[Turkey] Cappadocia

Location: Cafe in Cappadocia

It's terrible getting behind with blogging. It's hard to keep up though, which all the bus riding, no internet, sightseeing, getting back late at night, no place to charge unless going into a restaurant, doing laundry at sinks and fountains, etc etc.. and yeh I do realize that no one feels the slightest bit sorry. I'm just saying to make myself feel less guilty. But I hope it helps me defend my point by noting that the "Location" at the top of the entry has not changed for the last 3 posts.

So yes, I am in Cappadocia. The first location in Turkey to be recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage sight, and as one of the most mysterious and fascinating landscapes in the world, it has yet to betray the expectation of millions of tourists who visit every year. It is because of the beauty and uniqueness of the landscape, along with it's one-and-only historical background, that triggered my interest and shaped my decision to settle down for couple of days. Thus it really wasn't a difficult decision when I debated whether to stay overnight at Selcuk or move on to Cappadocia.

Many people have not heard of Cappadocia. I'm not surprised (because I didn't know about it until a backpacker told me about it in India), but once you look into tourism in Turkey, you realize that it cannot be taken off your itinerary. I guess there is a downfall to it, which is that it is located in central Turkey, a bit away from other popular destinations such as Istanbul and Izmir. But unless you're deeply allergic to bus rides (which I don't understand), it's definitely recommended to go. Plane ride is always an option as well because Turkey has a good domestic transportation.

I'd like to point out first of all that my 11 hours bus ride from Selcuk to Cappadocia (Goreme) was once again excellent.

The sunset view from seat 36D was the best

I am in Turkey

Bringing it back

NO WAY. This was a first. I'm not quite sure if it was because it was an super long bus ride, but they actually served coffee, tea, and snacks. This is the moment when it officially surpassed Japanese buses (at least in my book). My bus riding experience in Turkey = good -> better

20 minute bus break at 6am. I think these breaks are too long..and it differs every time. It's however long it takes for the driver to smoke couple of ciggs.

Arriving at Cappadocia
First of all, allow me to present to you with photos, Cappadocia, land with volcanic rocks, colorful and distinctive valleys, and fairy chimneys.
Nature, history, and mankind came hand in hand here thousands of years ago. The unique rock formation is a result of a volcano eruption that wiped out the area 3-4 million years ago. Since then people have settled here and built, or carved, houses and churches within these rocky pillars and created villages that from far away, looks like nothing but mushrooms and swiss cheese. Because there are over 50 churches in the valleys, it is also believed that it was the Christians who were escaping from the Islam forces that settled here first. They took advantage of the rocks that were still soft and easy to process (due to the eruption), but over time it has hardened and formed hard, solid walls which protected the Christian people for following decades.

I was glad to have chose this place as my resting point, because there is so much to see here and it's all accessible by foot. Going everywhere with a 25 kg backpack (with dangling shoes) on you isn't just a physical burden, but also mental because you're basically an easy-target for shopkeepers and taxi drivers. So, I was delighted to check into a hostel, put my luggage down, and let my foot carry the only thing it was made to carry; my body.

So that's a brief introduction to Cappadocia, but this city is massive. About 400km in length. The particular town I went to is called Goreme, which is located in the central area and is convenient to access surrounding valleys.

Goreme
As I mentioned above, Goreme is in an ideal location for travelers who want to visit different valleys on foot. It is a nice and short hike up to the Goreme Open-Air Museum (1km), which I went to on the first day upon my arrival. I tried going there early to avoid the herd of tourists, but whether the outcome is worthy of celebrating is doubtful because it was still very crowded. It's the high season so can't complain. But the museum was excellent. It was 15TL for entrance. Some people would complain that it charges too much for a museum that only offers walking and looking inside of rock holes, but it makes sense considering its the only source of income to preserve this valuable piece of nature.

On my way to the Open-Air Museum

Already cool looking houses

Entrance to the Apple Church (supposedly because its shaped like an apple)

Inside the Apple Church

So these houses were all made but carving holes inside of rocks thousands of years ago. And supposedly people were actually living inside until 20 years ago, but many of them were forced to move out into nearby villages.

The Rose Valley
After the museum, I decided that I still had time (and energy, thankfully) to explore couple of the surrounding villages. I found the Rose Valley (as known as the Red Valley due to its red-ish pinkish color of the rocks) to be particularly interesting and it sticks to my memory (partly because I was half lost in the other valleys). Well I lost my sense of direction in the Rose Valley as well, but this time it worked out well for me because the view after somehow reaching the pinnacle was nothing but priceless. I read that the Rose Valley is especially nice to visit near the sunset, because that is when the stones slowly change its colors from pink to red. Luckily, the time I headed to the valley was around 7pm (the sunset is 8:30-9), so I thought it was perfect. Except I forgot to consider something essential. If I get lost (which was a given) and the sun sets, I'm screwed. The "red marks" along the way didn't help me feel safe in the valley either. I'll explain this later.

My search for the Rose Valley begins

Still searching..

Bam. There it is. Priceless.

Follow the Red
Turns out that rocks weren't the only "red" part about the valley. Time to time there were red marks on trees and signs. Having signs are helpful don't get me wrong. But it does get scary when it's getting dark, you're by yourself (alone and lost), and there are red arrows spray painted on trees.

Entering the Rose (Red) Valley

No other choice but to trust these sketchy signs..

I was scared that it was leading me to a false direction. But half way through these signs disappeared and I ended up guess my through the valley. I don't know how I made it out but thankfully I did..
Red Valley was nice and definitely recommended for those seeking an adventure. If not, stay away and just enjoy the sunset from far far away.