Wednesday April 29,
Optional Hot Air Balloon ride
Mustafapaşa village walk and then back at the hotel and drive to visit Göreme Open Air Museum of Monastery Valley.
We will eat lunch at a local house. Our hostess will be Fahriye at Ortahisar Village (shoes off for lunch).
KAYMAKLI UNDERGROUND CITY / Possible visit ( inşallah(God Willing)
It doesn’t even look like I am in the balloon on this one, but I am!
Mustafapaşa, the town where we were staying, is a historic town in the Urgüp District of Turkey’s Nevşehir Province, is famous for its well-preserved Greek Orthodox architecture and rich history, with a population exchange in 1923 leading to a predominantly Turkish community today. Located in Cappadocia, it offers a quieter, more authentic experience away from major tourist crowds, featuring stone mansions, historic churches like the SS Constantine and Helen Church, and nearby valleys with rock-carved monasterie.
The above four pictures show the town of Mustafupada. You can see caves and homes built right into the rock.
Lunch time, this wonderful lady invited us into her house to share a simple every day country lunch of beans and rice and salad.
Below is pictures of the Göreme Open Air Museum. It was a 10th to 12th century monastic complex carved directly into soft volcanic rock, featuring cave churches, chapels, monasteries, dining halls, and living quarters. We were not allowed to take pictures inside of the churches, but I took one before I knew that .
Then we went from an above ground dwelling to an underground city. Kaymakli Underground City in Turkey's Cappadocia region is a massive, multi-level subterranean complex used by early Christian’s for protection, featuring narrow tunnels, stables, kitchens, church’s and large rolling stone doors for defense. It has an impressive ventilation system, living quarters, and religious spaces like a church with a baptismal font. It's a UNESCO World Heritage site, and offers a glimpse into ancient ingenuity and life underground.
What an unforgettable day! How long was the balloon ride? Imagine how dark it would be living in those caves!
ReplyDeleteThe ride was just over an hour. Loved it
ReplyDeleteWow! Think how long it must have taken to carve out those living spaces. Did you have to duck all the time or were some of them high enough to walk around easily?
ReplyDeleteIt was both. Some areas we had to bend down and crouch for quite a long way - hard on knees. People back then were our height, but they liked narrow passages for security
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