The Road Goes Ever On

Friday, November 19, 2010

Pamukkale

Pamukkale means "cotton castle," and it is a series of high travertine terraces, fed by hot springs, that have long been of scenic and recreational interest. At the top of the terraces is the Hellenistic/Roman spa city of Hierapolis (next post). The terraces are best seen from above, and there are three ways (other than flying) of getting there: 1) drive up to the south gate and walk to the boardwalk, 2) drive up to the north gate and walk to the boardwalk, and 3) walk up the terraces to the top. We opted for 3). But I should note that 3) entails doing the terrace walk barefoot (for environmental reasons) and also entails walking back down. As an American, I can say Pamukkale is similar to Mammoth Hot Springs in Yellowstone. But Pammukale is far more vast, is alive, and has a great ancient city at its top. I'll just let the pix speak for themselves.

Afrodisias

From Selcuk we headed back inland to see three of the most famous classical and natural sites in Turkey, the ruins at Afrodisias, the travertine terraces of Pamukkale, and, above them, the Roman spa city of Hierapolis. Afrodisias (that's how the Turks spell it) was one of the best sites we have seen yet, in the extensiveness and condition of its structures but also in the many interesting un-reassembled parts just laying around everywhere.

Us in front of the great city gate of Afrodisias

Afrodisias' stadium, seating 30,000, the best-preserved such structure from the
Roman world

Many of the seats had markings on them, said to be seating reservations!
("Family of Pseudolus Maximus, IV seats, home games, LXIX...Go LIONS!")

Temple of Aphrodite; later a basilica

A mason's mark (to get paid)

One of the city's two agora, part of the south agora

Looking back to the north agora and Hadrian's Baths

The theatre, built into the side of a hill excavations of which revealed neolithic
habitation going back to 5800 BCE

Looking from the hill back toward the Temple of Aphrodite and the stadium:
the long line of columns traces the length of a pool and arcade in the south agora

Public hall and more baths

Remains of the Sebasteion, a three-level arcade for the worship of emperors
and glorification of the empire; remains of many of the friezes are in the museum

Museum annex, where most of the Sebasteion resides; the museum contains a
great wealth of statues, busts, and other items recovered in the various
excavations, many in very good condition

Perhaps the most important of which is this, the city's official
statue of Aphrodite

Garden Camping, Selcuk

We have not seen all the campgrounds in Turkey, nor is it completely fair to judge them in the low-season, but the best we have come across is Garden Camping, in Selcuk. It is in a wooded area just under the citadel, away from the city, part of a large organic farm, with all the facilities and amenities, and within easy walking distance of all Selcuk's sights. Ephesus is walkable too, if a bit more distant. In high season, its restaurant is reputedly one of Selcuk's best, with everything very locally-sourced. We happened to be at Garden Camping during Kurban Bayrami, the Festival of the Sacrifice, most important of Turkish and Islamic holidays. The remarkable Sallioglu family, who have businesses and interests in Italy, Istanbul, and Selcuk, were singularly wonderful hosts, educating us about Turkish products, customs and life, and inviting us and the other camper couple to share in the Festival Feast.

Entrance to Garden Camping

A couple ancient--archaeological grade--hamami adjoin the

property

Our wash, just below the citadel...

We got to know them well enough to buy a small rug--which is saying something
in our case--alas, not the beautiful silk-on-silk pictured (next time, after we have
won the lottery); pictured with us is Mehmet Sallioglu

Festival of the Sacrifice Feast: the Netherlands camping couple, Sallioglu
daughters Nesrin and Gulseren, mother Emine, father Mehmet, daughter
Ilayda Selma, and Vicki; Nesrin has a textile/fashion design firm in

Istanbul; Ilayda is a pop singer of note (http://www.ilaydamusic.com/);
Gulseren runs the campground; Mehmet has businesses in Italy and Turkey;
mother Emine keeps it all going and is a great chef; a fourth daughter, Nuray,
is a stock broker in Istanbul

In memoriam: Ralph the Ram, whose sacrifice provided us with breaded and fried
liver and boiled rib meat; he was joined by seasoned rice and a luscious tomato
salad and home-baked bread; followed by assorted fruit and Emine's special 65-layer
home-made baklava; all a great treat and privilege for us

Efes Museum

The museum of items from Efes (Ephesus) is located in modern-day Selcuk, so we decided to visit the museum before seeing the ancient city, which is probably the best-known of Turkey's many classical sites. The museum was just a couple hundred meters from our campsite.

Nice sarcophagus in a garden setting outside the museum

Bust of Marcus Aurelius...

As found in excavations of Efes

"Honey, could you press that little button, and smile?" The

Priapos is one of the museum's most popular artifacts; they

discreetly keep it in a darkened box--it's a family museum--

which is hilarious, since you can buy a replica at any trinket

shoppe from Istanbul to Antioch, Izmir to Nemrut

Dagi

A more artful version, with Virgil's famous

lines

Sundial in the courtyard

Roman glass, which we always find intriguing

"And now for something completely different:

a woman with ..." Efes Museum's most

famous item, the larger-than-life statue of

Artemis

Different version

Entrance to the ruins of the massive Byzantine Basilica of

St. John the Evangelist (he's supposed to be buried

somewhere underneath)

View from the ticket office, the citadel in the background

We decided to take a pass on this one, since a) everything

is restored--restored ruins--everything you see is modern,
b) it's merely Byzantine, c) we're really more into the
Synoptic Gospels, and d) no plenary indulgence was offered

Temple of Artemis, or, the Bigger They Are, the Harder They Fall

Another couple hundred meters away is the Temple of Artemis, another of Pliny's Seven Wonders of the World. Nature, time, and humanity seem to have had particular scorn for these seven. Only the pyramids of Egypt remain in recognizable shape.

Model of the Temple of Artemis, from the Efes (Ephesus) Museum, in Selcuk;
the ancient world's largest, and probably not surpassed as a religious site until
the Hagia Sofia; for all I know

Rubble in a swamp; not even very much rubble

One column remains upright, of 127

A row of stumps

A few stones still in some semblance of order

Sic transit, Gloria

Isa Bey Mosque

Just a few hundred meters from Garden Camping is the 14th century Isa Bey Mosque, one of the older still-functioning mosques in Turkey, a major tourist destination.