A TURKISH DELIGHT - DAY 15 – 24 NOVEMBER 2021 – Antalya to Goreme (Cappadocia)

The rain that drove us back to the hotel the previous night had apparently continued overnight. It did dampen the spirit a bit. More rain was expected and the forecast was unrelenting, even for Cappadocia. Respecting the weather forecast, though, I made some changes to the program. I had originally scheduled this day's drive via Mercin to Cappadocia, to enjoy more of the Mediterranean coast and its sights. A few historical sites too were on the agenda. It was to be a 725 km 12 hour drive. The change meant that the visits to Aspendos and Side, two major Roman era excavations, had to be given the short shrift. In any case, the rain would have played spoiler. Therefore, I curtailed the day's journey and decided on the shortest route to Cappadocia, 530 km in nearly 8 hours.

Getting out of Old Town, Antalya was like solving a jigsaw puzzle. So many turns and narrow streets that made me nervous about a wrong turn. Fortunately, while I was jumpy behind the wheel the weather held and so did my nerves in the end. As soon as the city was behind us my decision to change the route was justified. It started with a few drops and then turned into a light drizzle. Just out of Antalya it started pouring as if there would be no tomorrow. Visibility was near zero and traffic was high. Neither the headlights nor the fog lamps were of any use. Buffeting winds started swaying the car. It was scary and difficult to keep the car under control driving at about 80 kph. A couple of times I felt the cat lifting from the road. I feared that I would interfere with traffic in the fast lane. Keeping lanes was most difficult as I couldn't see much beyond the windshield. Moreover, stagnant water on the sides of the road sometimes led to light skidding. All in all, a tough situation. The sky was dark and getting darker. It looked as if our days outdoors were over. We kept hoping that the weather would clear up somehow.

Once we pared north east, away from the coast, after Kizilagac, the weather started easing up and the mountain roads came into view. The drive through the Taurus Mountains were a joy because the weather had cleared, the road condition was perfect and the traffic was not that high. Nearing Konya we were greeted by bright sunshine. We hoped that it would remain that way for the rest of the day at least. Konya is famous for the tomb of the famous Sufi poet Rumi. It is a place of pilgrimage for the Mevlana Sufis. The route from Konya to Cappadocia was part of the ancient Silk Road, stitching may Seljuk Turkish caravanserais along the way, of which the most impressive was reportedly Sultanhani, built in the early 13th century.

A fact that kept stunning us as we was nearing Cappadocia was the absence of the mention of Cappadocia on the sign boards. While Google Maps was apparently taking us in the right direction, the sign boards did not support that. After we crossed Nevsehir and turned the final stretch to Cappadocia came some indication from advertisement boards on the road side. A little research and the mystery was solved. Cappadocia is the region while we were headed to the towns of Uchisar and Goreme. These two places are not as well publicized as is Cappadocia. It is only when you get there that you realise the difference between the region and the towns.

Suddenly, as if from nowhere, the fairy chimneys started popping up. Though we were tempted to stop and explore we drove past Uchisar, the Castle was visible from a fair distance away, and reached Goreme so that we could get some guidance from the hotel reception on how to optimise our two night stay in Goreme. When we reached Goreme it was evident that it had rained there too. Through narrow, kuchcha roads we reached the Caravanserai Cave Hotel where we were booked to stay. The receptionist upgraded our accommodation and showed us to the room. The most welcoming part of the deal was that coffee and tea would be available round the clock in the Terrace cafe, which was just a flight of stairs from our room. I had struggled to get my early morning fix of coffee in some of the hotels we had stayed till then.

While checking in to the Hotel we were told that hot air ballooning had been cancelled for the morrow due to windy conditions. That took an important part of the agenda in Cappadocia out of the equation. Sad, but cannot fight the weather. There was only enough time this day to pay a visit to the Goreme panoramic view point and the Uchisar Castle.

Goreme is the site of the fairy chimney formations where a honey coloured village is literally carved into volcanic rock. Political turmoil is said to be the reason why people built tunnels in the sedimentary rocks to escape persecution. Since they were built as refuges many traps were inbuilt into the structure whereby heavy stones could be rolled at the enemy or eyes gouged out through holes! Later it was used by Christians retreating from Rome. The many rock churches here point to Christianity being the major religion in the area. People still live in the cave houses and many have been turned into hotels, shops and restaurants. The Goreme Historical National Park has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1985.

Uchisar is the highest point in Cappadocia, just 5 km from Goreme. Entrance fee is nominal at 20 TL per adult. Many rooms, hollowed into the rock, are connected to each other with stairs, tunnels and passages. Due to erosion in places of this multi-levelled castle, it is not possible to go to all the rooms. Most of the rooms, located on the north side of the castle are used as pigeon houses today. Farmers use these cave pigeon houses to collect the droppings of pigeons which is excellent natural fertilizer for the orchards and vineyards. The summit of Uchisar Castle provides a magnificent panorama of the surrounding area. While it was extremely cold outside the castle, especially right at the top, inside the rooms it was warm and cosy.

We drifted to a traditional Turkish restaurant in the town centre for dinner. Kofte is a Turkish speciality, which is meatballs served with rice, olives, potato wedges and veggies. Needless to say, Efes Pilsner preceded the lovely meal. A lentil soup and its accompaniments were Hetal’s choice for dinner.