Touring Turkey (Part 5): Sightseeing and balloon-watching in Cappadocia

Hello from sunny Cappadocia! ‘Sunny,’ she says, as she lies in bed in her dark cave hostel dormitory, having got up at the crack of dawn to see the famous hot air balloons. Still, while I’m giving my batteries a much needed recharge, I thought I’d fill you in on what I’ve been up to so far! I’ve taken it relatively easy over the past couple of days – you’ll soon find out why – but I’ve still got plenty of stories to recount, so buckle up, and enjoy the ride!

Day 9 (5th September)

Getting to Gorëme

As someone who is not a very confident flyer, I’m pleased to say that the journey from Istanbul to Kayseri took just fifty-five minutes. As we were coming in to land, we were treated to all sorts of extraordinary landscapes: craggy mountain ranges, rocky plains, and grassy fields, now dry and yellow under the beating sun. The shuttle bus service from the airport to Gorëme – kindly arranged for me by my hostel – was no less spectacular. Darkness was approaching, so everything was shrouded with a golden glow, and as we plummeted further from Kayseri, it really felt as if I we were headed for the middle of nowhere.

Indeed, even the odd built-up area that we went past seemed more like a ghost town than an inhabited zone: no lights were on in any of the houses, despite the time of day, and no people were roaming the streets. Just as I was beginning to feel a little apprehensive, however, we pulled up in Gorëme, a town that buzzes with life even more at night than during the day. After checking into my hostel – the Homestay Cave Hostel – I set out immediately to do some exploring.

An evening in Gorëme

Food was my number one priority – it was getting on for eight o’ clock at this point – so I wandered through the brightly-lit streets, past many a souvenir shop, to the cosy M&M Café. I’d eaten a fairly large lunch (when Domino’s is half the usual price, you go all out), so I ended up ordered only a white hot chocolate, and a slice of raspberry cheesecake. The latter was served hot – something I wasn’t expecting – but ended up being quite delicious. Shout out to the sweet waiter who drew a little bicycle next to it in chocolate sauce!

After a quick spot of shop browsing and cat stroking, it was back to the hostel for me, and straight to my snug bed. I am, as usual, sleeping in an all female dormitory, but, rather strikingly, it’s situated in a cave! As a result, it’s wonderfully cool at night, and I find myself clutching onto my duvet, rather than flinging it away.

Day 10 (6th September)

The Gorëme Open Air Museum

Bright and early the following morning (by my questionable standards anyway), I was up, dressed, and ready to head to sight number one: the Gorëme Open Air Musem. The walk took about half an hour – ample time for me to build up quite a sweat! – and took me past hundreds of rugged fairy chimneys (or ‘hoodoos’, as they’re technically known). It was, however, only when I arrived at my destination that I realised quite how remarkable some of these structures were on the inside.

After paying the entrance fee of 54TL (£7.70), I took shelter from the sun in Buckle Church, Cappadocia’s largest house of worship, situated a couple of hundreds metres downhill from the rest of the museum. Here, as in many of the other buildings I saw, cameras were forbidden, but the frescoes (which depicted the life of Christ) were so gorgeous that I couldn’t resist sneaking out my phone to photograph a few of them. Luckily, I wasn’t caught!

After a quick trip down to the clammy underground section, I was out in the open once more, rather wishing I’d bought myself a parasol from one of the shops in town. My heat-induced discomfort didn’t last for long, however, because after stopping briefly to gaze up at an extraordinary rocky nunnery, I was back in the dark once more. This time, it was a pair of skeletons that caught my eye: unidentified, I believe, but spooky nonetheless!

And so it continued: I’d stroll from one cave building to the next, looking forward to the shade that each one would provide, and hoping that it wouldn’t take too long for my eyes to adjust to the darkness. During my tour, I saw wall paintings of all kinds – some much better preserved than others – stroked dogs of all breeds, and climbed staircases of all steepnesses. The uneven surfaces of the steps didn’t defeat me, I’m pleased to announce; a lady in front of me, however, was not so fortunate.

It took me about an hour to get onto the highest and most infamous structure of them all: the breathtaking Dark Church. There was an extra fee to enter this house of worship (18TL – about £2.50), but given how much it must cost to keep this monument in good shape, I was only surprised that I wasn’t charged more. Inside, I was greeted to the most exquisite frescoes of the whole museum, these ones again depicting scenes from the Bible.

I was slightly confused about the name of the church – indeed, it was one of the least gloomy places I’d seen – but a signpost soon clarified things for me. The paintings which illuminated the building were bright exactly because they had stayed in darkness for so long. There was only one tiny window to let in any outside light, and I’m sure the coolness of the cave only helped with the preservation of the artwork.

Back outside, I came across another noticeboard: this one warning visitors of the risk of falling rocks. Glad that I’d discovered this at the end of my tour, rather than the beginning, I made my way back to the site entrance.

An unfortunate turn of events

As I was leaving the museum – a cup of freshly squeezed orange juice in hand – I began to feel the most peculiar cramps in my stomach. For a while, I was able to bear the pain (enough, in fact, that I allowed myself a quick browse of two roadside pottery workshops) but soon I started to panic. The walk back into town wasn’t a short one, and with no public loos in sight, I didn’t know if I was going to make it.

Just when I was about to lose all hope, I noticed a tiny café in the distance. I rushed over as fast as my lurching stomach would allow, paid the man 2TL (30p), and, well, you don’t need to know the rest. Feeling much relieved – but still slightly anxious – I returned the key to him, bought a cheap bottle of water, and moved onto sight number two of the day: the Church of the Evil Eye.

Few tourists visit this cavernous house of worship – indeed, I rocked up in the middle of the day, and was the only person about – but it’s well worth the detour and the 7TL entry fee. The frescoes that line the walls and ceilings may not be in the best condition, but it’s easy to tell that they had once been quite striking. Besides, if you’re not impressed by the artwork, you’ll at least be grateful for the shade that this place provides, as well as the magnificent panoramic views that you’ll get while walking up to it.

A lazy afternoon

By the time I’d finished looking round the church – which I can only assume gets its name from the eye-like hole in its facade – my stomach had decided to go back into cramping mode, so I hurried back to my accommodation, and decided to relax there for the rest of the afternoon. I made myself cosy on one of the outdoor sofas, and spent a good few hours playing with the hostel kitten and puppy, and chatting with my Australian roommate. It would have been great to spend a bit more time with her, but unfortunately she was leaving for Egypt that evening.

A meal with a view

One lazy afternoon, and one pill taking session later, my food poisoning (known here as the ‘Sultan’s Revenge’) appeared to have worn off, so I decided to venture out once more to get some dinner. Viewpoint Café was my eatery of choice: I’d seen many a photo taken from its rooftop terrace, and was keen to snap up a few of my own. (Note: if you want to eat here, yourself, be sure to book beforehand: that way you'll nab the best tables!)

My meal was just as sublime as the view: manti (Turkish ravioli, stuffed with spiced beef, and topped with a yoghurt sauce), and shepherd's salad (tomato, cucumber, and pepper: good for the stomach, I reasoned). I stayed until the sun had fully set, then paid the bill, and went back to the hostel to sleep.

Day 11 (7th September)

Balloon-watching

This morning, my alarm went off the earliest it has so far. By 5:10, I was out of bed; by 5:20, I was washed and dressed; and by 5:30, I was out of the hostel door, heading towards Gorëme’s Sunrise Point. It is here that, at the break of each day, hundreds of bleary-eyed travellers gather to watch the hot air balloons of Cappadocia as they float through the sky.

It’s an unforgettable sight – one that kept me entranced for a good hour and a half – and something that everyone should witness at least once in their lives. If nothing else, you’ll at least get some fantastic photos out of it. (Heads up: there’s a small 3TL – 45p – charge to get up to this viewpoint, so make sure you’ve got a bit of spare change on you!)

Final thoughts

And here I am now, several hours later, tucked up in bed, and feeling refreshed after my post-balloons nap. Cappadocia has been a joy to visit so far, and I’m very excited to see more of the area in the coming days. As usual, I’ve got a few words of advice for anyone planning a trip here in the near future. They are as follows:

1. Be careful when crossing roads: the drivers here definitely like slamming down on their accelerator pedals, and you’d best believe that they won’t be paying any attention to zebra crossings as they hurtle from one end of town to the other

2. Stay in a cave hostel: they’re refreshingly cool, brilliantly quirky, and there’s no better place to find one than here

3. Stay in Gorëme: a lot of people say it’s the best base in the area

4. If you get food poisoning, the best cures are: medicine, sleep, water, and fruit and vegetables

5. See the balloons: waking up at the crack of dawn is never pleasant, but I promise that in this case, it’s totally worth it!

End of part five

So there we have it: the fifth installation in my ‘Touring Turkey’ series! I’ve got a hike lined up for this evening, and a cooking class tomorrow morning, so there’ll be plenty more updates coming your way in the near future! In the meantime, be sure to check out any previous articles from this series that you’ve missed, and get planning your own trip to this incredible country!

Photo gallery