Photo Journal: Land of Ice and Fire in Cappadocia, Turkey
After that last episode of Game of Thrones, I vote for the Lannisters to get their own reality TV show. They’re more dysfunctional than the Kardashians and Snooki and JWOW put together. Seven hells!
You know, every now and then Westeros, the Game of Throne’s ‘Domain of Ice and Fire‘, reminds me of the frozen volcanic landscape of Cappadocia, Turkey. And while I was debating whether to forgo these photos since I already wrote about Cappadocia in the hot air balloon ride post, there’s just so much more to cover here! (You can also view all Turkey posts here.)
The province of Cappadocia is an idyllic area of natural cave wonders created from ancient volcanic eruptions spanning as far as 9 million years ago. These large sedimentary caves served as a hide out for those fleeing religious persecution for thousands of years. Since 500 BC, the region also contains several underground cities, which were used by early Christians fleeing persecution from the Romans. More on this in the hot air balloon ride over Cappadocia post.
Some highlights of the trip:
» Sunrise hot air balloon ride (photos here)
» Watching the sunset over the beautifully colored sediments of Rose Valley (photos 24, 25)
» Staying in real cave hotels like the hobbits that we are (photos 14-19 and 26-39)
» Animal shaped rock formations at the Imagination (Dervent) Valley (photos 1-6)
» Goreme’s cave churches with al fresco or a secco painted iconoclastic Christian motifs (photo 20)
» Kaymaklı underground city, which once housed 20,000 Christians escaping persecution (photo 21)
Hotels:
Cappadocia Cave Suites
Gafferli Mah. Ünlü Sokak No:19
Göreme, Nevşehir, Turkey
+90 384 271 28 00
Argos Hotel in Cappadocia
50240 Uçhisar, Turkey
+90 384 219 3130
Steve @ Backpacker Report
happy you see that you did a bit of hiking while you were there, i saw so many cool rock formations and amazing views while hiking there. oh and nice pictures as always!
Sunnie
Loved your Turkey blog. Thanks for sharing. The photos really brought the place alive, great job. I plan to go to Cappadocia in August. I am looking for an upscale boutique cave suite with air conditioning. Did you like staying in Uchisar at the Argos? I have narrowed down to Argo’s , The Museum or MDC Suites Hotel. Wanted to get your insight along with any itinerary suggestions, restaurants (I am a foodie) or tours you went on. You can email me at sunnie@maui.net. Thanks
elleyess
Hi Sunnie, sorry for the late response! I found that the Argos was a lovely place to plunker down as home base for the week. It was simplistic yet luxurious (the website just doesn’t do it justice). Also, the cave hotels generally don’t have a/c since by nature, caves are naturally cool (range between 15 to 17 degrees Celsius). Hope this helps but please do let me know if you have any other questions. Happy travels!
spicycocoa
I love how vivid the colors are, as though they are coming alive and popping out of the pictures :)