Very close to the ancient baths at Hierapolis, there's a remarkable geological formation -- travertine terraces.  The formation is called "Pamukkale," which translates as "Cotton Castle," and is also the name of the nearby town.

For millions of years water rich in limestone and carbon dioxide has flowed down these hills, leaving behind layers of white calcium carbonate -- limestone.

Millions of tourists clamber all over the formations, pretending to protect the limestone by removing their shoes.

There's Don and Wendy and some old guy who seems to have lost his bathing suit.

There's some old guy in a purple shirt.

The distressing thing about all this is that these beautiful limestone terraces that have taken millions of years to form have been robbed of their life.  The water that has flowed over them has been channeled away to feed the warm pools at big hotels that have been built down below. 

Mineral-rich water once covered the entire area, but now the little trickle that's left has been channeled into this pathetic little stream.

Feels good on bare tootsies, though.

OK, so I contributed in my little way to the destruction of the travertine terraces at Pamukkale.

What's left of them is still pretty, though.

Wonder what it would have looked like when it was shiny wet and brilliant white under that bright Turkish sun?

I'll bet it was beautiful.  But now ... that big brown spot down below that looks like it might be a pool is actually full of gravel marked with tire tracks.  Maybe they plan to fill it with water someday to make a phony baloney lake.  I wonder if they tried, but the trickle flowing down from the mountain wasn't enough to fill the thing?  I dunno.  This was a beautiful place, but its stewards need to do a better job.

Some of our gang cooling their feet.

Back up on top of the hill, though, there is a nice pool for swimming.

An ancient oasis, where you can swim among the ruins.

Nice, actually.

Cool and placid and beautiful.

This has been a popular spot for a long, long time.

The antique pool featured a big pavilion with changing rooms and gift shops and snacks.

And it's healthy, too!  This place will cure what ails you, no matter what language you speak.