With a digital map, bottled water and some determination I set out on foot to explore this Anatolia region best known for its natural “fairy chimneys” rock formations.
The route:
Goreme – Pigeon Valley – Uchisar – Love Valley – Cavusin – Rose Valley – Red Valley – Aktepe Hill – Goreme
A total 18 km of walking in one day! Boys & girls, this is my secret of never gaining weight :))
The sun was already high above the horizon when I was in Uchisar. I didn’t proceed right away to my next destination because I took a short nap first in one of the empty caves. Those caves are actually man-made. People in Cappadocia used to carve out houses, churches and monasteries from the rocks. Until a few decades ago many still lived in the cave dwellings but nowadays people have moved out in favor of modern housing. Only some numbers of the caves are still in use for touristic purposes today.
Up next: Cavusin.