Cappadocia, Pasabag Valley, and Zelve

Definitely one of my favorite parts of the trip. Cappadocia, Pasabag Valley, and Zelve are ancient cities built into rock formations in the center of Turkey. I loved exploring the network of tunnels and houses and churches and climbing all over the place.

The day we visited Cappadocia was the coldest day of the whole trip. Quite chilly.

There were a few churches that were absolutely amazing. My favorite was the Apple Church. We weren't allowed to take pictures, so I found this one online instead:

Source: http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk

After Cappadocia we went to one of the Underground Cities. This one went underground 16 stories! Only the first 8 were open though, probably a good thing since it was very easy to get lost. 

We also visited the shop of Chez Galip, a famous potter who looks exactly like Einstein. His craft was passed down through the generations and he is the first in his family to take on female apprentices. He also creates and sells glow-in-the-dark ceramics!

The next day we went to Pasabag Valley and Zelve. The difference between these two and Cappadocia is the "fairy chimney" rock formations. Pasabag Valley was very relaxed in letting us climb everything, the security at Zelve wasn't as lenient, but we had some good adventures anyway.

Pasabag Valley

Zelve:

Natural formation of a "mini-Zelve"

A few of the adventurous ones in the top left cave

We finished the day with some good food and looking out over Pigeon Valley.