Cappadocia, Turkey

We left Venice by way of water taxi, one of the most direct ways to transfer from our hotel to the airport for a family of 5 and all of our luggage. There we began a series of flights that took us to Budapest,Hungary then to Istanbul,Turkey then to Kayseri and finally a drive on to Cappadocia, Turkey. We arrived after dark, but our guide was there to meet us. Our accommodations were amazing, we stayed in a hotel that was a converted family residence, almost all of which had originally been carved out of the mountains in a series of caves. The entire region in Cappadocia is, geologically, made from Tufa, a soft volcanic stone that is easy to carve. The geologic formations are unique, and the history of human occupation of the area goes back four and a half thousand years or more. The Hittites had a civilization here in ancient times, they started the practice of carving caves and dwellings in the stone which was then continued by the Byzantine Christians who hid from the Romans in these cave dwellings. The carvings are intense as they range from the simplest of dwellings to elaborate churches with frescoes depicting the stories of Jesus. After Constantine started the practice of religious freedom the Christians in the area were able to come out of hiding. In a shortened version of this elaborate history, the Ottoman Turks came into the area after that and the Christians fled. Many of the churches and dwellings were defaced and/or converted into pigeon keeps. We explored a few areas such as Imagination Valley, Fairy Chimneys, Monks Valley, and the Underground City. We took an amazing hike through Red Valley where we visited a church in a cave and then picked fresh apples and grapes from the orchards that grow in this area.

Another highlight of our trip to Cappadocia was our visit to a weaving center where the Turkish government is trying to keep the art of carpet making and weaving alive. The kids were able to see how silk worms were processed into silk. The kids also got to throw clay on a Hittite pottery wheel in a workshop in Navos. The family that operates this workshop is one of two families in Turkey allowed to make a certain type of high fire ceramic.

Best dessert of Turkey so far: Kunefe (look it up!)

We then flew to Bodrum, a coastal city on the Aegean Sea. Tomorrow we see the city of Bodrum and then join our Gulet and sail to Ephesus.