The area around this town is filled with these rock formations
As our guide mentioned, they could be part of the Smurf village.
The majority consist of tall, light coloured pillars,
with basalt caps.
I was hoping to meet this couple, as I built a story about him proposing
to her on this hillside.
But, I never did…so this remains just a snapshot of a moment caught in time
I heard on of the locals say that this could possibly
fall over any minute…
in the next few thousand years.
Keeping the peace…
It is easier and quieter to get around on horseback.
My wife,posing in one of the many formations
Look up…
These ancient formations are truly awe inspiring
Reflections…
This are was called Imagination Valley…
Our guide told us that we would be able to see
a variety of figures in the rock formations.
Look closely, I see hares…
how about you?
Unfortunately, I only noticed this as our bus left.
I have no idea what they stocked, however,
I have a suspicion that it was merely an advertising ploy
We visited Chez Galip Pottery studios.
Here many generations of the same family practice
the art of using the foot operated wheel.
A sort of “Ghost” moment
We were told that the painters only work 5 hours per day.
All the painting is done by hand and without the use of stencils
The master himself…Chez Galip.
Adding a lock of my wife’s hair to the 16000 others that are already in
his rather “interesting” hair museum…
http://www.odditycentral.com/pics/the-hair-museum-of-avanos.html
The penultimate part of our tour…
The Goreme Open-Air Museum.
This is an astonishing place.
Filled with several churches, dining halls and kitchens.
All carved into these almost termite-like structures
A view of a couple of the churches…
The one in the middle is called the “Black Church” and the
interior is the best preserves of them all
The painting have deteriorated over the centuries
and the vandals have exacerbated their demise.
Why do people carve their initials into rocks and trees etc?
They leave behind a legacy that harms rather than protects…
and they are therefore remembered for all the WRONG reasons
The final church that we visited…
This is the “Buckle Church” and it can be found just outside the museum
It is currently undergoing restoration,
and when completed and restored to its former glory,
will be spectacular.
And for the real tourists…
A camel ride is a must.
This is a rock castle called Uchisar…
And to end off our day,
a panoramic view of the area with a non-active volcano in the far distance.
A day that was filled with wonder and awe for both my wife and I.
These remnants are inspirational and showed what mankind is capable of
when he decides that peace is better war.
We stayed in this “cave hotel” in Cappadocia.
Friendly staff, great accommodation and wonderful food.
Highly recommended.
On our first day in Cappadocia, our guide was Oguzhan Turkoglu
He was funny, informative and he was also well versed
on the countries of the tourists that he was hosting!
Made the group feel more that just paying customers.
This is what he had to say about the region and what is on offer:
http://podcast77612.podomatic.com/entry/2015-09-16T10_09_13-07_00
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