The unreal atmosphere of Cappadocia, Turkey (Konya, Uchisar)

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Crossing the central Anatolian plateau, the heart of Turkey, covered with expanses of wheat fields and surrounded by long rows of tall poplars. Along secondary roads, we will discover the city asleep, far dall'occidentalizzazione, fully appreciate where the Islamic culture.
The manner of the caravans of the past, we will stop for caravanserai in the breaking of the long hours of travel. The caravanserai were places of rest for travelers and merchants, a sort of motorway time. Many are abandoned, others have been restored and, among all, the most beautiful is undoubtedly that of "SULTANHAN" which will find 95 kilometers after the town of Konya. When you stop, even in places that we feel isolated, frotte children appear from nowhere to ask for small gifts, especially pens and notebooks. Fail to satisfy thanks to the stocks properly prepared on information received from previous travelers. In small towns we are surprised at seeing the men who met greeting giving, like us, the hand and then hold it up to debate over, or see two young boys walking by the hand, like a pair of lovers. Do not be surprised by this behavior, Turkey is a sign of great friendship and respect. And the women? Here and there groups of ladies meet not only with the chador, the veil that carry on their heads, but even with his face covered. We are not surprised because we thought to meet nell'ormai westernized Turkey.

In Konya, a city of revolving Dervio, we encounter in Islamic spirituality visiting the Mausoleum of Mevlana, unmistakable because of the magnificent dome and troneggiante emerald green. Mevlana, the greatest mystical poet of Islam, was buried here, makes the important place of pilgrimage. Walking barefoot and the girls head respectfully covered, we confuse between the pilgrims and also give us a tribute to poet Mevlana accompanied by a devotional music and act in strict silence. Do not rule out, in his visit to the Mausoleum is the room where you can appreciate the depictions of the many miniature Korans, including stored in special glass case: thin, elegant and fine art bill are true masterpieces.
It will be a big disappointment not being able to see the monks perform their Dervio mystical dance roundabout, known throughout the world, which symbolizes the desire of wanting to detach from the ground and free to air, up in heaven. I Dervio perform the ritual only in the days when we commemorate Mevlana, so we have only to hear the beautiful melodies while being tuned during the dances.
Huge or small, from the bright or muted tones, simple or decorated by prayer or for domestic use of silk, wool, cotton or ... i kilim "carpets" are the undisputed protagonists of Turkish daily life, especially in Konya . A three hundred sixty degrees do not see that shops and warehouses in which men, women and also, unfortunately, many children have committed themselves to the frame, processing of carpets. Inevitable, then, during the trading, tea all'aroma apple offered to all potential buyers.

The next day we leave Konya and our journey continues for the legendary Cappadocia, the area around the town of Urgup, which reserves a fabulous and surreal landscape, unique in the world, generated millions of years ago by violent eruptions that covered the entire plateau of lava, ash and mud. Subsequently, this material is pietrificò in a non-uniform. A model has been the combined action of winds and rain have eroded creating drugs canyons, ravines, pinnacles, cones, etc.. Etc.. The whole is crowned by unimaginable underground cities (Derinkuyu), rock churches (Goreme) and fortresses (Ortahisar and Uchisar).
The basis of our trips will be a hotel at the foot of the fortress of Uchisar, a building literally immersed in nature, as to blend in with the surrounding environment. The day of our arrival we see, from the top of the Uchisar Fortress ", the daily ritual of sunset. The sun declining cloaked with a light golden and rosy the entire region. It would be unforgivable to miss this wonderful show. The next day, our tour starts from the valley Ihlara where a huge crack of the land forms a deep canyon that, in fact, visit us for shelter from the heat, attracted the most out of its high walls that do not for its beauty. About this time, it may seem incredible, but during the two days of our stay in Cappadocia, we have suffered in the first heat, in the second, perhaps, exaggerate if we say that we felt cold, and in any case, the temperature fell to 15 ° C, specifically, as many as 20 ° C.
After the valley turns Ihlara is a fascinating tour of the underground city of "Yeralti Sehr" in Derinkuyu, which is only one of many who are in the area. These cities, whose streets are real burrows, for instance along the lines of that of the mines, they had the grain depots, stables, bedrooms, kitchens, water pipes and air, as you can still see and yet easy to see thanks to a very good lighting. Were perfectly preserved and could not be otherwise because of their hidden lives. They were used by Christians in the seventh century to escape persecution, but the origins are much older. Christians refuge hidden in these cities so avoided the iconoclastic conflict with Byzantium. The underground city of "Sehr Yeralti of Derinkuyu is unimaginable! Those able to think of a city of eight floors, dug into the bowels of the earth, over a thousand years ago?
Before returning in the hotel, longed for a bath in the pool, go to the rock fortress of Ortahisar. Going through the various holes in the rock can be seen even before fabulous views of the spectacular views enjoyed from the top, on which waves again, as before, the Turkish flag.
The next day we get up early in the morning to admire, this time, the sunrise from the viewpoint of the "Valley of the Fairy Chimneys", the most incredible of all Cappadocia, a confusing and chaotic rocks in the shape of a cone and pinnacles, a myriad of stone obelisks. The valley opens up right on the side of the road, and between Cavusin Zelve and seems really to be finished in a fairy tale so is the place. During the day we will see even Zelve, whose dwellings dug into the rock mix so harmoniously with the landscape to make it one of the few areas in the world where it seems the work of one with nature. Outside the archaeological site of Zelve, near the village is easy to see some of these homes, which are defined with good reason troglodyte, still inhabited. Around Cavusin then meet the rocks that appear to the giant meringues were it not for the lack of cream. Finally we come to the "open air museum of Goreme" a monastic complex of rock churches and chapels dating to the tenth and thirteenth century, that in the Byzantine period and selgiuchide. The frescoes inside are kept beautiful. Here, as before, who would have said that within these large conical rocks hid unsuspected cave churches and drugs? In Goreme, there are even restaurants dug into the rock to the exclusive reserve of the tourists.