A day trip from Ankara to Cappadocia, Türkiye, 23. September 2023.
Cappadocia I
En route from Ankara south-east to Cappadocia, a region in Central Anatolia, Türkiye. Our first goal is Göreme in the Nevşehir District. The small town is at the heart of a magical landscape, formed from soft, sedimentary rock, a cover of ancient volcanic deposits and erosion. To this day, people carve houses out of the rock. Göreme National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. At our arrival, we are greeted by camels.
Cappadocia II
Göreme became a Christian monastic centre in 300–1200 AD. The complex contains more than 30 carved-from-rock churches and chapels, some having superb frescoes inside, dating from the ninth century to the eleventh century.
The plate shows some of these paintings which one may not photograph in situ. The saints include the mysterious St. Onuphrius. The elongated basin, which is reminiscent of a Kneipp cold-and-hot foot basin, was used, we were told, to crush grapes for wine production.
Cappadocia III
Our next stop was Uçhisar Castle, Nevşehir. Finally, we went to the town of Ürgüp where we had dinner which was presided over by Saint Anthony Bourdain. A big thank you to Lutz Peschke and his wife for organising this wonderful trip for the members of the EUMEPLAT research project.