Day 85: Cruisin’ Around Cappadocia
On my second day in Goreme, I rented a scooter for the afternoon to go and explore some of the parts of Cappadocia that I didn’t get to see the previous time I was in the region. I loooove riding scooters and bikes and reckon they’re one of the best ways to get around and see the sights.
First stop was the Zelve Open Air Museum, the less spectacular little brother to the Unesco World Heritage-listed Goreme Open Air Museum. I say "less spectacular" because it doesn’t have the same beautifully frescoed rock churches that the Goreme museum is famous for. But for location it can’t be beaten! The village (it was inhabited until 1952 when it was deemed unsafe to live there any longer because of continuing erosion and collapses) fills different forks at the end of a narrow valley, and is linked by a series of pathways and tunnel passages.
The village ruins at Zelve.
Next stop was the Devrent Valley, or the "Valley of the Fairy Chimneys", where some of the best examples of these geological quirks are located. I didn’t stay long though as the place is these days overrun with touts, cheap souvenir stalls and hundreds of tourists pouring off their tour buses.
I drove through the town of Urgup (with the Greek influence in its architecture clearly visible in some of the buildings) and drove to Uchisar, a gorgeous little village which also marks the highest point in the region. The top of the hill is marked by a tall volcanic rock outcrop called Uchisar Kalesi (Castle), which is riddled with tunnels and rooms and visible throughout the region. I climbed to the top of it around sunset and had some fantastic views across the whole of Cappadocia, including the gigantic Mt Erciyes volcano.
Camel, with Uchisar Kalesi atop the hill.
Back at the pension, when I told Dawn (the owner of the Kose Pansion) that I was leaving the next morning, she asked where I was headed. I told her that I was off on a three-day tour and then on my way to Iran, and she told me to keep an eye out when I was there for an Englishman riding a penny farthing bicycle around the world! Apparently he’d passed through Goreme and had just entered Iran a couple of days back. I’ll be sure to keep an eye out for him – how could you miss someone in Iran on a penny farthing!! I could think of no more impractical vehicle for circumnavigating the world than one of them, although I guess that’s the idea… Only an Englishman!
No shit I think we saw that same camel in June while we were in Cappodocia. Did it mention anything to you about a cute American couple on their honeymoon?