We couldn’t pull ourselves away from Cappadocia, an expansive region comprised of strange geological landscapes. Erosion and water have transformed the white soft volcanic rock into bizarre towers called “fairy chimneys.” These formations fill deep valleys and also climb up hills, making ideal places for cave-dwelling. Even though the place looks barren, the volcanic soil is rich in minerals, so there are numerous orchards and wineries.

We stayed for 6 days in the little village of Goreme, right in the middle of a national park. Several pensions (small hotels with a restaurant) offer rooms cut out of caves, which adds to the novelty of staying in Cappadocia. Despite sounding totally rustic, they were pretty comfortable with nice beds and electrical outlets. The dorm at Travellers’ Cave cost us a measly 4 US dollars each per night!
Besides cave-dwelling, drinking wine, and snacking on dried figs, there is lots to see and do in Cappadocia! You wouldn’t mind getting lost on the beautiful valley trails for at least a couple of weeks; we especially enjoyed a day hike through the Rose Valley. The Goreme Open-Air Museum, a World Heritage site, is full of Byzantine churches cut into the caves. Some of the frescoes on the walls and ceilings date back to the 4th century. Outside of the museum, the entire region also has several impressive early Christian churches.

We also rented motorbikes for a day, which is always a blast. It was a great way to enjoy the landscape and the deepest blue skies I’ve ever seen (possibly bluer than the American West)! The Turasan Winery smelled amazing (because of the apricots being dried there in addition to wine-making), and we bought a really nice bottle for about five US dollars. In the really quiet village of Mustafapasha, we enjoyed some coffee at a 250 year-old Ottoman-Greek house that still has its original decorations and beautiful courtyard.

The tiny town of Uchisar surrounds the tallest rock in Cappadocia, which was made into a castle with numerous windows and escape tunnels. We climbed to the top of it, and the view was stunning! We saw the sunset from a different lookout point every night to see the crazy fairy chimneys turn from white to deep shades of orange to blue.

I’ve just posted my pictures of this unique place, so please enjoy checking them out.