Hi, Ash here again after having had some wonderful, restful time in Turkey. The last week has been very relaxing, doing a few wonderful things but mostly resting, eating wonderful food, drinking the local Turkish brew (Efes, really good stuff - also some really top Turkish red wine) and sipping on Raki - the aniseed spirit that the locals drink here. I was catching up but have slackened off with blog pics again. But here are some, of our time in Nigde and the edge of the Cappadocia region, an amazing geological area - volcanic landscapes to take your breath away. (More of this later)
Also, it is the area which is famous for its underground cities which were hand hewn into the soft volcanic rock. The rock once crafted and shaped, develops a thin outer crust which is very tough - hence the ability to create rooms, arches, etc, etc. The rock inside this crust, once peeled away is so soft you could literally dig it away and shape it with your hand.
Local people and communities carved and decorated houses, dovecotes and churches within the volcanic pillars (more of this later as well).
We explored a fascinating underground city which was used as a place of permanent refuge for months at a time during invasion. A whole city of people lived underground with sophisticated ventilation systems, bakeries, kitchens, stables for animals, defence mechanisms etc. Was amazing to walk (and bend) through. There were churches, etc inside as well - all of it designed to hide as successive peoples came through as invaders. Was wonderful to see and experience. In Nigde J had her eyebrows "threaded" at a local shop and I had my birthday dinner, followed by a most interesting visit to a bar. J has already spoken a little of this in a previous blog. Nigde was an Alpine town - a real surprise to wind up through the mountains with snow in the backround and our first taste of mist and a bit of drizzle. We also saw a wonderful church hewn into the volcanic rock, with fantastically well preserved frescoes. We had it to ourselves - a great experience. The pics don't do justice to how spectacular they were but i have included just a few of them. All the best, Ash, from a wonderful Cirali, near MT Olympos in Turkey.
