pinch, punch, first of the month - it must be time to move on again - to the cotton castle aka PAMAKKULE

In theory we had a lie-in again, with departure timetabled for 11am.  I headed out for a walk to explore the city's very charming and photogenic streets before they fill with tourists.  Very few cars are permitted so strolling is encouraged and safe.  I snaked my way about, certain that I would end up miles away but in fact, my internal compass has been restored.  Or maybe I was just lucky.  I stumbled upon a little Greek Orthodox Church, which was rather like the Russian churches we saw in St Petersburg in that they are full of icons which the faithful kiss and seem to worship.  Also lighting of candles is very much in vogue.
This place is the sort that it would be very pleasant to hole up in for a while, with plenty of congenial coffee houses (the sort that are open to men AND women - in more traditional areas you only see men in the coffee houses.  Apparently the women do their gossipping at home. That wouldn't suit me or my friends who keep Costa afloat:  you know who you are!).
We did get away about 11.30am and drove Northwest to the province of Denizli and to the town of Pamukkale, which means Cotton Castle.
In Ancient times there was a Phrygian city called Hierapolis.  It was largely destroyed by an earthquake in 60AD but rebuilt.  This has nothing to do with the cotton, but I'm coming to that....
There was a temple of Delphi in the central part of the city, and a spring came up there.  It flowed down the hill BUT it turned out that this water was high in calcium and assorted other minerals which were found to be healing to skin conditions and the like.  Thus the city became visited by people seeking cures and relaxation.  Unfortunately, the build up of deposits covered everything in its path, including any ruins, buildings, grass etc.
Originally this would have created a large and stunning selection of pools, terraces and small ponds with water reflecting the sky BUT naturally, mankind overdid it, building hotels on the travertine deposits, allowing hundreds of people to run all over them.  The surface needs a pretty constant stream of mineral rich water flowing over it to continue creating the layers of deposits that make it so white (and it is blindingly white, like snow).  Otherwise it goes a grey, then brown colour, which frankly is not very attractive to anyone.
It is now a UNESCO world heritage site so naturally it is deteriorating accordingly, with the increased coachloads of unruly sightseers who insist on trampling on the terraces for selfies, bath in thong bikini suits, and generally make it likely that we may be the last generation to see this unusual natural phenomenon.
I will be buying a couple of postcards of it as it used to be, since the current site is a poor rendition of the glory days.
HOWEVER, the good news is that all the tour groups head for the water terraces, and tend to stay near by.  Further away (only about 10-25 minutes slow stroll) are the vast and stunning remains of the ancient city.  There is a huge necropolis, baths, toilets, a roman street, temples, a large theatre, central buildings, an agora (market place), etc.  It covers quite a large site and while some people bother with the sites close to the centre, few make the effort to stray towards the outer edges.  Oh, it was amazing to be the only one strolling about, with the sun going down, and the shadows of the cypress trees casting dark patterns on the ground, which is strewn with pieces of stone, from columns, temples, capitals and tombs.  Marvellous. Here's a photo of the area towards the North Gate, toilets building on the right, and baths beyond...