Today we leave Cappadocia to travel to Pamukkale with a visit to Smyrna. We drove to the Kayseri airport to fly to Smyrna. Here we boarded the tour bus for a ride to the center of Smyrna to visit the Catholic Church St. Polycarp.
Smyrna is a very nice large city with new buildings and bustling shopping area. On the way to St. Polycarp we passed a hill with a bust of Ataturk.
We stopped at nearby restaurant for lunch and break before we go to St. Polycarp. The tour operator arranged for a feast for us- too much food- and it was so GOOD!
With lunch over we boarded the bus to go to St. Polycarp.
The church was locked due to security reasons ( I guess) and we had to be escorted in. The interior was in very good condition full of icons.
After our visit here we boarded our coach for the trip to Pamukkale and our hotel. The trip took over 3 hrs which included a short break to buy snacks and use the bathroom. I don't remember the dinner so it must not have been too impressive.
We stayed at the Pan Thermal Hotel in Pamukkale. It was a very nice property with nice lobby and grounds. The only problem is it did not have an elevator and we had to haul our suitcases up the stairs to the room.
http://www.pamthermal.com/pam-thermal/en
The thermal pools looked inviting and restful but this was an overnight stop and we had to check out and get ready for our stop in Hierapolis and then on to Kusadasi.
Smyrna is a very nice large city with new buildings and bustling shopping area. On the way to St. Polycarp we passed a hill with a bust of Ataturk.
We stopped at nearby restaurant for lunch and break before we go to St. Polycarp. The tour operator arranged for a feast for us- too much food- and it was so GOOD!
With lunch over we boarded the bus to go to St. Polycarp.
The church was locked due to security reasons ( I guess) and we had to be escorted in. The interior was in very good condition full of icons.
After our visit here we boarded our coach for the trip to Pamukkale and our hotel. The trip took over 3 hrs which included a short break to buy snacks and use the bathroom. I don't remember the dinner so it must not have been too impressive.
We stayed at the Pan Thermal Hotel in Pamukkale. It was a very nice property with nice lobby and grounds. The only problem is it did not have an elevator and we had to haul our suitcases up the stairs to the room.
http://www.pamthermal.com/pam-thermal/en
The thermal pools looked inviting and restful but this was an overnight stop and we had to check out and get ready for our stop in Hierapolis and then on to Kusadasi.
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