Cappadocia Photo Gallery by Carol 202 at pbase.com

Cappadocia

My husband and I spent two years stationed in Turkey. Many of our weekends were spent in Cappadocia, which was only a 3.5 hour drive away through the mountains. We visited almost every season and spent our days hiking and visiting the shops, and our evenings enjoying the great food. Our favorite place to stay by far, was the Traveller's Cave Hotel in Goreme. Many of the rooms were dug into the hillside and had great views and a fireplace. The food was delicious, and the staff was fantastic. It was always a pleasant walk down the hillside into town for dinner or hiking.

Pashadag	Goreme	Balloon and the town of Uchisar in the distance	Goreme: Kelebek Pension
Balloons over Goreme	Cappadocia: Painted church in the monastery	Cappadocia: Another church at the monastery	Pashadag, Cappadocia
Pashadag: Stairs to a cave church	Pashadag: Bob photographing nexting birds	Pashadag: Bob down below	Three Sisters: Guess which one is Mary Helen
Uchisar, Cappadocia	Uchisar camel	Uchisar: My photo isn't crooked--the landscape is!	Uchisar: Cave home in the distance
Uchisar: Insinde the cave home	Uchisar: The Turkish hospitality is great	Zelve mosque	Zelve cave formations: The frong has broken away
Zelve cave rooms	Zelve cave house door	Zelve: Bob clilmbing into high cave rooms	Zelve
Zelve rock church	Goreme Valley at New Year's 2008!	A tomb at Pigeon Valley near Uchisar.	A street in the town of Uchisar, Cappadocia.
Goreme: Our cave room at Taskonak hotel. The name means "Stone Mansion".	Goreme: The room has a hamam bowl in the bathroom. We were more interested in the jacuzzi!	Goreme: This is Local Restaurant. We enjoyed a table near the fire.	Goreme: Back at our cave room I enjoyed a glass of wine before hopping into the Jacuzzi.
Another view of Goreme.	Goreme: Bob at the Flinstone Bar--the sign said "Warm Place" but we didn't go in.	Goreme: A pottery tree on our walk to the church valley. You can go inside and watch the potters if you wish.	Goreme: Horseback riding in Cappadocia--the horses where frisky in the chill temps. We hiked the area in the background.
Goreme: Inside the Apple Church.	Goreme: Another fresco in the Apple Church (I think).	Goreme: This church is known more for it's columns than it's art work.	Goreme: We had to pay extra to go into the Dark Church, but it had some of the best frescoes.
Goreme: They try to keep the number of visitors lower to protect the frescoes in the Dark Church.	Goreme: I couldn't use flash on the frescoes. I turned my camera on timer and laid it on the ground to get the photos.	Goreme: Sometimes I could use a wooden railing to steady the camera.	Goreme: This is a frescoe of the nativity scene. Look closely for the stable animals.
G10 years ago, you could go into this one for free, but now it's been somewhat renovated and you must show your ticket to go in.	Goreme: We found a couple of friendly kittens living in a small cave room. They seemed to be well fed.	Goreme: More interesting formations in the valley.	Goreme: Breakfast at Taskonak--cheese, bread, fruits, olives, cereal, and boiled eggs.
Goreme: Taskonak inside dining area--it was too cold for the terrace.	Goreme: Another view of Goreme, from the Taskonak terrace.	Goreme: It is a steep and narrow climb to the Taskonak restaurant and registration. No railing either.	House perched on the hillside in old Belisirma.
Carol and Bob in Ihlara Valley. The valley has a river surronded by sloping hillsides and then sheer cliffs.	Ihlara Valley: The waterfall was frozen in place.	River in the Ihlara Valley--yes, that is ice on the rocks!	Ihlara Valley: Dark Gap Church. It looked like it may have been destroyed by a house-size boulder.
The path through Ihlara valley was mostly flat, but wound through bolders in some parts. The shade would be nice in summer.	Ihlara Valley: The entire valley was lined with cave rooms--homes, churches, tombs, and storage rooms.	Ihlara Valley: Notice the door--a stone wheel that could be chocked from the inside to keep unwanted visitors out.	A view of the village of Belisirma from the opposite side of the valley.
Goreme: Orient House. I had the Marble Steak Flambe; Bob had lamb.	Goreme: Three-cross church has 3 large crosses carved into the ceiling. A round one in the center...	Goreme: And two long crosses on each side.	Goreme: Much of our path was paved ice!
Goreme: Rose Valley	Goreme: We watched some other hikers on the ridge above Rose Valley.	Goreme: A last look at Rose Valley.	Goreme: Red Valley had a series of amazing tunnels we hiked through.
Goreme: Mountains between Cappadocia and Adana--maybe some day we'll explore closer to home!	The roads in Turkey aren't bad, it's the drivers. It's common to see lane markings ignored.	Cappadocia: Feb 2008. The Three Sisters get a little snow! (Guess which one is Mary Helen).	White snow in the high plains between Adana and Cappadocia
Panoramic overlook of Goreme Valley before the "blizzard".	Goreme: Our room in the cave hotel was very comfortable. The bed had a down comforter.	Goreme: We really enjoyed our fireplace and could see it from the bed.	Goreme: Traveller's Cave Hotel: Bob outside our room
Goreme: A view of our hotel at night--It's between the bright lights below, and the fairy chimney in the top of the photo	Goreme: A night view from the Traveller's Cave Hotel	Goreme: The courtyard entrace of Travellers' Cave Hotel at night, in the snow.	Goreme: A night view from our hotel
Goreme: Our room was so nice...I was almost hoping we would be snowed in for a couple of days.	Goreme: Lobby and restaurant of the Traveller's Cave Hotel	Mushroom-like formations at Pasabag	Pasabag--the snow keeps coming!
Pasabag, Cappadocia	Here is the Turkish spelling of Pashabah (which is how it sounds?)	Goreme: Great lunch! Freshly baked pide with the topping of your choice right out of a wood oven--thanks Cappadocia Pide!	Goreme: Bob had to get another dose of Testi Kabap. No, it's not Rocky Mtn Oysters; it's the name for the clay pot.
Goreme: Something you won't see in the USA--the restaurant cat (with her owner).	Goreme: I'm beginning to see why they call this Love Valley; it's pretty excited, oops I mean exciting!	Goreme: Formation in Love Valley	Goreme: Fairy castle formations in Love Valley
Goreme: Fairy Castle formations in Love Valley	Goreme: Another shot of Love Valley	Goreme: Lisa and I are excited--we found a house made out of a giant Hershey Kiss!	This is the Church and Monastery at Cavusin (Chavushin)
The church was built in the 9th century. Bob at the entrance.	More Cavusin Frescoes	Frescoes inside the Cavusin Church	Lisa inside the Cavusin Church trying to figure out how to work the timer.
My favorite scene at the Cavusin Church	There is a large pottery shop at the foot of the Cavusin Church where you can watch, or even try to make a pot.	The potter's wheel in this part of Turkey is traditionally spun with the foot.	Here are some of the finished products. I bought three candle jugs in different sizes similar to the one in Lisa's hand.
These are replica's of Hittite pottery. The intricate designs are all hand-painted.	Blue pottery in Cavusin.	The large Hittite dish in the center is normally 6,000 YTL--but today was half price day so it was only 3,000 YTL. :-)	Goreme: The view from our hotel after several inches of snow accumulated.
Goreme: We had the benefit of all-wheel drive, but not Rich in his family van. However, we all made it home safely.	The view of Uchisar in the snow was spectacular!	This is the other side of Uchisar. I was surprised to find a "Ship of the Desert" in the middle of a snow field.	Goreme: Balloons as seen from our window in the morning.
The sky over Goreme is filled with balloons at 0630 on Saturday morning.	Goreme: Balloons	Goreme: Balloon	Goreme: Every dog has his day--settee on the terrace
Goreme: View from the terrace at the Traveller's Cave Hotel	Uchisar: Poppy	Goreme: It's carpet washing day at the cave hotel.	Goreme: Sprinkling soap on the carpet. Brushes and squeegies are the cleaning tools.
Goreme: Looking down, towards are room on the right.	Goreme: Even our bathroom window had a great view of Goreme and Rose Valley	Goreme: Bob enjoying his morning coffee outside our room.	Goreme: The windows near the top of the hill belong to our room.
Goreme: Buying an old goat bell at the market--I think I found a birthday present for Bob!	Goreme: Carpet shop owner in Goreme (upper right) preparing for the summer crowds.	Goreme: If the price of gas keeps rising, everyone will need a horse and cart to get around.	Goreme: Spring thunderboomers in the evenings.
Goreme: The inside dining area on a cool morning--views are still great and so was the company.	Goreme: Here is the "company"--a Turkish Van cat with one blue and one green eye.	Goreme: This little fellow was a real charmer.	Goreme: What a sweetie.
Goreme: Formation near the entrance of Pigeon Valley	Goreme: Sign to a church and a favorite hotel with some of the backpacker crowd.	Goreme: Yusuf Koc Church in Pigeon Valley. You may have to get a key from the keeper to get in.	Uchisar: Poppy on a Pigeon Valley overlook.
Uchisar: Flowers with Rose and Red Valleys in the distance	Uchisar: Cart on the roadside	Uchisar: Shaping building stones by hand with a metal scraper	Uchisar: Ruins on the hill below Uchisar
Uchisar: Kilim Hotel in Uchisar	Uchisar: This lady was using a metal tool and a short broom to clean grass from the cracks of the road	Uchisar: Stairs to the castle	A shop in Uchisar
Uchisar: The fortress, carved out of the solid rock, at Uchisar	Uchisar: Dried fruits and nuts in the Uchisar town square	Uchisar: Last set of steps to get to the top of the fortress.	Uchisar: The second fairy chimney on the right is where I bought a beautiful turquose necklace last June.
Uchisar: Cannonballs	Uchisar: Mixed pide or Turkish pizza	Uchisar: Pigeon holes in Pigeon Valley. Luckily for Bob my battery ran down so I didn't get many photos of the valley	Time to head home--another bad traffic jam
Storks are common here	Migrant camp near a river. There is a water cart in the center.	Oleanders grow wild in Turkey	Beautiful river in the Aladag mountains north of Kozan and Feke
Wildflowers at the entrance to Zimi Valley	Zemi Valley: A mother horse and her foal in the valley	Zemi Valley: We hiked through some tunnels. We followed this small stream much of the way, making the walk a little muddy.	Me in Zimi Valley
Zemi Valley: One of the churches near the end of the valley--Nativity scene	Zemi Valley: Crucifiction in the rock church	Goreme and me	Bob and Goreme
Hoopoe (Ibibek) bird. The crest can be opened like a Cockatiel's. This one was picking grubs out of a manure pie.	Wildflowers with Uchisar in the background	Balloons over Cappadocia	Sarihan
Dome above the stage area where the do Mevlana dances--we just came to see the building	Archways at the Sarihan.	Avanos street cleaners. They roamed the streets eating fallen leaves.	Avanos: This lady was cooking up a large pot of tomatoes and other vegetables
Pottery shops in Avanos	More shops in Avanos	Roman fortress at Ortahisar	Dolls from the village of Soganli for sale in Ortahisar
Tunnel in the Ortahisar fortress.	Young folks at the top of the fortress, Ortahisar	Traveler's Cave Hotel: Hotel dog sitting on top of the cave rooms	Goreme: Gate to a farm yard with a warning that there is a dog.
A tortoise in Pigeon Valley	Goreme: This kitten found a sunbeam to warm up in among the tables.	On the way home Bob stopped to let me photograph this small yurt. The shepherd's dog is near the center of the photo.	Large herd crossing the road.
Many of the poplar trees were turning gold in the mountains.

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