Living Underground

We left Konya and headed towards Cappadocia.  The people at the marina suggested we stop at the Ihlara Valley at some point on our trip so Shanna figured out that it was right off the highway between Konya and Cappadocia.  So we made the detour.

When we found the signs for the Ihlara Vadisi we were greeted with a group of men in suits with a police and military escort... military being men standing around with machine guns in their hands.  There was clearly some sort of meeting going on and while I was tempted to take a photo, I didn’t want to be shot.  We later found out that it was ministry of tourism checking the place out to make sure it was fit for the party that would mark the beginning of tourist season in two weeks.

This is the Ihlara Valley.  The Melendiz River carves a rift into the tufa cliffs which rise 490 feet.  The valley is 8.5 miles long but we only did a small portion of it because we were trying to get to Cappadocia.

We decided to enter the valley at Vadi Turistik Tesisleri where there are 426 going down into the valley, but there are a cluster of fresco-decorated churches within walking distance of one another.  What the guide books don’t tell you is that you also have to climb stairs to get to each of the churches making the valley a great butt work out.

There are about 20 churches carved into the valley walls and hidden from the naked eye.  Monks and other Christians came down for protection from religious persecution.  The soft tufa rock was ideal for carving out churches for worship.  They were then decorated with religious frescoes and this is what reminds of it today.

This is the view from the inside of the church; lush landscape (when those trees are in bloom) and lots of rocks. 

Once we climbed back up the 426 steps to where our car was parked we started to see the droves of tourists and decided it was a good time to pack up the car and continue to Cappadocia.  Now there are a few MUST SEE spots in Cappadocia and one of them was on the way to Goreme, where we were staying.  It was still early in the afternoon so we pointed the car towards Derinkuyu to visit the underground city, or so we thought.

One thing about driving in Turkey and is there are very few road signs.  Google Maps has a whole print out of what roads we are supposed to be on and for how long… but when you can’t identify the road to begin with it makes navigation a lot more challenging.  We turned too soon after the valley and ended up going into a completely different town in the wrong direction.  It took about 20 minutes, but once we realized where we were and what road we thought we were on we turned the car around and then were on the correct path to Derinkuyu. 

We were very hungry after our hike and long drive so we stopped right outside of the entrance to the underground city for a beer and what I’m calling a Turkish quesadilla.  I wasn't sure what it was so I just got potato filling, but should’ve also gotten the cheese and spinach.  The man rolls the dough out and then puts the filling inside.  Once it’s folded over he puts it on that dome looking thing which is hot and brushes on some olive oil.  It was delicious.

Doug and Shanna knew what they were doing and got theirs filled with potato, cheese, and spinach.  It was heartier and probably better than ours. 

The Derinkuyu underground city was dug out of the tufa rock as a place for Christians to live or escape during times of religious persecution.  When Dad and I got down there we figured it was dug by people of “average height” because there were places where we could barely stand straight up and Dad and I aren't exactly tall.

Tourist are allowed to go down 8 floors and it’s said there are about 18 total in the labyrinth.  Derinkuyu translates to “deep well” and when you looked at the air shafts and wells constructed the thought “very deep” comes to mind.

There were as many as 600 entrances to the city and various trap doors and rolling rocks to block intruders.  There were stables, wineries, lots of rooms, a ventilation shaft and wells that provided water. 

This is our group.  We were the only ones down there for awhile and then saw a small Chinese tour group come down the stairs.  There are spots where there was only one way up or down.  The brochure said up to 10,000 people were thought to live in the city and that blows my mind.  There were places where one person could barely get through, and to share that with 9,999 other people would be terrible.

I know my Dad was smiling in the other photos from he has a small case of claustrophobia and was more than ready to get out.  He led us all up and out of the city and was very happy when he saw actual sun light.

Dad and I went in search for an ATM machine while in Derinkuyu and were reminded once again that we were in a foreign country.  There was a public square with a tea house and lots of tables set up but no women… at all.  We walked a good 4 blocks and didn’t see a single female.  It’s not like the streets were deserted… there were hoards of males sitting around and drinking tea, but not one female.  It was a bit odd. 

When we got back on the road it wasn’t long before we spotted the tell tale sign of an interesting point or tourist area – buses.

It was always easy to find out when we were getting close to a point of interest because there would be a fleet of tour buses parked on the side of the road and trinket shops set up under tents.  This is in Uchisar which is considered Cappadocia.

This is the Uchisar Kalesi or Uchisar castle.  It’s not so much a castle but the highest fairy chimney in Cappadocia.  This is a former settlement where people lived up until erosion put everything in danger of collapse.  

Finding our hotel was a bit of a challenge, considering there were so many in the area and again the lack of actual street signs makes finding anything a challenge.  It ended up being up a steep hill that was only suitable for one car to go either up or down.  The Panoramic Cave Pension.  It’s run by a Korean woman who fell in love with a Turkish man, so she now lives here with him.  There were two room choices: 1. The actual cave room with a king size bed and cozier layout or 2. The extension to the caves, but still cave like with a twin bed and full bed.  Dad and I got the second of the two. 

This was our room.  Like I said it was cave like and was made of the same stone that came from the rocks around us, but it was more of a structure than a cave.  The bathroom left something to be desired, the toilet wasn't bolted down and the shower was recessed into the ground which was cool but there was no curtain or divider of any sort.  That and the shower “head” wasn't mounted to the wall… it was one of the detachable kind that you can hold in your hand which generally isn't a big deal, but it was super cold in the bathroom so showering like that wasn't ideal.

Dad decided to take a nap so I hiked up the road to a designated sunset platform that was about 10 minutes from the hotel.  It was a great view of the city on one side and of the rock formations on the other.  I asked a nice couple from Vermont to take this photo for me.

We asked the hotel owner if she could recommend a good restaurant for dinner that night.  She drew us a map and after getting mildly lost we found the Manzara Restaurant.  It was up on a hill and had a giant fire burning outside.  The interior was so comfortable with cushy seats and a fireplace burning.  The food was a little expensive but delicious and the atmosphere and food quality more than made up for it.

Hobnob decided to share a vegetable pottery kebab.  Cooking kebabs in the clay pot is a big thing around here and at the restaurant they brought the pot to the table and let them break it open.  It was a nice touch.