Overland to London - Side to Pamukkale

 

Turkish countryside near Antalya

Day 79    Tues 12 August    SIDE – PAMUKKALE (almost) ANTALYA

After leaving Side with its myriad of ‘rubbles’, we push on along the coast towards

 Remains of frieze in Theatre, Side          

Antalya, first making the short detour to Aspendos. This place is famous for its excellently preserved Roman theatre which dates from the rule of Marcus Aurelius (161-180 AD). From Aspendos we carry on to Antalya, one of the largest cities long the Turkish Mediterranean Coast with a population of over 100,000. Antalya, besides being  a major resort centre is also a major fruit and vegetable exporter.

From Antalya we head away from the coast, through Burdur and Dinar, and near the town of Denizli we turn off for the climb up to the famous hot springs of Pamukkale. Over the centuries the hot mineral waters, seeping from the hills, have left a deposit of silica, forming impressive pure white terraces. Here also are the ruins of the Roman  city of Hierapolis, built above and around the terraces. Here is a recently excavated ‘Plutonium’, or Gates of Pluto, which in earlier times had been the sanctuary of Cybele, the Anatolian mother-goddess.

Aspendos Theatre

The strong vapours issuing from the hot waters of a cave beneath the sanctuary are toxic (high in carbon dioxide) and it was said that only the eunuch priests of Cybele could withstand them. Also at Hierapolis is the Martyrium of St. Philip, the Apostle, who was crucified upside-down in 80 AD, and also the so-called Cleopatra’s Pool, where you are able to bathe in the clear waters among the fallen ancient Roman columns.  Sunset at Pamukkale is particularly impressive with vivid reflections in the waters and on the whiteness of the limestone terraces.

Comments:             

                 A word of philosophy, a word of complaint                             A warning here just a little too  late                                         Sam is bemoaning our fate and his luck                                Stuck on a bus surrounded by dust                                       Approaching heaven, just gone through hell                          Wishing he was in India where all was so swell.

 Day 80    Wed 13 August             ANTALYA

 Well once again we have decided, or at least OMJ has decided, to take a lengthy break. This time on the coast, so it can’t be all bad. OMJ is throwing a smoking fit, and as the Turkish army don’t seem to want her for making smoke screens during their war manoeuvres, it seems we must have her fixed. Rings and pistons seem to be the logical explanation, only problem – Ramazan holiday until Friday, so we will do our best to get back on the road as quickly as possible. To carry on in the coach the way it is, is too risky – maybe a seized motor miles from anywhere. So we will stay here at Bambus Motel, camping, for the time being.

Cumhuriyet Square in the centre of Antalya

Day 81    Thu 14 August             ANTALYA

       Again, nothing can be done on the coach, but we have been assured that work will begin tomorrow (Inshallah!). Hopefully we will be able to set a departure time tomorrow.

 Comments:                                     Jane it was plain was definitely game                                                                                   But it’s not for this story to over explain                                                                                 Her giggle was loud and overabound                                                                                    Especially at nite when all slept around

                                                          Prowling the disco late at night                                                                                              Looking for something called a Turkish delight                                                                      Juliette, Juliette can’t remember who                                                                                    Maybe we should take a photo or two

Boats along the rocky coast, from Bambus Motel, Antalya

 Day 82    Fri 15 August              ANTALYA

    At last things are moving. The Turkish mechanics do not seem to think that it is the rings and pistons but seem to think it is the fuel injectors and pump. Today they replaced the injectors which were kaput and will check the pump tomorrow. The brakes have also been repaired - properly! The coach does have to go to the garage tomorrow morning at least, but there is still a chance that we could get away sometime tomorrow afternoon, so if everyone could be around camp from midday onward.

Düden Waterfall, Antalya

Day 83    Sat 16 August              ANTALYA

       Again, a delay in the garage, but the bus will be back in camp tonight and we will head off early tomorrow morning for Kuşadası via Pamukkale. As tomorrow is Sunday, the day off, it would be at least two more days before we would be mobile again. Let us live in hope!

The travertine terraces of Pamukkale, the 'Cotton Castle'

Day 84    Sun 17 August     ANTALYA – KUŞADASİ  PAMUKKALE

Departure time: 5.45am       

 The terraces at Pamukkale at sunset       

            Well, once again the Magical Mystery Tour founders in the Turkish countryside. Leaving Antalya with lots more power and as much hope, we flew inland en route to Pamukkale and with high hopes of spending the night at Kuşadası. Over mountain, across valleys we raced, past Burdur and through Dinar but, alas, our joys were but short lived. After a loo stop near Denizli during which Tom replenished the engine’s oil, our problems returned, ending in a great cloud of black and white smoke which enveloped a large group of curious, then somewhat annoyed Turks at the tourist centre of Pamukkale – end of the road for another couple of days! So a mechanic has been found and says the rings can be replaced in two days in Denizli, all going well. A friend of Pauline’s has shown us a small camp site (small being the key word) with a pool, at the foot of the white terraced cliffs of Pamukkale where we will remain encamped for the next couple of days – Hotel Konak Sade!!!

 No Comments Please!!!

          There is a mile between every Sundowners’ smile – Robert

         Above & following pieces of prose won the Katherine Mansfield Award for originality and wit!?!

 Day 85    Mon 18 August  scheduled arrival in LONDON (PAMUKKALE renamed)

Departure time: Pretty bloody early to reach London by 10 am           

     Disembarking early in the usual English rain, we make our final run up the A4 from Dover (of White Cliffs and Vera Lynn fame) to London to arrive at Gloucester Road bus park by 10 am, just after morning rush hour!  But on the other hand, we could just have another quiet relaxing day at Pamukkale, feeling so glad that we have escaped the rat race of that teeming English metropolis for yet another day (or week).

A tomb of ancient Hierapolis within the limstone of the Terraces, Pamukkale

So, as the saga of P48 stretches out, we are all kept waiting ‘in suspenders’ once more – what will happen to OMJ? Will it be on the road tomorrow, or should Tom call in the knacker to put it down? (Should be plenty of volunteers for the job!) Stay tuned for tomorrow’s exciting episode of “How I travelled from Kathmandu to London and met the famous OMJ smoke machine.” (50 Turks now in Denizli hospital suffering from acute asphyxia); and still the question is asked – ‘when will we reach London?’ – the answer is "Definitely not on the 18^th!"

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text & photographs ©Neil Rawlins 

Instagram accounts  @dustonmyfeet     and    @antipodeanneil

My paperbacks and ebooks on my Overland travels in Asia, Europe & Africa in the early 1970s and the experiences of a tour guide on the Asian Overland routes & leading Camel Safaris in Rajasthan in the 1980s are available from Amazon.