So after the balloon tour, we signed up for the green tour with freelance travel which spans from 9am to 6pm with lunch included. It was one hell of an itinerary for the very sleep deprived us. Sometimes I think it would have been fun for us to venture ourselves but the lack of sleep and groupthink will probably slow down all the decisions and make life more difficult. Nevertheless, this was a very enjoyable tour.
First stop was the panoramic view of kapadokya, which was a nice introduction to the unique landforms.
Well, I guess it was just time to take tourist photos.
Next stop, we went to the Derinkuyu Underground City, which was the deepest cave city in kapadokya. They concluded that this underground cities were meant to be shelters to protector the inhabitants from invaders from time to time. Apparently there are 600 doors to this city and it can hold 20, 000 people in these caves. That’s our guide, Efe!
It is pretty tedious to walk up and down stairs while bending down to avoid hitting your head. It makes me think that these ancient people are hobbits.
It’s interesting because they said they never found a toilet so they had different theories about how these dwellers handled their waste. They found hints of what each room might be: churches, kitchen, storage rooms and VIP rooms. They understand how the people communicate back then, like how they shout to holes and one person will disseminate the information again. The VIP will then stay near these communication points.
After a while, all the cave walls look the same. So, anyway we decided to take a group photo in this honeymoon cave. Why is it called honeymoon cave? It’s because it has a little opening in this cave to view the sky (think balcony). So they are guessing that two can share a romantic moment in this cave.
Next, it was the Ilhara valley which was where some ancient river once flowed and it was said to have the first civilisation in kapadokya. It was believed that they had 4000 dwellings and 80 000 people! Anyway, here begins our 1.5 hours hike to lunch!
Here a panorama view of the gorgeI think this is the lion’s den, st.daniel’s church. I don’t quite understand the story behind it really. They also call it the church of tree.
It’s cute because from high up we can spot these words made of pebbles and it just reminds us of those SOS scenes.
Time for some fresh orange juice!!!! Almost dying of hunger. Thank goodness for the bread for breakfast!Here’s a rest stop! And then 10 minutes walk to lunch.
Hahaha and look! We bumped into emine and otto again! Thus the caterpillar soft toy.
And our last stop is selime monastery which is situated at the end of Ilhara valley. Rumours has it that star wars was filmed here. But my research tells otherwise! Many blogs would include kapadokya in their list of film locations just because of the similar vibes this place have to the film. Well, I don’t really know anyways.
Just doing a mini photoshootQuite happy with this bunch and how we have the same ideas for travel!Giving this place a hug.Guess it’s just fun climbing around! I was kinda exhausted finding out more about this place at the end of the day that I was just doing the trek up! I think it was this point that Efe decided to call me Keci Kers!
And so it was time for ice cream! This flavour is named blue sky and now we know why! It’s cute to see the resemblance.And this is pigeon valley! They really have a thing for pigeons! They will really build pigeon holes to collect pigeon dropping for their fertilising properties, or as message carriers. It always amazes me how ancient people really use birds to carry their message. Like, how does it work really. Nowadyas, these birds are kept as pets. Anyway, this was the last stop for the green tour.Time for dinner! We settled for cappadocia cuisine nearby to try some local delights. I love this ayran drink! It’s like a salty yoghurt drink, so yummyAnd we all had so much bread with the endless flow of bread at each eatery! So much yumz! I love eating these cripsy bread with the different sauces.I ordered a pottery kebab, which is totally a thing here! It is a tomato based stew with whatever meat you choose. I chose chicken! It’s interesting but I rather eat kebabs. We saw another version the next day during our red tour! More on that later!
