Traversing the Travertines

The one and main reason tourists visit the little sleepy town of Pamukkale in Turkey is the travertines. That multi-tiered hill of white 'snow-like' surface dotted with pools of water. These snow-like substances are actually travertines - a form of limestone deposited by mineral springs, especially hot springs (source Wikipedia). Pamukkale, with its underground hot springs, abounds with these travertines. In fact, Pamukkale means 'cotton castle' in Turkish.

However, I was a tad disappointed when I was actually there. Firstly, it was raining and cold! Secondly, water from the hot springs have actually been re-diverted elsewhere, resulting in gaping empty ponds.

The water in my photos are a result of the rain, and are freezing cold! Since we were there, we did opt to walk all the way down via the travertines, and boy, my feet were totally numb by the time we reach the bottom. The only source of hot springs water was a little rivulet running down by the side, but to walk inside there meant stepping on really sharp and hard stones and rocks.

Standing in freezing cold water

View of the travertines with the town of Pamukkale at the bottom

Warming up my feet in the little rivulet of hot spring water

But made it down we did, and despite rain, cold and all, it was a great experience (now, but not when I was actually experiencing it). Would I do it again? ..... probably not Hah Hah!

Feeling a sense of achievement!

Had a cup of freshly squeezed pomegranate fruit juice after that (acquired taste though!)

All nice and warm after a hot shower and waiting for dinner :-)

Austria

Home of the Austrian Ball. Swarovski. Most of the famous composers ~ Mozart, Strauss, Beethoven, to name a few. Gustav Klimt. The Sound of Music. The Alps.

To many, this country stirs up images of waltzes, old architecture, serene lakes and high meadows, snow-capped mountains, and perhaps little children running along singing songs from The Sound of Music?!

Well, Austria is all this and much more. Despite the rather dismal weather when we arrive, there was so much to see and do, that we were completely exhausted by the time we had to leave. I slept 14 hours straight on the first night back home, and am still catching up with my sleep after one week!

We were in Vienna for about 6 days, then took a train to Prague for another 5 days, before coming back to Vienna for 3 days before leaving for home. From Vienna, we did side trips to Salzburg and the Danube Valley.

I shall attempt (yet again) to break up my trip into separate little posts, although I have severe doubts of my commitment! In the meantime, here are some pictures I took of Vienna.

Karntnerstrasse (the main shopping strip)

Schonbrunn Palace (summer palace of the ruling Hapsburgs)

Autumn Leaves

Naschmarkt

Scrumptious Cakes and Coffee

My favourite type of buildings.....old ones!

More in my next posts........hopefully.

Turkey

I finally visited Turkey in March 2010 after so many years of planning and undecisiveness, since there was always some place else better to go! Taking into consideration that not many of my friends are able to accord the same amount of time and/or budget for the trip that I had in mind!

To blog my entire trip in just one posting would be virtually impossible. The country was simply amazing, and one really has to experience it first-hand to thoroughly appreciate all its wonders and splendours.

After 4 months now, the top 5 things that I can simply recall from the top of my head:-

1. Apple Tea

You really can't miss it. It's served everywhere, from the most expensive restaurants to the roadside stores. The locals drink it really really really sweet, and the first time I drank it, I literally gagged. The secret is (if you forget to tell them not to add sugar), is simply to Not Stir, and pray and hope that the sugar will melt at a slower pace than you can drink.

2. Indian Food

Yes, Indian Food. Firstly, I've never really been a huge fan of kebabs. We found this little Indian restaurant tucked away somewhere near to the Ayasofya in Istanbul. They served one of the better Mango Lhassi I've ever tasted, and their food was simply oh-so-heavenly tender and yummy!

The fish here is also generally very fresh, especially along its coastal areas. I can still smell the freshly grilled fish......

3. Cappadocia

I simply LUUUUUURVE this region and it's wild moon-like landscapes (well, I haven't actually been to the moon to really make an objective comparison....). Everything about this place gives off a very mysterious feel, and as we visited during off-season and we were literally the only people there, there was a very surreal feel to the whole place.

4. Friendly locals

They all look like Thugs or worse, but are actually the friendliest and most helpful people that I have come across in my travels. Most of them went out of their way to assist us, especially in the bus stations where there was not a single English sign (well, most of the country does not have English signs) and there weren't many English-speaking people around. Mostly, we will just shout out the name of our destination, and the rest was communicated via sign language.

5. Oh!-So-Good-Looking Guys!

Yes, they were Everywhere! It did not help that it was still winter and they were all walking around in long overcoats and/or jackets, looking like Keanu Reeves in Matrix. Personally, I don't really like Keanu Reeves very much, but you get the picture.

More posts to follow with picture, if I'm hardworking enough, and I remember that I have a blog!

Tivoli and its Villas

My first sight of Tivoli truly took my breath away. It wasn't particularly beautiful like Bath, but probably because I was not expecting it to loom so high above me amongst those hills, it was certainly an eye-catcher.

We visited Villa d'Este and Villa Adriana ~ both are UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Villa d'Este consists of a main villa, which looks out into a truly beautiful garden with sounds of water tinkling from the far right and left.

View of the gardens from the balcony.


The Oval Fountain (Fontana dell'Ovato)

View of the Villa and Dragon Fountains from the Fishpond


View from the center courtyard


View of the Fishponds

Fountain of the Great Cup (Fontana del Bicchierone)

Villa Adriana (or Hadrian's Villa) was the home to Emperor Hadrian in the early 2nd Century. It spans about 250 acres, and consisted of over 30 buildings, most of which are ruins today. The place is so huge (read = TALL buildings) that photos just don't do it justice.

A mock up model of the Villa as it would have been all those centuries ago

Height perspective!

Emperor Hadrian's outdoor swimming pool, flanked by giant-sized statues

Staff quarters

Beautiful Burano

One of the more picturesque places I've ever been to has most definitely got to be the island town of Burano, just off Venice. The entire little village, which is famous for its hand-made lace, is painted in a myriad of colours.

The day that we arrived was cool and sunny, and it was really perfect. There were lots of restaurants/cafes lining the main street, and we had a relaxing lunch whilst watching people stroll by.