Another 5am Mosque wake up meant the start to another early day. Today I had a tight schedule to follow so it wasn’t all that unwelcome. I needed to catch the early train out to Denizli. Missing the first train means waiting all day for the next one as there are only two a day. Being as I didn't have a place to stay and I didn't want to arrive in a random Turkish city in the dark I made a point to catch the first train. This turned out to be very easy and I made it on without any problems. My old 'go to the ticket office and point to a city name' tactic is foolproof.
The train ride was just over 3 hours and provided me with a number of nice views of the Turkish countryside. When I first started traveling I was shocked how much places so far away looked like areas of not only the United States but other places around the world. I have always romanticized travel and had this assumption that every part of the the world is distinct and different. While this may be somewhat true culturally, our surroundings are not exclusive to our little nook on this planet. My trip through the western Turkish countryside reminded me of Swaziland and Colorado.
On a positive note I paid the correct fair for this particular leg and did not stress during my ride that I had ripped off the Turkish railway system. After further analysis of my ticket to Selcuk I confirmed that I did in fact pay the correct fair. No rip offs here. The train system in Turkey is surprisingly cheap and efficient. My 3 hour trip today cost me a whopping $7 US. The hour long trip I took before was $1.50 or so. I could get use to this.
I mostly listen to pod casts while on the train that I had downloaded the night before. As I was watching the scenery and listening to my favorite shows I began to notice two of the travelers who had gotten on the train with me at Selcuk. They were the typical backpackers you see that do the classic 'finding myself while backpacking through Europe' deal. As I was switching casts I overheard them talking about all the hostels they had stayed at. I then started to think about what phonies they were.
No one 'backpacks' through Europe. Maybe its just my definition but I consider backpacking taking all you need to survive in the wild. This includes sleeping bags, tents, food, tools, ect. All they had were a Nalgene, a set of clothes, and knickknacks they picked up along the way. These assholes were doing the same thing I was doing except they were advertising how awesome they were for doing so. Sure I also posses a backpack but its equipped for a laptop. I'm not going around with expedition grade equipment for mild weather and sheltered travel. I also don't exclusively wear outdoor weatherproof gear, bandanas, and ethnic jewelry just so people know that I'm traveling. They are traveling hipsters with a douchey uniform.
After my epiphany and rage session I calmed down and prepared for the next segment of my journey. After I reached Denizli I was to exit the train and catch a bus to Pamukkale. I desperately tried to find any information on how to do this on the internet the night before but came up empty handed. The only accounts of this rout i could find made it sound like the bus would be waiting for me once I exited the train. Fair enough.
Once I reached Denizli I looked for my golden coach but it was nowhere to be seen. Denizli is a decent sized city of 300,000 and I was in the middle of it with no idea where to go. I walked around for a bit but didn't see anything that hinted it would take me where I needed to go. I walked back to the train station and noticed a group of buses across the street opposite of where I had walked. I crossed the street and entered the chaos of the Denizli public bus system.
It was a block of buses pulling up with their door's open and people jumping in and out as the buses drove away. They had a small piece of paper in one of the windows with a list of city names the bus would stop at. I waited and waited but no buses seemed to fit my criteria. People were yelling and running around and I felt completely out of place. As I was about to give up a bus with a Pamukkale sign pulled up. Lets do this.
I got in the 10 person van with about 16 others and we took off. I was lucky enough to snag a seat but the unlucky others had to double up or stand crouched in the small aisle. I noticed when boarding that no one paid so I kept my Lira to myself. We drove for a while and some old ladies yelled at the driver and got off the buss. Apparently the buses have a rout but no stops, you just yell when you want to get off. This scared me a bit because I had no idea where I was going.
After about 20 minutes another young girl yelled something at the driver and handed him 3 Lira. Earlier I had noticed a sign above the driver that had a price breakdown of how much it was to go to which city. Pamukkale was 3 Lira. I took a leap of faith and got off the bus. This is what I saw when I got off.
Instantly regretting my decision I shook off the the initial shock and started walking down the street. There were a few houses one way and none the other way so I went towards the houses.
As I was wishing I had a tent and sleeping bag myself I saw a cluster of signs. And hey they were pointing to hotels! Even if I was in the wrong place I would at least have an place to stay for the night pending availability. A few paces later and wouldn't you know it, there was my hostel. Instincts win again.
Despite the location and exterior, the interior is very nice and the rooms are of respectable quality. I checked in, released my bags, and grabbed lunch at the hotel restaurant.
I didn't know the heart shaped bed actually existed! I really blew it on room selection...
After lunch I decided I would take a look around this booming metropolis. As I set out it was instantly clear this place is deserted. Not only were the streets empty or people but a lot of the buildings were abandoned.
I then wondered what I would do for the rest of the day/evening. After being lunged at by a guard dog with a leash just short enough to prevent my face from being ripped off I found A few of the cities attractions. I carefully planned the rest of my day.
How will I have time to fit it all in? Well the truth is I couldn’t. Mainly because most of it was closed or abandoned. I did end up having a nice dinner and a wild night at the local pub.
You may be asking why I went to all this trouble to go to a deserted mountainous Turkish village. Well it is because it is at the foot of this and this. Hopefully my day exploring these sites will be better than my trip through off season Pamukkale.
