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1 Apr 2015
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Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: Portugal
Posts: 42
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TURKEY
April/May 2014
(solo ride)
Wake up in the middle of a lunar landscape. Breakfast is on the terrace where we can admire strange pointed shapes that point to the balloons flying over the area. This region is characterized by geological formations shaped over the centuries by wind erosion and by deep valleys where rivers still run. The soft volcanic rocks allowed the excavation of houses and shelters. The result is a desert landscape, misshapen, almost apocalyptic.
Two days to explore the area. I went to all the places published in tourist itineraries. Pigeon Valey, Ihlara Valley, Selime Monastery, Rose Valey, Love Valey and many others which I don’t remember the name. I went down to the underground city of Derinkuyu. I ventured by dirt roads through rocks of capricious shapes and inhabited caves, wandered quietly on a different planet.
Pigeon Valley owes its name to the thousands of pigeon houses carved into the soft rock since ancient times. The pigeons were used by the Romans as mail messengers between regions and pigeon droppings are very popular among farmers as fertilizer. From the top of the Valley we sight a fantastic landscape of jagged rock formations known as fairy chimneys.
The underground cities served as refuges for the people in the wars of the Byzantine era, the Roman persecution of Christians, or, more recently, used by the Cappadocian Greeks to escape the incursions of the Ottomans.
Intricate mazes of tunnels and caves with several floors underground that could accommodate up to 20,000 people. The underground city of Derinkuyu has a barn area, stable, cellar, dining room, school and even a chapel on the lower floor (five floors below ground). In all tunnels we can feel airflow coming from a complex system of ventilation shafts. Many of these cities are connected to each other through long tunnels.
Selime Monastery is a monastery-church located 28 km from Aksaray. It was also the headquarters of the region. Carved in the rock, in great height, is the largest monastery in Cappadocia, with a large cathedral church where still remaining traces of old ceiling paintings. It was also used as a stopover of the great caravans of the Silk Road where merchants look for refuge overnight. We enter by a ramp and very steep stairs not advisable to dizziness. Upstairs we can enjoy a fabulous landscape.
(...)
Last edited by Paula K; 2 Apr 2015 at 10:55.
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