Located in central Turkey on an arid, 1000-meter high plateau dotted with dormant volcanoes, the geologically- and historically-rich Cappadocia region was one of the highlights of our six weeks in Turkey. Relatively recent volcanic activity in the region deposited a thick blanket of soft tuff (rock formed from volcanic ash) and harder lava across the area, and subsequent erosion of these rock layers has created a unique and fascinating landscape featuring tall columns, cones, and spires of rock, locally referred to as fairy chimneys.
The region also has an intriguing history: between the 4th and 11th centuries, Christians seeking refuge from religious persecution by the Romans carved their churches and monasteries into the soft tuff to keep them hidden. The result is a landscape scattered with the spectacular remains of their efforts. These range from small fairy chimneys with one-room churches (complete with small windows and doors) to large, multi-story churches with high-arched ceilings and beautiful, well-preserved frescoes, to complete monastic communities with living quarters, dining rooms and kitchens. The best are generally preserved and protected, but many other amazing structures are open to anyone who can find them. Meanwhile, hundreds are being used for storage by local farmers.
With so much to offer, it is not surprising that the area has become popular with both foreign and Turkish tourists. We stayed in one of the many popular “cave hotels” in Goreme that offer rooms carved into the bedrock (though much more recently). The town is surrounded by a number of valleys, each with a unique landscape, and we spent much of our time here hiking through them in the crisp fall weather.
We visited the Goreme Open-Air Museum, which protects a monastery with some of the most well-preserved frescoed churches in Cappadocia. The best was the “Karanlik Kilise” (Dark Church) – every inch covered in frescoes of the holy family and important saints. In most churches with paintings of people the eyes were later carved out by Turks who were wary of the “evil eye”. Other churches, from the iconoclastic period (when images were outlawed), are simply painted in red and white patterns with no images of people or animals.
Our hikes included a walk through the “Rose Valley” and “Red Valley” areas to the town of Cavusin, and another to the Devrent Valley and Pasabagi Valley. The Rose Valley and Red Valley trail system meandered through a series of deeply incised canyons along the face of a high plateau. We encountered numerous churches along the way, but fortunately, not many people. This hike ended at the village of Cavusin, with a spectacular abandoned old town cut into the rock face. We climbed to the top of the old town and watched the sun set over the area with our feet dangling off the edge. Our trip to Devrent Valley and Pasabagi Valley happened to be on a Sunday, and we found that locals were also out exploring in full-force. These valleys are both pretty small, so our plan included taking a public bus to a starting point, walking along the road to Devrent Valley (known for rock formations that look like animals), and then walking along the road to Pasabagi Valley (known for its mushroom shaped pillars). In reality, though, we found that we never had to walk because generous Turkish locals would pull over and offer us rides (without our even asking). One such vehicle was a mini-bus full of college-age Turks. When we got in the van they put on Turkish music and danced and sang along in the aisles, presumably for our benefit, but all in good fun. Many of the locals were equally intrigued by our presence and asked to take photos with us as we explored. One young girl and her grandfather chatted us up at the bus station and later added us as facebook friends!
The Cappadocia region is rather large and there is a lot to see, so one day we joined an all-day tour group that took us hiking in the Ilhara Valley, on a visit to Selime Monastery, and to one of the region’s several “Underground Cities." Built by Byzantine Christians in the 7th century, Kaymakli was a defensive stronghold that extended 8 stories underground and could house up to 3000 people and their supplies for several months at a time. The conditions would have been cramped, but the architecture of this structure was impressive.
On our final morning in Goreme we woke before sunrise and hiked to a view point above town to watch hot air balloons take off at dawn. This is an extremely popular tourist activity in the region, and we can only imagine that the scenery viewed from above at first light is particularly dramatic and spectacular. Unfortunately, our budget didn’t allow for a trip ourselves, but even watching the balloons light up and soar across the landscape made for a pretty sight and a nice way to spend our last morning in Cappadocia.
Click on the photo below for our Cappadocia photo album.
The region also has an intriguing history: between the 4th and 11th centuries, Christians seeking refuge from religious persecution by the Romans carved their churches and monasteries into the soft tuff to keep them hidden. The result is a landscape scattered with the spectacular remains of their efforts. These range from small fairy chimneys with one-room churches (complete with small windows and doors) to large, multi-story churches with high-arched ceilings and beautiful, well-preserved frescoes, to complete monastic communities with living quarters, dining rooms and kitchens. The best are generally preserved and protected, but many other amazing structures are open to anyone who can find them. Meanwhile, hundreds are being used for storage by local farmers.
With so much to offer, it is not surprising that the area has become popular with both foreign and Turkish tourists. We stayed in one of the many popular “cave hotels” in Goreme that offer rooms carved into the bedrock (though much more recently). The town is surrounded by a number of valleys, each with a unique landscape, and we spent much of our time here hiking through them in the crisp fall weather.
We visited the Goreme Open-Air Museum, which protects a monastery with some of the most well-preserved frescoed churches in Cappadocia. The best was the “Karanlik Kilise” (Dark Church) – every inch covered in frescoes of the holy family and important saints. In most churches with paintings of people the eyes were later carved out by Turks who were wary of the “evil eye”. Other churches, from the iconoclastic period (when images were outlawed), are simply painted in red and white patterns with no images of people or animals.
Our hikes included a walk through the “Rose Valley” and “Red Valley” areas to the town of Cavusin, and another to the Devrent Valley and Pasabagi Valley. The Rose Valley and Red Valley trail system meandered through a series of deeply incised canyons along the face of a high plateau. We encountered numerous churches along the way, but fortunately, not many people. This hike ended at the village of Cavusin, with a spectacular abandoned old town cut into the rock face. We climbed to the top of the old town and watched the sun set over the area with our feet dangling off the edge. Our trip to Devrent Valley and Pasabagi Valley happened to be on a Sunday, and we found that locals were also out exploring in full-force. These valleys are both pretty small, so our plan included taking a public bus to a starting point, walking along the road to Devrent Valley (known for rock formations that look like animals), and then walking along the road to Pasabagi Valley (known for its mushroom shaped pillars). In reality, though, we found that we never had to walk because generous Turkish locals would pull over and offer us rides (without our even asking). One such vehicle was a mini-bus full of college-age Turks. When we got in the van they put on Turkish music and danced and sang along in the aisles, presumably for our benefit, but all in good fun. Many of the locals were equally intrigued by our presence and asked to take photos with us as we explored. One young girl and her grandfather chatted us up at the bus station and later added us as facebook friends!
The Cappadocia region is rather large and there is a lot to see, so one day we joined an all-day tour group that took us hiking in the Ilhara Valley, on a visit to Selime Monastery, and to one of the region’s several “Underground Cities." Built by Byzantine Christians in the 7th century, Kaymakli was a defensive stronghold that extended 8 stories underground and could house up to 3000 people and their supplies for several months at a time. The conditions would have been cramped, but the architecture of this structure was impressive.
On our final morning in Goreme we woke before sunrise and hiked to a view point above town to watch hot air balloons take off at dawn. This is an extremely popular tourist activity in the region, and we can only imagine that the scenery viewed from above at first light is particularly dramatic and spectacular. Unfortunately, our budget didn’t allow for a trip ourselves, but even watching the balloons light up and soar across the landscape made for a pretty sight and a nice way to spend our last morning in Cappadocia.
Click on the photo below for our Cappadocia photo album.
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