Traveling in Turkey During the Corona Restrictions – Part 2

The first attraction I stopped at was the open-air museum near Göreme, which is rightfully on the UNESCO World Heritage List. It's the first important Byzantine settlement, which originally housed about twenty monks, but later grew into a pilgrimage center, so it's not surprising that small rock hewn churches and conical formations predominate in number, so it's almost impossible to determine from a height that it's a settlement.

Another stop was in Göreme, where many houses, restaurants and hotels are still carved into the rock and conical formations, which gives the city a special charm. There's also an excellent view point above the city, which is especially popular at sunset.

Not far from Göreme are the following two sights that are definitely worth a visit. The first is the Güllüdere valley, or the valley of roses, where you can see the fairy-tale chimneys created by nature and a few churches carved into them. Another attraction is the open-air museum in Zelve, where in three valleys you can admire the abandoned rock-hewn churches and houses where they lived in monastic solitude from the 9th to the 13th century. At slightly different times, it's also possible to visit a rock-carved wine cellar in the caves, but this time the coronavirus prevented the temptation.

The village of Selime is too often and unjustifiably left out of the itinerary

Although there are still many abandoned villages, churches and monasteries and other rock-carved settlements and buildings, I'll deliberately point out the village of Selime, which is unjustifiably neglected in many itineraries, as it's located in the far west of Cappadocia and is one of the starting points for visiting the Ihlara valley. It's the authenticity of the open-air museum and, above all, the work that isn't yet arranged for tourists, but nevertheless accessible, that convinced me to put it on the "must-see" list. Of course, in this case it's also a monastery complex with churches and even a cathedral, but this time they are significantly larger than in the previously described. What is even more fascinating is the openness and the view, the which was cleared (or obscured) by the wine produced and stored here in previous centuries. Given this view, it's not surprising that this place was chosen for certain scenes in famous science fiction films, of course, the ones that took place on other planets, as the landscape isn't reminiscent of anything you would have seen on Earth.

Unlike the unearthly landscape near the village of Selime, the valley of the river Melendiz named Ihlara, despite its beauty, is similar to some valleys or gorges in other parts of the world. The only thing that cannot be admired in other similar valleys or gorges are the buildings carved into the rock, especially churches and monasteries, which aren't lacking in the Ihlara valley either. The latter can be entered at one end in the eponymous village of Ihlara, and at the other in the village of Selime, and in between there are two more entrances, namely in the tourist center, where most people also enter and descend the 360 steps to the valley, and the village of Belisirma. The last two points are in most cases the entry and exit point and I also chose them for entry and exit from the valley. It takes about two hours to see this most interesting section, including photography stops, and it makes sense to spend at least half a day walking around the entire valley, as the walk itself takes about five hours, plus you also need to take into account the time for lunch and some stops, as well as some time for refreshments in the almost crystal-clear Melendiz River in the summer. Of course, in the summer months, it's necessary to take into account that the daily temperatures are very high and therefore it may make sense to leave early in the morning and finish the tour with lunch and refreshments. In December, of course, there were no such problems, although for the most part short sleeves were enough, and only the color of nature and the remnants of ice in a shady corner reminded me of winter.

In the Ihlara Valley, what I was told on the first day about the measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus was confirmed twice, namely that masks are mandatory everywhere, even outdoors, but that they don't complicate things unnecessarily, and that restaurants don't serve food, but merely prepare take aways. The second rule, which they adhere to in principle, was shown in practice at the entry point into the Ihlar valley, where the restaurant only offered food, but at the same time they said that the outdoor tables didn't belong to the restaurant and that if I had any food (from the restaurant, for example), I could also eat it there. Despite the plastic dishes and utensils, the lunch was delicious and more than enough for the next two hours of exploring the Ihlara valley, where another piece of advice was confirmed. In the valley, where there were very few visitors keeping at a distance, I walked without a protective mask, of course. In addition to the visitors, there were also police in the valley at that time. As the police approached, I pulled my mask out of my pocket and began to put it on, but they just smiled and continued on their way, which was confirmed by another rule that law enforcement officers, despite the obligation to wear a mask, are still logical and human.

Cappadocia is also magical and unique beneath the surface

But before we leave Cappadocia and head to central Anatolia, we must focus on what lies beneath the surface.

The Cappadocian underground hides a number of underground cities, of which 37 are open and at least a hundred more have not yet been opened to the public. And when we talk about cities, we're talking about such underground settlements in which over 10,000 people lived. The Greek historian Xsenophon wrote about the underground cities that emerged during the Hittite era in the fourth century BC, although we now know them primarily as refuges for Byzantine Christians. In the 6th and 7th centuries, they further expanded these underground cities and used them as shelters in the face of Persian and Arab armies, and they were able to stay in them continuously and without contact with the outside world for several months.

Of all the underground cities, the most famous are Kaymakli and Derinkuyu and these two are also the largest among all with quite a few floors underground. Regardless of the fact that each of them has certain special features, it's enough for a traveler to simply visit one of the two. To all of you who aren't too interested in underground life, or who suspect that you would feel cramped in the narrow tunnels that connect both the rooms and the floors, I advise you to visit the underground city of Özlüc. I haven't visited it myself, but it's smaller, less touristy and (at least at the time of writing) has no entrance fee.

When you suddenly start hearing the 99 Luftballons song in your head

When visiting Turkey, or just Cappadocia, I warmly recommend that you decide to buy a museum pass at the first chance you get. There are two options, namely a 3-day pass, which is valid only in Cappadocia and costs around 25 euros, and a 15-day pass, which can be used throughout Turkey and costs around 65 euros. All the listed sights that I've described, except for the balloon flight, which costs only 60 euros during the coronacrisis (otherwise it can be over 200 euros – all depending on supply and demand), are included in the museum pass; the three or fifteen-day duration of the pass begins to count down when you first enter the museum or other landmark where you're applying for the pass.

Although we could write a whole novel about Cappadocia, or at least a long travelogue that would include Nevşehir, Avanos, Çavuşin, Ortahisar with its rock fortress, Ürgüp and much more, we'll now move a little further west, more precisely towards the city of Konya, which is still in central Anatolia.

The route from Cappadocia to Konya leads through many interesting cities, among which I would highlight Aksaray, where it's worth stopping at the city museum, which is so imposing that you can hardly miss it, and there's also a large mosque or Ulu Cami. Even more interesting than the buildings, however, is the nature, as Aksaray is located at the foothills of Mount Hasan Daği and not far from the Erciyes Daği ski resort.

The last important caravanserai before Konya

Another place worth a short stop, however, is called Sultanhan and is best known for its caravanserai. Sultanhan was an important outpost on the Silk Road, 110 kilometers from Konya and 45 kilometers from Aksaray. The caravanserai around which the city grew was built by the Seljuk Sultan Aleaddin Keykubad I in the early 13th century, and after a fire it was restored and expanded by Sultan Kaykhusraw III at the end of the same century and it presents one of the most beautiful examples of Anatolian Seljuk architecture. The city and caravanserai lost in importance during the Ottoman period, and the last restoration work was done during the time of the Turkish Republic, when the caravanserai opened to visitors.

The caravanserai has both a winter and a summer part, with the closed part of the yard serving as accommodation for animals, which also slept in common areas with passengers, mostly traders, during very cold winters. Of course, part of the caravanserai is also a smaller mosque. In addition to the interior, there's also an impressive exterior, especially the front door, which is made of marble and is a work of art in itself. There are a lot of caravanserais in Turkey and on the Silk Road in general, but this one in Sultanhan is really something extraordinary.

Before entering Konya, however, we would like to briefly describe the importance of caravanserais. These are stops that could also be found along the Silk Road, and were loacated a day away from each other, intended for rest, overnight stay and refreshment for traders with their horses or camels, as well as for other passengers.