By Ricky, on November 22nd, 2009 Ihlara Valley © Ricky Yates
After an interesting week here in Prague with the events marking the twentieth anniversary of the Velvet Revolution, I shall return to writing about our trip last month to Asia and back.
The final place we visited in Cappadocia was the Ihlara Valley. This lies about 40km south-west of Derinkuyu and was somewhere I had not visited during my 1975 trip. It is located near Mount Hasan and Mount Melendiz, two of the now extinct volcanoes whose past eruptions have left Cappadocia covered with volcanic lava and ash. The Ihlara Valley or Gorge has been formed by the Melendiz River cutting down through this soft rock to depth of around 100metres over a distance of some 14km.
There are a limited number of access points to the valley. The one we used was about 4km from the village of Ihlara, adjacent to a . . . → Read More: Cappadocia – The Ihlara Valley
By Ricky, on November 18th, 2009 Tunnel in the Underground City at Derinkuyu © Ricky Yates
Because of the soft nature of much of the rock that covers Cappadocia, not only are there Underground Churches but also several complete Underground Cities. One of the most interesting and best preserved is at Derinkuyu in the south-west of Cappadocia, located between the cities of Nevsehir and Nigde.
The early part of the Underground City at Derinkuyu pre-dates the Christian era, parts of it belonging to the 8th and 7th centuries BC. It was used by Christians seeking to hide from Roman persecution during the first three centuries AD and then extended and used once more between the 5th and 10th centuries AD during the middle Byzantine period. Christians hid in this and other Underground Cities like it, to escape attacks from Arab Islamists which occurred from the 7th century AD onwards.
Carved out . . . → Read More: The Underground City at Derinkuyu
By Ricky, on November 14th, 2009 Old Testament Prophet with scroll © Sybille Yates
Along with Fairy Chimneys, the other unique attraction in Cappadocia is a whole series of Underground Churches, carved into the soft rock. Most have been decorated internally with an amazing variety of wall paintings and frescoes. There are rock carved Churches scattered right across Cappadocia but some of the most interesting and best preserved, lie in the upper part of the Göreme Valley, a few kilometres west of Ürgüp.
Christians settled in this part of Cappadocia in the second and third centuries AD. They carved and built these Churches and associated settlements, seeking to escape Roman persecution of their faith. After the Roman Empire adopted the Christian faith, there was less need to hide away in this remote area. But monastic and teaching communities remained.
From the seventh century AD and onwards, the increasing spread of Islam led more Christians . . . → Read More: Cappadocia – Land of Underground Churches
By Ricky, on November 13th, 2009
Cappadocia Landscape 1975 © Ricky Yates
Cappadocia Landscape 2009 © Ricky Yates
I remarked in my previous post, that the landscape of Cappadocia in places looks more lunar than earthly! I think the two photographs above give a fairly clear indication of what I mean. The one on the left is a scanned slide taken during my trip in 1975. Unfortunately, the colour of the foreground has faded somewhat owing to the passing of 35 years. The one on the right is of the same area but from a slightly different angle, taken during my recent trip in October 2009.
The soft nature of so much of the rock has lent itself to being carved into, in order to provide houses, stables for animals, dovecotes, storage facilities and the like. These days, not many people live in purely cave dwellings. But many houses with stone . . . → Read More: Cappadocia Landscape
By Ricky, on November 11th, 2009 Fairy Chimneys in Cappadocia © Ricky Yates
In the early afternoon of Wednesday 14th October 2009, we drove into the town of Ürgüp, located in the central Anatolian region usually known by its ancient name of Cappadocia. Here the landscape in places looks more lunar than earthly! This is the result of eruptions from two or three nearby, now extinct volcanoes, which covered the surrounding area with volcanic lava and ash. The resultant landforms are quite spectacular and attract many visitors.
Driving into Ürgüp, we spotted the Melis Hotel and went to enquire about the cost and availability of rooms. The hotel attracted me for two reasons. One was that it was a well preserved old building, very much in keeping with the surrounding landscape. Subsequently, I discovered that it is a 300 year old Greek House which has been very sympathetically renovated and extended. The . . . → Read More: Cappadocia – Land of Fairy Chimneys
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