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Pamukkale
has always been a very popular settlement where the hot springs
were believed to have healing powers, so the city became the center
of a pagan cult in antiquity and a spa resort today.
The city was on the borders of Caria, Lycia and
Phrygia and had a mixed population. Citizens were usually involved
in the wool industry and little has changed as it is still a textile
center.
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details of Pamukkale+Hierapolis Tours
The Natural Aspect
The terraces were formed by running warm spring
water, at a temperature of 35 °C / 102 °F containing calcium bicarbonate.
When the water loses its carbon dioxide it leaves limestone deposits.
These are of different colors and shapes in the form of terraces
with pools, overhanging surfaces and fascinating stalactite formations.
Pamukkale which means "cotton castle" in Turkish takes
its name from these formations. According to scientists, if the
water had always flowed at this rate, the terraces must have begun
forming 14,000 years ago.A little further away from Pamukkale, near
Karahayit village is another thermal spring, Kirmizi Su (the Red
Water) with warmer water but less carbon dioxide gas where the running
water creates a reddish effect different then the white cotton terraces
of Pamukkale.
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