Hiking through the Rose Valley

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Geo: 39.0425, 35.3437

After breakfast, which we ate out in morning sun. We were told we were going for a hike this morning and had a local guide with us for the day. Was hoping it wasn't going to be too much hard work. We went for a short drive, then began walking into the valley. The area is covered by pointy rocks that have been formed due to erosion. The area is full of underground cities, caves, rock churches and chambers. People used to live in these caves. They are made of solidified volcanic ash and is soft to carve. We walked up a dodgy ladder to a small church- one of the highest spots in the valley. The walls were painted with bible scenes and in quite good condition considering they don't seem to be making much of an effort to conserve the church.

We had some free time to explore the caves and walk through tunnels. Was fun to see where it would take me. Most of these caves are now occupied by pigeons. We then walked to an old Christian village and had free time there to climb all over it and add to the erosion!! The houses in this village varied in size- some had a few rooms and others only one.

We got back in the mini-bus and went to a restaurant for lunch. We had a great meal and the restaurant consisted of a few large caves. So we ate in a cave and sleep in one too!

We then drove a short while until Kaymakli to visit the underground city. The city began being carved out of the rock hill 2000 years BC. There are 8 levels and the top four floors are open to visitors. People in the area built their houses with a tunnel that would lead them to this underground city in the case of a war. There is a wine cellar, church, mill, stable, living rooms, kitchens and a ventilation shaft 120 metres long. I enjoyed walking through this city. Would have been better if we weren't so rushed by our guide. I would have liked more time to explore the city. There were lots of little rooms that the guide didn't take us through.

We then drove to Pigeon Valley, a valley that got its name due to all the pigeons that poo in the carved out windows. Their poo is a very good fertilizer and collected by locals.

Tonight we all went out for dinner as a group and had a really nice meal. Some people ordered a meal that is cooked in a clay pot. It arrived at the table and was then cracked open with a hammer and chisel- bit of a novelty for us!

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Photos

01 Rose Valley
Some of the many pink rocks.

02 Carved
Caves carved out of the rocks.

03 Looking down
Looking down from the top.

04 Going up
This is the group walking up to the church entrance.

05 Frescoes
Frescoes in the church.

06 Pink rocks
More pink rocks.

07 Entrance
Entrance to a cave dwelling.

08 Inside
Inside the cave.

09 Inside
Inside the cave.

10 Looking out
Looking out of the cave.

11 Close up
Zooming in on a pink rock.

12 Farming the land
Locals who live in the Rose Valley and are farming their land with a donkey.

13 More scenery
More scenery from the Rose Valley.

14 Christian Village
An old Christian Village.

15 Houses
Houses in the old village.

16 The new and the old
In the middle is a new building and on the right is the old village.

17 Looking down
The view from the top of the Christian village.

18 Looking down
Looking down to the other direction.

19 Path
Path to the top and the other side of the hill.

20 Other side
On the other side of the hill there were more houses carved out of the pink rock.

21 Old and new
Old village to the left and the new town to the right.