An Enchanting Visit to Other-Worldly Cappadocia, Turkey

I have to start by saying that this post is way overdue.  We have so many beautiful photos from Cappadocia that narrowing them down for the blog seemed overwhelming!  After months of procrastination, I finally have my act together, and am ready to share more from our trip to this other-worldly region of Turkey.

After our visit to Istanbul and the fabulous week with MDFV, we spent a few days in Cappadocia.  Our home base was Goreme, which was accessible to many of the wonders the region had to offer.

Hotel

We stayed at the Divan Cave House hotel in Goreme.  Staying in a cave hotel is pretty much the thing to do in this area.  It was an unforgettable experience!  We decided on Divan Cave House through a combination of their great TripAdvisor reviews and their great price.  They did not disappoint.  Both before and during the trip, their customer service and communication proved to be exceptional.  They helped book our tours, and were also very helpful when we needed to change some of our tour plans at the last minute.  They also have transportation at-the-ready if you don’t feel like walking up or down the hill to the center of town (which is really close, it’s just downhill).

The view from Divan Cave House hotel included other cliff and cave dwellings, in addition to the ethereal “fairy chimneys” for which the region is famous

Another view from Divan Cave House

An upper-deck balcony at the hotel where guests can enjoy their breakfast and a view of Goreme

The entrance to our cave room at Divan Cave House

The room was cozy, with natural stone walls

Nooks for storage and display were carved into the walls of our cave room

The large breakfast spread at Divan Cave House

Food

Just like in Istanbul (see my post on Istanbul street food for reference), the food in this region was flavorful and hearty, but with some great regional distinctions.  Since our hotel was quite close to the main part of town, we tried a few nearby restaurants, and enjoyed trying what the region had to offer.

One of our favorite Turkish entrees was kofte (meatballs seasoned with Turkish meat seasoning and spices)

Dondurma, Turkish ice cream, is as delicious to eat as it is entertaining to watch being served

Dondurma

Ayran is a traditional yogurt drink

Stews are very prevalent in this region. You will often find them with aubergine (eggplant for the Americans) and squash, which grow well in Anatolia.

We were told that we had to try pastirma (Turkish pastrami) when in Cappadocia.  Here we had it with hummus.  The menu had it listed as “hot buttered hummus with bacon.”  Yes, please.

Lavash bread served hot and puffy

We feasted on kebab served with delicious Anatolian beans and olives

What to do
Due to some transportation mishaps (more on that in next week’s Travel Tuesday post), we had to cancel our Red/North Tour on our first day.  Our hotel guided us on some of the highlights that we could do ourselves without a tour.  They recommended that we not miss the Goreme Open Air Museum or Uchisar Castle, so we made our way to both.

Goreme Open Air Museum

I agree that this is a must-see in Cappadocia.  This easily-accessible open air museum allowed self-guided exploration of dwellings and ancient churches built right into the unique surrounding rock formations.

The Goreme Open Air Museum

More of the Goreme Open Air Museum

Another view of the Open Air Museum

Some of the frescoes inside one of the churches

One of the more remarkably well-preserved frescoes that we saw in Cappadocia

Posing for a photo at one of the ancient dining tables inside a cave building at the Open Air Museum

Some crouching and crawling was required

Another lovely exterior view of the Goreme Open Air Museum

Spooky!  Some ancient skeletons in some of the tombs within the museum

A view of some different artwork in the museum. The space was in use for centuries, and different artistic styles from the periods were represented throughout.

Window holes carved into the natural rock formations

Uchisar Castle

Atop the highest point in Cappadocia sits Uchisar, which is a 5km bus or cab ride uphill from Goreme city center.  From here you not only see more of the unique architectural structures of the region, but also a panoramic view.

Uchisar Castle overlooks Cappadocia

The view of Cappadocia from Uchisar

Uchisar Castle

Green/South Tour
Thankfully we were still able to make our Green Tour the next day.  This was a really convenient way to see even more of the region, since most of these stops were not close to our hotel.  The tour (which our hotel booked for us, but can also be coordinated online or in Goreme from a number of tour companies) included transportation, lunch, and site entrance fees.  Stops for the Green Tour included Goreme Panorama, Derinkuyu Underground City, Selime Monastery, Ihlara Valley, Pigeon Valley, and an Onyx Factory.

Admiring the panoramic view in my comfy new harem pants (aka “most comfortable pants ever”)

The surreal view of Cappadocia

The pink and taupe sand and rock were beautiful to see

Green trees lined the valleys

Fairy chimneys are pre-historic lava rock formations that have been sculpted by wind and rain over the millennia

The husband posing with the evil eye tree that overlooks the valley

The Derinkuyu underground city represents a very fascinating time in Turkey’s history

One of the large, rolling stone doors (Indiana Jones, anyone?) in Derinkuyu that would block off access to the tunnels in case of invasion

Descending down into the city’s lower levels.  The city was about five stories deep and could hold thousands of people, livestock and provisions.

A ventilation shaft in Derinkuyu

One of the grave sites in the underground city

Looking up one of the ventilation shafts towards the sunlight stories above

Selime is a monastery built into rock.  It is the biggest of its kind in Cappadocia.

You have to be creative to get around certain parts of Selime

The combination of the natural rock and the man-made carvings were a sight to behold

Over the centuries the space was used as a church, hotel, and museum

Some of the intricate decorative carvings inside Selime Monastery

Carvings and artwork inside Selime

Posing in a window towards the top of Selime Monastery in Cappadocia

The view from the window towards the top of Selime

Part of the monastery from a high vantage point

Descending back down Selime

Around Selime Monastery in Cappadocia

Some more traditional stone dwellings near Selime

For a moment you’d think you landed on an inhabited foreign planet!

The Ihlara Valley, which houses the Peristrema Monastery, is a beautiful hike

After a hike and ascending a staircase, you enter rock dwellings carved into the side of the cliff

Brilliantly-colored frescoes line the walls of the old churches in Ihlara Valley

Frescoes in Ihlara

A frescoe in Cappadocia’s Ihlara Valley depicting St. George and the serpent

Ihlara Valley

The beautiful Pigeon Valley in Cappadocia

Pigeon Valley

They take you to an onyx factory at the end of the tour.  It was fascinating to see how it was carved, and to learn about the different types and colors of onyx.  Not surprisingly, they don’t let you leave without going through the showroom.  I fell in love with this dark blue sparkly piece, and my sweet hubby got it for me!

Whirling Dervish Ceremony
We went to a Whirling Dervish ceremony, which was also coordinated for us by our hotel.  I am so glad we did this; it was one of my favorite experiences in Turkey.  The best way to describe witnessing this performance meditation is “enchanting.”  I especially appreciated it after reading a bit about it’s meaning and origins (here is a great resource).  The ceremony (Sema) takes the participant through a spiritual journey in several stages set to music where they revolve (or whirl) with incredible balance for long periods of time.  If you have an opportunity to witness this yourself, you definitely should.

The beginning of the Whirling Dervish ceremony

Music is a key part of the Sema ceremony

The Whirling Dervish ceremony getting started

A delicious cup of hot apple tea was offered to us after the ceremony

Sunrise Balloon Ride

Just like staying in a cave hotel, it seems almost obligatory to take a sunrise hot air balloon ride when visiting Cappadocia.  There are many options for balloon tour companies, so we deferred to the friendly staff at our hotel to help us decide on a tour that was right for us.  Unfortunately, despite the fact that it was sunny and beautiful on every other day of the two weeks we were in Turkey, we had rain and lightning the morning of our scheduled balloon ride.  The ride was canceled, so we were unable to do it after all.  I guess we will just have to go back someday!

Waiting for our early morning balloon tour pick-up… the fact that I needed an umbrella did not bode well for our chances of taking a hot air balloon flight

Our pouty faces after we learned that our hot air balloon ride was canceled.  I guess we will just have to come back!

Now you can see why it took me so long to narrow this down.  I hope you’ve enjoyed the photos, and if you have the chance, I hope you get to see this amazing place for yourself.