Pamukale & Kapadokia

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Pamukkale & Kapadokia October 27 - November 3rd, 2009

We have reached the 6 month mark of The Journey and thus far Pamukkale & Kapadokia have been two of the most unique places we have encountered.

At first sight Pamukkale is nothing short of spectacular. Pamukkale, meaning "the cotton castle" is a fitting name for this natural wonder. From a distance the calcium mountain actually looks like a ski hill! Pamukkale is made up of limestone-laden thermal springs, travertines, and terraces of carbonate minerals which have been created by centuries of flowing water. People have bathed in the hot springs for centuries, but unfortunately by the time we arrived many of the pools had dried up. We did however, have the opportunity to walk up the giant mount of carbon minerals and dip our feet into the hot springs along the way. At the very top of the cotton castle lies the ancient city of Hierapolis which can be seen from the hills on the opposite side of the valley in the town of Denzili, 20 km away. We spent our day wandering the maze of ruins ending with the highlight of Hierapolis, the multi thousand seat theatre. What a view!

After Pamukkale we were off to Kapadokia , Goreme specifically, one of the last cities on our tour of Turkey. It took us two travel days with an overnight stop in Konya to reach this city in central Turkey. As soon as we arrived in Goreme we were certain we had discovered the place that inspired the Flintstones cartoon! Kapadokia is a region of unmatched beauty and is full of natural wonders, fairy chimneys, and countless caves. Everywhere you look there is a cave that at some point in the past, was someones home. Most of the hotels, pensions and hostels are built right into caves. Our first hostel was half cave and half newly renovated pension. The only downfall...no heat! In the evenings the temperatures plummeted to 5 degrees and when we woke up to snow the following morning we knew it was time to move to a cave with heat. We happened to come across a fitting place to stay, the Flintstones Pension. In our 6 months of traveling we have never come across such a luxurious cave. One of the highlights of our stay in Goreme was an all day tour that took us to one of the largest underground cities in the region of Kapadokia . There are so many underground cities that no one actually knows how many there are, it is believed that many have not even been discovered yet. The biggest and deepest is Derinkuyu Underground City, which is the one we had the opportunity to visit. There are eight floors and extend at a depth of approximately 85 m, unfortunately only 10% is open to the public. Derinkuyu has all the usual amenities that can be found in any city, such as wine and oil presses, stables, cellars, ventilation shafts and even a chapel. Quite a sophisticated engineering marvel. Next, we went hiking in the Ihlara Valley which is like a mini Grand Canyon next to the tallest peak in Turkey, Mt. Hassan. We explored the many chapels and homes carved right into the side of the gorge. Our hike ended with a fantastic lunch in a cabana style seating area right over the river. Definitely a unique first.

After spending several weeks in Turkey it was time to move on to Syria.

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Photos

Inside the Roman Theatre
Heropolis

Mt. Hassan
Tallest mountain in Turkey