge size of the sarcophagus suggest this was a very large and prosperous town. We stop in the village and head straight to our bar where the cold beer is waiting. We all are now just sharing a pide or something small for lunch. We enjoy the break and then back to the hotel for a rest in the thermal pool and the beautiful swimming pool. We decide to have our own happy hour up the hill again. After tea the ladies have decided to have a Turkish bath and go for the discount if we all go together even though we are a bit nervous about sharing a bath, we promised no glasses and no peeking, it was very funny. Our fears were unfounded and though we were all in together the girls were very discreet and covered us with towels. We first were splashed with very hot water and then had a complete scrub taking off our tan I am sure. Next we were covered with foam and massaged with a foamy pillowcase which felt very nice then we were rinsed down and had our hair washed. Next was a massage and then a face mask. It took 75 mins and cost $170 Turkish lira. We all felt completely relaxed and wished we had indulged ourselves the night before as well.