Göreme, Cappadocia, Turkey

We entered the Göreme Valley by bus from Istanbul at around 6am (the ride is 730 km (454 miles) and takes around 10 – 12 hours) hot air balloons filled the early morning sky with a demonic roar; the exhausted masses leave the bus and look out to the Fairy Chimneys which we had all come to see yet at this time in the morning the main thought was about bed and how far away it was. Our cave hostel wasn’t far away, each cave has it’s brightly painted signs and are mostly in the same area so we checked in and passed out in order to refuel for the day.

The morning came again but this time it was welcome, waking in a cave is a strange experience which shouldn’t be missed; the carved walls make you feel part of the surroundings and gives a serene atmosphere to any morning. We left for breakfast which had a full view over the valley; rock formations of every kind unfold to show everything you came to see and then shows some more. Little details everywhere that you could study all day just from this view but we chose instead to explore on foot, we headed down to the centre of Goreme (shops, restaurants and a store selling handmade rugs).

We walk until we reach rocks with no windows carved into them (a sign that you are away from the centre) we pass wild horses and men with rolled out stores who are scattered around (very nice people selling food and drink). We keep going and then find what we were looking for which is to be removed from people and to be immersed in the valley. We climb up though gaps in the rocks and slide down banks, taking breaks to sit and admire the scene of what are called the “Fairy Chimneys”. We appear to be the only two people in the valley from where we sit, the overwhelming beauty of what we where apart of can never be captured in a picture but only felt from there. The sun burnt down with a magnified heat, we walked up to the highest point in Goreme which was just above our hostel and saw Uchisar Castle in the distance across the valley so we decided that we would walk there tomorrow (around 5 km from Goreme) so after a day spent exploring we joined the cats back at the hostel (cat’s are everywhere in Goreme) and prepared for another days hiking tomorrow.

We set off to Uchisar Castle the next morning not knowing which way was best but not caring either; to pass through any part of this valley was surely going to be an experience whichever way we go so we chose to go left across the top because it appears to have the best views. The first part of the hike was part of a path which was quickly lost as it went in another direction; we entered gorges and climbed up steep rocks holding onto to scorched plants as the rocks are too smooth to climb alone. The experience of getting to the castle was more satisfying than to reach it, Uchisar Castle has fantastic panoramas of the surrounding areas from the top but feels like a hollow experience after the hike mainly due to the amount of people leaving buses and forming queues. The area surrounding the castle however (like the Pigeon Valley) is worth seeing.

After a few more days we explored on foot what feels like the whole of Goreme (which in fact would take weeks not days to do) so we decided to rent a scooter from a local store so that we could see more of the surrounding areas, instantly the decision to rent one felt like a great choice; the wind and the speed were very welcome at this point and the traffic around was barely there so we headed up to the open air museum (15 TL per person). The museum was more like a work of art made by man when compared to the valley outside, little churches with beautiful frescoes inside which you can spend a whole day exploring but we chose a few hours. After the museum we walked up through the rocks beside it which looked to be a part of it (but not as maintained) little rooms carved out with no tourists inside (expect us of course) we moved further and further up through this area which we thought at the time was better than the museum itself. Shaded areas of abandoned homes, small crossings with big falls, a view which was unmatched to any other made this place one of the highlights of the Cappadocia trip.

We thundered through neighbouring towns on our little rental scooter, stopping to talk to smiling locals who wave and yell “Hello” we found little pottery shops where the artist shows us his craft (the details of the patterns on each plate and about its history) with a passion that will make you want to buy everything in the store (if not for the price). I forget how much the rental scooter costs but I know that it was cheap by most people’s standards and was more than worth it, it allowed us to go further into Cappadocia with only the allurement of this place to guide us. The greatest thing for me about Cappadocia is that it feels like you have explored another world, people may come here and have a similar trip but never the same one. It feels like a place without a guide book (even though it actually has one) a place that says “Find your own way” and leaves you to see for yourself this natural wonder like you are the first one.