Red Tour

Our first day in the Cappadocia region was no rest day. 

We woke early, had our breakfast and went straightway to meet our guide in the lobby for our first full day tour. Our tour guide Ozay was a 48 year old local that grew up in the area. He spoke very good English and had even visited the U.S. a couple times. He told us how in recent years the tourist have shifted. There used to be a lot of Americans but now days there are very few. He said it was the same for Germans. Both countries have had some political tension with Turkey and so the governments of both have released some travel warnings which basically stopped them from coming. The majority of tourists now days are from China and we had already figured that out. Our hotel was completely full and the far majority were Chinese.

After talking with Ozay about tourism we got to thinking. None of us could remember seeing any Americans anywhere so far on our trip, not even in Istanbul. I think perhaps twice I heard what I thought was American English but couldn’t even confirm that. Aside from the lack of Americans there certainly is no shortage of visitors. Out of the 15 guests on today’s tour with us they were from, Switzerland, Italy, the UK, Ireland, Japan, Singapore, Mexico and then the three of us.

As we have experienced in prior trips, U.S. news came up in discussion and not by us. The world is constantly effected by us and is always keeping their eyes on the U.S. So far we have not had any favorable reactions concerning Trump and there seemed to be a lot of disdain for the recent confirmation of Kavanagh on the Supreme Court. It seems that the world is more interested in our politics than most people I know at home.

Cappadocia is not a town but a region in central Turkey. The name means “land of wild beautiful horses” due to the large number of wild horses that inhabited the area when the region was first being settled, but the horses are no longer the focus. The whole area looks as if it were plucked from a whimsical fairytale and set down upon stark moonscape plains. Cappadocia is a geological oddity of honeycombed hills and towering boulders of otherworldly beauty.

The fantastical topography is matched by the human history here. People have long utilized the region's soft stone, seeking shelter underground and leaving the countryside scattered with fascinating cavern architecture.

This region of Cappadocia is well known for their pottery. Ozay said that absolutely everyone in town learns the trade at a young age. Not everyone pursues it in life as a career but they all know how to do it. The pottery ‘kick wheel’ was invented here in this place, or so we were told.

We were the first guests to be picked up for the tour and the first to be dropped off afterwards. In fact, there are very few hotels in the area where ours was located, only a few of the more upscale ones. The majority of the hotels, and the majority of the tourists, are in the nearby town of Göreme. Just driving through

Göreme is quite an experience in itself. Much of the town is built

on rolling hills. The streets are all cobblestone and often very narrow. They twist and turn between the aged stone houses, winding precariously along the hillside. 

Göreme is obviously very old, the buildings all made of rocks and homemade bricks, many of which are falling apart and in need of repair. Scrubby vegetation was growing everywhere throughout the town, many which appeared brown and dead. Also large rock formations stuck up everywhere, nestled among the man made buildings. Most of these formations were carved out and used as homes, hotels and stores. It was an amazing sight to see the mix of all the stone homes built between and natural stone formations.

These stone formations were typically cone shaped and resembled giant anthills. In fact, after driving up and down and curving through the narrow streets and rock outcroppings we started feeling like ants in a giant terrarium. The streets often had parked cars or buses which the bus driver very skillfully maneuvered between or around with great precision. At times it literally did not seem that we had even an inch of clearance. I often held my breath and looked away to keep from making noise as walls and vehicles came far closer to us than I was comfortable with. Yet the town was still fascinating and it was hard not to be in amazement at both the town and the ability of the driver.

Most of the tour consisted of exploring the large cavernous rock

formations. We stopped at several different areas including the remains of a former monastery which has now been turned into a museum. We were free to climb anything and explore anywhere. Groups of people from all ages and abilities climbed along steep slopes, narrow paths and into the cave ruins, most of which had no hand rails or assistive tools of any kind. This type of attraction would never be approved by Osha back home in the states. If a tourist were to fall off a cliff like these in the U.S. the property would be sued. Here the risk and blame lands on the person that fell for doing something to jeopardize themselves.

As early as the third century AD early Christians arrived at the areas to escape persecution. They hid in the many caves and setup their homes and schools staying hidden from the neighboring people groups, afraid that they would discover their religious beliefs and persecute them also. We explored many ruins of these early Christians, many which still bear the markings and paintings of Jesus and Mary, other disciples and Bible stories.

The number of caves in the area was extensive. Whole hillsides and

valleys were filled with these cave homes and buildings. Most are abandoned but still some are used today. There was hardly a rock formation anywhere that didn’t have a carved opening. Some were homes, some churches and some dormitories, kitchens, dining rooms, storerooms and even stables. 

The tour included a buffet lunch and then a tour and demonstration at a local pottery store. It was a busy first day and certainly a memorable one.