Cappadocia: Rocks & Balloons

We caught an early flight towards central Turkey and arrived at 8 a.m.
to a spectacular region called Cappadocia. I am so glad we chose to come
here as it is truly a magical place. The area is known for it's unique rock formations, Byzantine cave homes & churches and these formations from lava flow called fairy chimneys. It almost looks like another planet in some areas.
We stayed in a sleepy little town called Goreme which was a nice change
of pace from the hustle and bustle of Istanbul. The town is built
amongst cave dwellings from the past and a lot of the places to stay were actual authentic caves. The hotels are just built out of
stone and wood around the caves and each cave has become a suite for
guests to stay in. Our hotel was about a ten minute walk uphill from
town which gave us quite the advantage in views over the whole Goreme
area and the Red and Rose Valleys in the distance that were backdrops
for gorgeous pink sunsets.

our cave suite

caves=nice & cool temp.

olive oil planters

After a yummy breakfast of local grape molasses and soft cheese covered
with honeycomb atop some bread we headed out to the Open Air Museum. It was more like a huge outdoor area showcasing some
of the oldest and most elaborate cave dwellings and churches.

byzantine home

inside view

excited for cave homes

cave church

rocks make me excited

Took off on a hike through Red Valley where we were all alone and free
to climb all over and do some exploring. You could wander the area for
weeks and still not find all the little ancient homes and churches
hidden away in the rock. There were also random green orchards and crops
in the middle of this desertscape which we couldn't figure out how they
stayed alive with zero water in the area. It was so scorching hot in
Goreme and we learned that the hard way. We made it to Rose Valley which
is a huge pinkish wall of rock lining the area. Had to call off the
rest of the hike off as it was the heat of the day, we were miles from
home and we were low on water. We would have had to take cover in a cave
til sundown if we pressed on any further and I think I was pretty near
heatstroke.

several homes

outerspace views

lava flows

biggest dandelion ever

jumping for geology

fertile field in the desertscape

honeys

the 'weenie' rock

Took a dip in the freezing cold cliff top pool and passed the day
drinking Efes and playing our go to game of the trip, trivial pursuit in
the shade. That evening we had a god-awful dinner at some shitehole. We had
originally went to a restaurant that was supposed to specialize in this
Turkish dish of flatbread with minced lamb meat, parsley and lemon
called lomajan (?). Jimmy had been looking forward to this dish the entire
time and the damn place apparently didn't even make it anymore or sell beer
so we hightailed it outta there to the place next door where a woman
said she could make the dish...We should have known better as the menu was mainly pictures and that is
usually a no-no for us when traveling, but we were exhausted from the
long day of hikes and our judgement was clouded. We ordered three items
and all were freezing cold and inedible and Jimmy's dish he wanted so badly came out
with what appeared to be raw meat. We just got up and paid the bill
after a few minutes cause it made us sick to look at future food
poisoning. Moped up the hill to round out evening with some rooftop raki
and great night views of the lit up rock homes.

pool time

view from our room

goreme town

Got up at 4 the next morning for what will most likely be the highlight
of our trip... Sunrise HOT AIR BALLOONING!!! Cappadocia is now the
number 1 place in the world to do some ballooning and for good reason.
OMG, it was absolutely breathtaking. We floated over the entire region of
rock formations, lava remnants, fairy chimneys, valleys etc. as the sun
came up. Such an amazing sight just floating in the sky amongst 90
other balloons and it was really peaceful and quiet and such a special
moment for the both of us. The basket was gigantic and roomy and had 4
compartments with 4 people in each of them surrounding the pilot. I did
however think my frizzy hair was going to catch fire from the flames
filling the balloon.

Our balloon pilot Mehmet was awesome as he was able to drop us down in
between cliffs and valleys and hover nearly still for awhile before
shooting us back up into the sky...he was even able to land our basket
on a little trailer at the end of the flight! We were amazed at the
control he had. We had sorta pictured us just flying away and landing
wherever the wind blew. Our group did a champagne toast to celebrate
such a rad experience then we headed home to start our day at 8 a.m.!

ready for takeoff

sunrise reflection

amazing lava valleys

taken mid-flight

in the clouds

super stoked

dizzy heights

getting close look

mars

terrible views

outerspace

we made it

Next up, we rented some rickety scooters and hit the open road for the day
exploring a good part of Cappadocia stopping for hikes in several of the
valleys along the way. Stunning landscape to say the least.

fairy chimneys

good balance

smooth rocks

a camel!

soccer pose

old homes

sons of anarchy, eat your heart out

rose valley

entire cave town and castle

painted windows

Topped off an amazing day at our outdoor restaurant downstairs with a
huge traditional meal of 2 soups, one made of yogurt and one of bulgar,
manti (tiny Turkish raviolis with yogurt and sumac), lamb cis, and a
delicious bottle of wine from one of the nearby vineyards. Apparently
the volcanic soil makes for some top notch wine. It's was so good we
bought a bottle and I'm risking ruining the entire contents of my
suitcase transporting it for 2 more weeks. Fingers crossed.

We happened to run into the super cool manager of our cave hotel Mustafa
at a water pipe place in town and ended up smoking nargileh and sharing
many rakis with him well into the night.

sober and Mustafa

Our last day in Turkey we basically got some well needed lounging around
in and just bought some souvenirs that I have already broken (sad story
later) and got our ducks in a row for Greece the following morning.

local women

local women

typical transport in town

carpets and more carpets

nerd alert

Said goodbye to fabulous Turkey over a dinner of Terra cotta pots filled
with either chicken or beef and tomatoes and spices. The pots are
sealed shut with a plug of bread at the top and baked for 3 hours. They
are then delivered to your table and cracked open with a tiny mallet to
get all the goodies out! So delicious and perfect way to end our time in
Turkey.

clay pot

Next up...Mykonos, Greece!

Raki and Sultans

After our wild night before, one would think enough is enough, but Istanbul has a way of sucking you in for sure...We have been on a schedule of waking up between 5-7 a.m. and napping for a few hours in the late afternoon which makes us ready to go latenight.

I forgot to mention one odd thing we see all over the streets is guys sitting at a table just drawing with a spirograph. We never figured out what the deal was but thought it was pretty funny. 

so confused?

Headed back to the new city night 3 to a strip of two intersecting alleys called Nevisade which is basically outdoor bars and restaurants along the sidewalks. It has the best people watching and drinking scene. We even saw a huge brawl at one restaurant with chairs and plates being thrown!

raki mixologist in action

raki vision

Caught a live 2-man band of a violin and electric acoustic guitar playing lively Turkish folk music and one thing led to another and I ended up being coaxed into dancing in front of the bar quite terribly with some Turkish girl who kept signaling for me to come do some wierd Turkish dance with her.  Of course my lovely husband recorded my sweet dance moves and he loves giggling and playing it daily to remind me of my two left feet.

steamy 'wet' burger

Next day we hit up the Topkapi palace where a bunch of Sultans lived and had a harem of women to do very bad things to them. One sultan supposedly drowned in champagne so I am assuming things were pretty lavish and wild there at some point.

cool writing

posing in the harem

neat doorway

i make him take pics like this

fancy

carved shutters

my hairdo the whole trip

Hopped a ferry for a cruise along the Bosphorus which seperates the Asian side of Istanbul with the European. Asian side seemed a lot more lowkey.

bon voyage

the new city

tea time

Bosphorus Sea

before...

...and after!

Headed over to the colorful Spice Bazaar next where we bought some Turkish teas and coffee and various spices. It was shoulder to shoulder busy but smelled amazing in there.

spicy

crowded

dried fruits

special soaps

meats

treats

happy about his purchase

tea

nuts

local shopper

olives

cheese

After another long day we took in the Spain soccer game in a little alleyway off the beaten path over some delicious lentil soup, Efes beer and Turkish pizza which is super yummy and shaped long and skinny!

Next morning we went to the famous Grand Bazzar and hoestly is was a 'Grand' dissapointment for us. Bad pun, i know...We had pictured this gigantic and amazing tented area selling treasuers of Turkey but I think tourism has gotten the best of the place cause it was a lot of over-priced junky souvenirs, diamonds & wierd jewelery, and cheap clothing. I was positive I would be walking out of there with bags of goodies like Turkish lamps and rugs but all I got was a handpainted bowl...Oh well, still cool to at least take a look at to say you have been there.

early morning at the bazaar

flags of the world

waterpipes

lamps i'll never own

nothing to buy

rugs

To make up for the dissapointment of the bazaar we headed to have some tea and smoke a waterpipe, followed by a hamam.

love our tea times

professional

rookie

coal for waterpipe station

What is a hamam you ask? Only the wierdest most awesomest Turkish massage ever! First, you walk into a little dark hut with your partner, disrobe, then a man puts on a sarong and women wears ill-fitting shorts to her knees with a tiny triangle top thingy and then puts on the most hilarious shoes made wood. These clogs were absolutely hilarious. Platform, wooden shoes with one strap on top made of rubber. When we walked out of the hut and started clanking across the wood floor we became hysterical. Sounded like cattle crossing the street and they were impossible to walk in. To top it off we rounded the corner into the hamami and Jimmy got is clog stuck in a water trough on the ground and nearly ate shit and fell into the wall.

high fashion footwear

Rounding the corner we were like WTF is this!? People were getting water thrown all over them, and laying all over and it was hot as hell and we heard loud slapping sounds which I will address further down...Me and my wooden shoes almost ran out cause it was so confusing and chaotic at first. We figured it out pretty quickly though.

So the room we enter is hundreds of years old and was used by those nasty sultans of course. It is a huge domed, marble pillared area with a sort of pentagon shaped slab of marble in the center. The slab is heated pretty hot underneath with coals I believe and you lay on that for 30 minutes with other people on there as well. The room is kept at like 130 degrees and is extremely humid. You are sopping wet within minutes. Around the slab is seven tiny rooms with running water faucets coming out the walls and 2 marble beds. After you feel like you are dying of heatstroke you go to your little room and the most bizarre massage ensues.

You sit next to the faucet and the man with white scabs on his elbows from obviously too much time in the hamami uses a metal bowl to dump shockingly cold water all over your body. While sitting there you get what is called a "peeling" and periodic bowls of cold water dumped on you. A peeling is when a guy puts on what looks like an oven mitt made of a brillow pad and procedes to scrub your entire body. I think he took off our entire layer of epidermis but it felt good! Next up, get on the marble bed face down and procede to be covered in FOAMY BUBBLES!

They take these pillow cases and dip them in some soapy substance blow air into pillow case and then squeeze it over your still burning skin from the peeling and foam just shoots out of them. Your entire body is literally encased in about 2 feet of bubbles! It felt so bizarre. Pour more cold water on you and get a massage. And by massage I mean slapped and twisted and stretched around. They kinda smack you pretty hard which is what I had been hearing earlier with the slapping sounds when we walked in. It felt great.

Sit back down and get rinsed off and your hair washed with...Head and Shoulders! Aahhhahhaa! All done and giggling at eachother we had to put those damn wooden shoes back on and shuffled out to where we were escorted into another room told to disrobe and then we are wrapped in cloth and given a headwrap fit for a sultan and slapped dry. The end.

what just happened?!

What to do after such a cleansing experience? Only eat the most nastiest, sickest thing ever. Jana, this is your worst nightmare...We had been hearing about the famous 'kumpir'. So we thought, what the hell, why not? Um, this thing is the biggest baked potato you have ever seen. They mash the inside up with butter and cheese. Then the following things were put by the spoonful on top: 4 different types of mayonaise based potato salads with veggies, couscous, hot dogs, something fishy yet to be determined, pickles, olives, corn, cabbage other crap i can't even remember and topped with a huge squirt of ketchup and yes...mayo! Are you alive still? Eh, the thing was f*cking putrid, to be put lightly. But we ate it. Did I mention we got this on the way to dinner as well? I know, we have issues.

scary-ass potato

looks yummy right?!

Had our last night in Istanbul with some raki and people watching and finally took in the night view from our terrace one last time while listening to the call to prayer from 4 seperate mosques at once...We heart you Istanbul<3