A visit to Turkey isn't complete without a customary trip to the Cappadocian region of Anatolia. And what drew us here was the allure of the natural rock formations that have formed over millions of years.
Millions of years ago this region had a group of ancient volcanoes, Mount Erciyes, Mount Hasan and Mount Melendiz. These volcanoes spewed out layer upon layer of volcanic ash which over a period of time solidified into thick tuff - a light, porous rock formed by consolidation of volcanic ash.
The countryside around here was blanketed by tuff for miles around. Over centuries, wind and rain weathered the soft rock.
The result was magic. The forces of nature carved out spectacular gorges and leaving behind the dramatic sight we see here today - the pinnacles of rock which are called the 'fairy chimneys'. These are the definitive features of the Cappadocian moonscape.
But Cappadocia also has an interesting history which is no less dramatic than its dramatic scenery. Cappadocia was known as Hatti in the late Bronze Age and was the homeland of the Hittite people. After the fall of the Hittite Empire, Cappadocia was ruled by a sort of feudal aristocracy, till the Persian rule was established here by Darius.
The clear blue skies made for a beautiful morning...
And I wondered who all would have traveled on these roads - the Hittites, the Greek invaders, the imperial Persians, Indian and Chinese traders on the Silk Route, the Byzantines, the Ottomans and the Armenians...
There is so much history here, and we can just follow on their footsteps today...
This is the Imagination Valley!
The earliest written record of the name of Cappadocia dates back to the late 6th century BC, when it appears in the inscriptions of two early Persian kings, Darius I and Xerxes, as "Kapi Dag", which means mountain door.
Cappadocia also appears in biblical and Jewish stories. The Cappadocians were named as one group hearing the Gospel account from Galileans shortly after the resurrection of Christ.
Under the later kings of the Persian Empire, the Cappadocians were divided into two regions, with the name of Cappadocia going to the central, inland part, while the other was called Pontus. This division continued well after the fall of the Persian Empire.
Legend has it that people were discouraged from traveling around these parts at night. The wind used to blow these gorges creating an eerie whistling sound. People used to believe the devil or the spirits lurked around...
After the fall of the Persian Empire, Alexander's armies annexed the area made it a province. Later Cappadocia passed into the hands of the Romans and the Byzantines. This was one of the first places where Christianity took and monasteries were established here.
With the conquest of Armenia by the Byzantines, there was an influx of Armenians into Cappadocia while majority remained ethnic Greek (and Christian in faith) till the population exchange between Greece and Turkey in 1923.
It is a great pleasure to be here in this amazing land...
...the land of a rugged beauty and a rich history!
The rugged landscape is captivating indeed...
Perhaps the fairies are casting a spell on us...
A "fairy's chimney"!
The landscape was indeed captivating - each turn on the road proved that...
Only if these "chimneys" could tell stories of the past...
And we head to Zelve and onward to Göreme...
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