To get from Istanbul to Cappadocia, our group took a short flight, about one hour and twenty-five minutes.  The flight may have been short, and we may have been traveling from one Turkish location to another; but we arrived at what appeared to be an entirely different planet.

Located on the plateau of the Taurus Mountains, the geology is what made me feel like we had left planet Earth.  Soft volcanic rock of the landscape had eroded into towers, cones, valleys, and caves—all very dramatic and photogenic.

The volcanic rock was the result of three volcanic eruptions over a period of 10,000 years—the last one being in 1854.

Throughout the countryside, there are rock churches and underground tunnel complexes that date back to the Byzantine and Islamic eras.  We stopped to visit Ozkonak, one of these ancient underground cities. 

(For all photos, click on the image for a full screen view.)

These are all photos taken by our tour leader, Nuri:

Although the age of this particular complex is uncertain, it was probably built during the Byzantine era for protection from enemies.  It was discovered in 1972 by a local farmer who was curious about where his excess crop water was disappearing to.  He discovered an underground room, which ultimately revealed a large city that could have housed 60,000 people for up to three months during a siege. Imagine his surprise at that discovery!  The complex contains ten floors, to a depth of 40 meters; however, only four floors are open.

This volcanic granite city is connected by tunnels and contains a pipe communication system reaching each of its levels—a unique feature of this particular complex.  Each carved room had ventilation provided by further piping when the city was sealed during sieges. 

Another unique feature was the holes above the tunnels that were used for dumping hot sand on the enemy.  The complex also has a water well, winery and moving stone doors.

After visiting Ozkonak, we continued our drive to Cappadocia, stopping along the way to see some of the volcanic formations along the roadside:

Misty Cave Hotel, our base for three nights, was the most unusual hotel I had ever seen!  The rooms were built into a volcanic rock hillside and our bathroom was downstairs, underground.  Each room was completely different, so our group enjoyed visiting each other and checking them out. This was something we will never forget!

Dinner at the hotel:

Coming up next: TURKIYE #6: BEAUITIFUL BALLOONS, GORGEOUS GOREME & COLORFUL CARPETS