Cappadocia

This weekend I went to Cappadocia when nine other people from our school. It took about three and a half others to drive there. We left Friday evening after school. We stayed in the neatest hotel. The region of Cappadocia is just a geography wonder. You can see when you look at the pictures. I visited Cappadocia for four days last summer when I was traveling in Turkey. The region is covered in a volcanic ash that became rock called tuff. It’s very easy to carve into. As a result, there are homes carved into the mountains. There are also underground cities. The odd shapes you see are a result of erosion. Cappadocia was known for it’s horses. During the Roman Empire they had to charge a special tax on horses from Cappadocia because they were so popular.

The first Christians moved here to escape persecution. They built home and churches. They even lived in underground cities when Muslims were raiding the country. We went to the Open Air Museum in Göreme. There you can explore the homes and churches built into the mountains. People actually lived there till the 1980s when the government made people move out because it was unsafe. I have several pictures from Göreme.

We also did lots of shopping. I bought a kilim rug. Turkey is known for their rugs. Many of you saw the carpet that I bought last year. A kilim is a flat weave, versus the knotting system of a carpet. I generally don’t like kilims. They usually have a very Native American look from the west. Many people love them, but it’s usually not my style. However, the design on this one and the colors were different and perfect for my bedroom.

Our hotel was beautiful. It was much cooler in Cappadocia. Our room was an average temperature of 60. But we stayed warm with our extra blankets! It also only cost 50 YTL per person for two nights. (That’s only around $42!) We had the most gorgeous view! Especially early in the morning when the hot air balloons were taking off. The breakfast was great. The common area had a place to sit by the fire and hang out, have some chai (tea) or play tavla (backgammon).

On Sunday we went to one of the underground cities. Up to 10,000 people lived in the one we went to. They were originally used by the Hittites, then later Christians escaping the Muslim raids. We had a lot of fun exploring. This city was not as claustrophobic as the one I visited last summer.

We finished off the afternoon with a hike down into the valley of Göreme. The owner of the hotel was so friendly and nice. He lead us on our hike. The pictures don’t do it justice of how beautiful the area is. You have to check out the pictures.
http://photobucket.com/albums/y145/CDeLong/Turkey/Cappadocia/