Anatolian Houses in Goreme Turkey.

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This is a view from the grass covered roof outside our room in Goreme Turkey. We traveled to Derinkuyu, an underground cave city. Snow began to fall as the taxi driver drove us to the caves. Rooms, passage ways and an air shaft were all carved into the rock deep under ground. You couldn’t have claustrophobia and live in this underground city. The tube shaped passages were just large enough so you could walk through while hunched over. Extending to a depth of approximately 200 feet, it is large
enough to have sheltered as many as 20,000 people together with their
livestock and food stores. It is the largest excavated underground city
in Turkey and is one of several underground complexes found across Cappadocia.

 The underground city at Derinkuyu could be closed from the inside with
large stone doors. Each floor could be closed off separately. The city at Derinkuyu was fully formed in the Byzantine era, when it was heavily used as protection from Muslim Arabs during the Arab–Byzantine wars (780-1180). It was at this time that most of the chapels and Greek inscriptions
were added. The city was connected with other underground cities through
miles of tunnels. Some artifacts discovered in these underground
settlements belong to the Middle Byzantine Period, between the 5th and
the 10th centuries A.D. When the Christian inhabitants of the region were expelled in 1923 in the population exchange between Greece and Turkey the tunnels were abandoned. The tunnels were rediscovered in 1963, after a resident of the area
found a mysterious room behind a wall in his home. Further digging
revealed access to the tunnel network. It was opened to visitors in 1969 and about half of the underground city is currently accessible to tourists.

Dovecotes in Goreme Turkey.

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Freud would have much to say as to why women, and men,are so fascinated by these naturally formed pillars, called dovecotes, that populate the valley near Goreme Turkey. Terry and I hiked the valley exploring several ancient christian Churches and then climbing a sandstone cliff to get an overall view of the valley. Some of these phallic pillar had been carved out to make cave dwellings but they were no long occupied. One lone window is visible in the sketch. They are formed from thousands of years of erosion. One stone at the top resists erosion allowing water to run down the shaft gradually eroding a way sandstone.

In ancient Greek mythology the
dove represented Aphrodite, goddess of beauty and love, and figures in the
holy books of the major monotheistic religions. The earliest reference is
in the Old Testament, where Noah releases a dove to seek land, and it
returns with an olive branch showing that life had been restored following
the deluge. From then on the olive branch and the dove became symbols of
friendship and peace. In the New Testament, when Jesus is being baptized,
the Holy Ghost alights on his head in the form of a white dove, which is
why in Christian iconography the dove represents the Holy Ghost.

In the
Koran, when Mohammed is fleeing from the Qureysh, he hides in a cave.
Spiders weave webs over the entrance and a dove makes her nest, so his
pursuers do not bother to look inside and he is saved. In consequence, the
generality of Muslims regard pigeons and doves as sacred and do not hunt
or eat them. From the same motive buildings in Islam countries often
incorporate dovecotes. The
earliest examples of nesting houses for birds in Turkey date from the 16th
century and can be seen in mosques, bridges, libraries, and other public
buildings. The dovecotes in these pillars, can be seen high up just at the lower edge of the head.

The Anatolian Houses Hotel in Goreme Turkey.

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On our trip to Turkey, Terry and I stayed in the Anatolian Houses Hotel (50180 Nevşehir Merkez/Nevşehir, Turkey) in Goreme. Our room was in the stone building attached to the large sandstone structure on the left: The living room was in the building and the the bedroom and bathroom were carved out in side the sandstone. It was like living ” a very modern well a point cave. The bathroom had large jacuzzi tub and very tiny windows that can be seen on the cliff face. The walls had plenty of carved out niches for storing towel and clothes. In one section of the bathroom, the floor dropped and and a glass plate was used to maintain the flat floor surface. A light was placed down in the crevasse to illuminate the ceiling.

On one occasion, I had to run back into our suite, because I forgot something. While running out of the bathroom, I smashed my forehead against the bathroom doorway. I was dazed for a bit but recovered, simply cursing my stupidity. Goreme is well known for it’s hot air balloon rides. We didn’t splurge on the balloons, but they brightened up the sky every morning.

Overlooking the Göreme Open Air Museum.

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Terry and I hiked up to a trail along the tops of the rock formations around the the Göreme Open Air Museum. The Steep winding trail snaked along the top ridge of the white Hill. I slipped on the loose pebbles and caught myself as I slid down a rocky slope. My left hand got scrapped up but not bloody. Having already hiked every hill, staircase, cavern and church in the open air museum, I decided to to stop and sketch an overlook. Terry continued hiking the trail, but, I decided, that I would hike back on the paved road.

The Open Air Museum, is listed as a World Heritage Site which is is a place (such as a building, city, complex, desert, forest, island, lake, monument, or mountain) that is listed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as being of special cultural or physical significance. It is clearly a popular tourist destination since the parking lot was full and the trails were crowded.

The Göreme Open Air Museum in Cappadocia Turkey.

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Cappadocia lies in in the heartland of what is now Turkey. Fairy Chimney rock formations are scattered all around the town of Göreme. Though still cold, pink blossoms were bursting open in some trees while most trees were barren. The time that the Göreme was first settled is unclear, but it could date back as the Hittite era,
between 1800 and 1200 B.C. The location was central between rivaling
empires, such as the Greeks and Persians, leading the natives to tunnel
into the rock to escape the political turmoil. Christianity prevailed as the primary religion in the region, which is
evident from many rock churches that can still be seen today.

After the sketch was done, I met Terry to tour the inner carved rooms, halls and churches. Signs help tourists on the in self guided tours. I can’t imagine that living in these stone caves could have been  comfortable. It must have been drafty and cold in the winter. Our hotel room was carved into the rock as well. A large bathroom was the primary room carved out and there was a honeycomb of notches carved into the walls which made for convenient storage for towels and clothing. With modern electricity and plumbing cave living can be quite luxurious.