We successfully visited Istanbul, Ephesus/Selçuk, Kaş, Göreme (Cappadocia), and then one night in hot, steamy, smoggy Adana where the airport was.
Göreme was as excellent as I remembered from years ago too. Great hiking in the volcanic rock valleys and bizarre carved out churches/houses/caves. In some places, entire cities were carved out underground for use in times of danger and invasion. There are some 130 underground cities in the area, and we toured one that was eight levels deep with criss-crossing air tunnels, wells below the surface (so they couldn't be poisoned from above), schools, churches, stables, living quarters, etc. The Cappadocian fathers (St. Basil and a couple of St. Gregories - three extremely important early Christian Church theologians who helped solidify the idea of the Trinity for example, among many other things) come from this area too.
The tuff was a bit tough to walk on steadily, as it was crumbly underfoot with a fine layer of gravel on top of the hard surface in most places, so climbing and descending were a bit difficult, and we both took a couple of benign tumbles. But the scenery there is spectacular and unlike any other place I have ever seen. Here are a few shots below. The top layer of these "fairy chimneys" (that's what they call them) is basalt which is why these formations have remained this way - the rest of the ground has blown or washed away - the basalt cap protected what was below. In the bottom picture, one of these fairy chimneys is used as a pigeon roost. The pigeons fly in, poop, and the resulting fertilizer is used on the local farms. I suppose in old days (and maybe currently) that the pigeons were also used for food. They have also been used for communication purposes as a warning system between valleys when the Arabs invaded for several hundred years periodically through the Cilician Gates south of this area.
These valleys have every manner of crop and fruit growing in this volcanic soil. We saw olives, tomatoes, dates, figs, pistachios, corn, wheat, apples, pears, blackberries, lemons, pumpkins, watermelons, and that's all I can think of quickly, all higgledy-piggledy everywhere, and we tallied most of these in one hike through Pigeon Valley.
The people in Cappadocia have been amazingly friendly, as they have been everywhere in Turkey for the most part. When was the last time you were standing on a busy street-corner with a map in your hand, looking confused, and someone came right up to you with a smile and tried to help you in the best English they could muster? I dare you to name a time this happened to you in the States. I don't think you can. Two older guys smilingly handed Mare a slice of apple in Pigeon Valley, as we passed them while hiking. The first hotel we tried in Selçuk was sold out, but the proprietor immediately tried two other hotels for us (the first of these was also sold out) and then offered us a free shuttle to the ruins at Ephesus, where we could get a free ride back any time we wanted after a call from one of the trinket-sellers' booths.
Also, I visited Kozan, a small town about an hour northeast of Adana yesterday after dropping off Mare at the airport. I stumbled into a business near the bus station which was clear across town from the medieval Kingdom of Armenia fortress I was there to visit to ask for the best direction to the fortress, as most towns here are twisty and the roads are never straight. Instead of giving me directions and telling me to shove off, the guys just drove me to the foot of the mountain and cheerfully bid me good day. Of course, after I returned from Kozan, the cab driver from the bus station got me involved in some sort of quick change, bait and switch type of thing with his friend on the street when I tried to change 50 Turkish Lira with him for the cab ride. I ended up being shorted 10 Lira, but I didn't pay attention. Ah well, cabbies are the same everywhere, I guess.
Here is one picture of and from the fortress in Kozan. It's difficult to get a sense of how steep and high this mini-mountain is, relative to the town and the plains below, but the olive plantation in the upper left might help. It was built somewhere between 1187 and 1219 during the reign of Armenian King Leo II, and the town below was formerly known as Sis.
Finally, here are a couple of shots of frescoes from the cave-rock churches in Göreme. These are dated from late 10th to early 12th c. and writing is all in Greek, as these were Byzantine settlements. And also an interior shot of part of a monastery complex near the Ihlara Valley, close to Göreme.
Late today, I migrated to Şanlıurfa (more often known as Urfa - the current prefix, meaning "glorious" was added when the city's rival to the west, Antep, named itself Heroic Antep, or Gaziantep, and the Urfans didn't wish to be outdone, I guess), and recently pulled into town. This city is unlike any other I have visited in Turkey. This is really Mesopotamia, and the land, houses, people, and heat is different - more like Syria too. It's hot, and it's arid. But in Islamic folklore, Urfa (better known in history by its other name of Edessa) is the birthplace of Abraham. Abraham was therefore both born and killed here - it's said he was slung between two columns on the citadel and flung into the valley below [Correction: He didn't die here]. As for Christian folklore, there are many bits and pieces over the centuries, but the reason for the Second Crusade was due to the fall of Edessa. Also, the Byzantines took the Mandylion - one of the great and legendary Christian holy items - from there and back to Constantinople in 944 when the citizens agreed to give it up in return for their city not being sacked by their invading armies. Naturally, it has not been supposedly seen since the Fourth Crusade sack of Constantinople, but there are some who think the Shroud of Turin and the Mandylion are the same item.
http://shroud2000.com/ArticlesPapers/Article-Mandylion.html
I'll be here in Urfa for two and maybe three days, as it looks like there are some fascinating day trips around here as well. Besides since my Syrian visa is only good for 15 days, I need to balance my time before meeting Bruce on October 21st in Amman.
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that I crossed the Euphrates today too. Pretty exciting. It was a dark, impenetrable blue in color and much more fast than I expected with noticeable whirling eddies and currents - must be just emerging from the mountains to the north before it becomes the wide, brown, sluggish thing you see on the pictures from Iraq.
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