Day 70. Wot! No 40 thieves?

I've decided to see some sights in central Turkey and Ali,  my scooter-riding host, offered to get me a special deal. His prices seemed good but, as he pulled out an official pad on which to book a tour for the next few days, I had to stifle a cry of amazement - his name really *is* Ali Baba! Since I'd just given him a load of money and  most of the arrangements seem to rely entirely on trust, I set off this morning on my trip with a certain amount of unease. 

But, you know,  yet again it all seemed to work out rather swimmingly. After three hours on excellent roads (for once, not funded by the EU!), we  de-bussed at Denzili and straight on to a minibus that was waiting for us, with an English-speaking courier, to whisk us to our destination. Here my onward bus voucher was instantly converted to a proper ticket and I was told where and when the minibus would be to take me to the otogar (=auto gare) later. Left the backpack at a friendly hotel and went exploring another World Heritage site: Pamukkale. 

Wow! Check it out on google or somewhere like here (http://www.greecetravel.com/turkey/pamukkale/index.htm) because my words can't begin to do it justice. At first sight it's like nothing so much as a rather dirty ski slope - but it's made of stone, Traventine to be precise, which is a type of limestone. Because it's precious (a bit like coral) you have to take off your shoes and explore barefoot. But walking up smooth white rock, with warm water running down between your toes is actually very different and rather special. 

Then, at the top, you put your shoes back on to explore another terrific archaeological site: Herapolis which is, if anything, even more extensive than Ephesus and which, at this time of year,  was pretty much empty. 

A good day's sightseeing and, so far, no sign of Ali's thieves!