Enough Caves

I think I had too much fun on the scooter yesterday.

Our full-day tour, on a minivan, through the outer regions of Cappadocia seemed so low key in comparison.
We had a really good laugh in the beginning though. We were doing the rounds of introductions, and it turned out that everyone in my row was homeless and unemployed! All of us decided one day to leave our jobs and to travel for an indefinite period of time. Nice!

Stop #1 – Pigeon Valley. We already went there yesterday... But you never get tired of the great scenery :)

Stop #2 – Ihlara Gorge. This is apparently a MUST DO hiking course in Cappadocia. Very short (1.5hrs) and easy, which is to my liking. The canyons itself are nothing out of the ordinary, but what makes it unique are the numerous cave churches (Byzantine, I think) dug into them. They're widely spread apart, so we only got to see one near the entrance. But given all the caves we went to yesterday, one was enough to get the general idea. After the hike, we got to have lunch on one of these man-made pieces of land in the stream. Lovely location, except for the swarms of bees everywhere!!! We couldn't relax at all while eating. Oh, and lunch was included, but they get you with the drinks. How sneaky!

Stop #3 – Derinkuyu Underground City. This was definitely the highlight of the tour. Unfortunately, I have no photos since I'm incapable of taking good photos in the dark. I should take lessons and buy a tripod...
As the name suggests, it's a complete city built underground. 8 floors, with schools, living quarters, stables, kitchen, cemetery, storage rooms, wine making rooms, etc. Like a maze. I can't imagine what the living conditions must've been...it's so dark, moldy, and claustrophobic! Some of the rooms were so small, they seemed like coffins. It's not that people normally lived here. They used the city as a hiding place when they were under attack (religious persecution, I believe).
The engineering skills that these people had (more than a thousand years ago!) are amazing! Huge ventilation systems and round, strategically-placed sliding doors to keep intruders out. Really cool.

Stop #4 – Another cave city complex. I apologize for the vagueness and lack of enthusiasm. When you see cave, after cave, after cave, they start to lose their appeal.

Stop #5 – Onyx factory. Basically a gift shop stop. No shopping for me. Found this interesting tree nearby though:

So, with the tour done, it was time to say goodbye : ( My travel buddy for the past week had to go back to Istanbul on the night bus for his flight back to Japan the next day.

And I think I'm done with Cappadocia as well. Except for the hot air ballooning (way too expensive!), I think I've done and seen everything I wanted to in this region.
Where to next??? I know I want to head further east to Mt. Nemrut, but I can't figure out which city to make my base.