Cappadocia, Turkey: The Land of Beautiful Horses

Between Christmas and New Year last year, I made a quick trip to Cappadocia. The main aim, like most others, was to fly in a hot air balloon. This has been on my bucket list for years and I thought it was time to do something about it. The question was: Is it crazy to do it in winter? After reading some blog posts and seeing photos of Cappadocia in winter, I ruled it was definitely worth it.

But alas, luck was not on my side. I was there for four days and on none of those days did the hot air balloon fly! Too windy, we were told.

Of course, I enjoyed the other attractions Cappadocia  has to offer.

Like the unique landscape straight out of a scene from Flintstone/ Fraggle Rock…

Visited Goreme Open Air Museum…

…Wandered around Pasabag (the Monks Valley)…

Explored Ozkonak Yeralti Sehri (underground town)…

Climbed to the top of Uchisar Castle…

…Hiked  through Pigeon Valley (on my own… and almost got lost!)…

…Took a tour inside the fairy chimney…

Witnessed sunset over Goreme…

Sampled Turkish cuisines…

… and even had a go at weaving carpets and pottery.

Cappadocia is after all NOT just about hot air balloons.

Still, once I got back to London, I went straight into planning my trip back to Cappadocia. There was unfinished business.

I was back in Cappadocia in early May, the first time I have ever gone back to a holiday destination on the back of the last one!

Monday, 30 April

After bidding goodbye to my aunt, uncle and cousins who were in London visiting (I did spend the weekend with them so it’s not as if I abandoned them on their own!), I made my way to London Heathrow. I contemplated whether to take the cab or the tube – it was after office hour rush. I settled with the tube thinking that I only needed to fight the crowd. At least I won’t be stuck in the traffic jam. Luckily it wasn’t bad and I managed to get a seat the entire way to Heathrow.

I arrived at Heathrow in good time for my TK1984 flight at 22:15.

Tuesday, 1 May

We touched down at Ataturk airport at 04:00. The flight to Istanbul only took 4 hours but there is a 2 hour time difference between the UK and Turkey. I lingered at the airport waiting for my connecting flight (from the domestic terminal) to Kayseri.

Now, Kayseri is slightly further to get to Goreme, where I stayed during my visit there. The nearest airport would be Nevsehir, which is perhaps 20 minutes closer. But arriving at Kayseri for me was cheaper at the time of booking so I went with that option. 20 minutes is no big deal.

When I was in Cappadocia in December, I stayed at Chelebi Cave House in Goreme for just one night. That was when I met Veli. He and his business partner/cousin, Ismail manage the boutique hotel. I was very impressed with their hospitality that I did not hesitate to stay at Chelebi the second time. Again, another first!

It was past 10:00 when I arrived at Chelebi.

Trust me, this is the prettiest front entrance in Goreme!

Veli was already waiting for me. He had just finished his shift (he and Ismail work alternate days managing the hotel). Ismail was at the reception to welcome me. As I was early, my room was not ready yet. So I left my luggage at the hotel and off I went with Veli. He said he has a nice place to show me.

Isn’t the view stunning?! It’s so good to be back!

By the time Veli sent me back to the hotel, my room was ready. A shower and a nap were both much needed.

I woke up later in the afternoon feeling refreshed and ready to hit the town.

Last time, Veli took me to view the sunset at the top of some “sunset view” hill. It was beautiful so I thought I’d go again and hiked up the hill this time. As I recall, it wasn’t that far. Of course I got lost and ended up totally somewhere else! At the top of a hill no doubt, just a different hill! While I could have still watched the sunset from there, it was a cloudy day… and it started to drizzle! What luck!

Wednesday, 2 May

It’s my birthday!!! Happy birthday to me!

The wish was to fly in a hot air balloon on my birthday, but that was not meant to be. Weather not permitting. It was cloudy and grey with rain forecasted. I brought work to Cappadocia (WHAT???), so the wise me thought it would be more productive to stay at the hotel and work.

What a great way to celebrate my birthday!

It wasn’t that bad…

Look at the breakfast spread they served me at Chelebi. I felt really spoilt. The jams… the best homemade jams in town! This is not even the full spread! I declined a few knowing that I could never finish the whole lot!

And also, later, Veli ordered some rice and kebab and we had lunch at the terrace… but mostly, it was a working day.

Thursday, 3 May

The night before, I checked the weather forecast and it was supposed to be rainy. I was confident that the balloons would not fly, so much so that I didn’t even bother to wake up and check. Boy was I disappointed to learn at breakfast that the balloons did indeed fly that morning! Dang!

The dream is, not to only fly in a hot air balloon, but to also take photos of me with balloons floating in the air in the backdrop! Oh well. Gives me a reason to come back one day!

The weather that day was actually great. So after breakfast, I contemplated on what to do.

For this trip, I’ve always wanted it to be free and easy… with no intention of joining the red, blue or green tour. Since the Open Air Museum is within walking distance from Chelebi, I thought I’d check that out (again). It’s spring now, so it would be different from the last time I was there.

When I got to the courtyard, I saw Ismail and I asked him for directions.

“It’s not far right?” I asked.

“Do you know how to ride a bike?” Ismail asked me back instead, gesturing his head towards the scooter parked at the side of the road.

“Err… I can ride a bicycle? Not that bike though” I cheekily replied.

Maybe he wasn’t convinced that I’d find my way (he knows of my poor sense of direction!) or maybe he just wanted to spare me the hike uphill to the museum, “Hop on the bike” he said.

So I did. Thanks for the ride Ismail!

Goreme Open Air Museum is a UNESCO World Heritage site and is worth a visit if you are in Cappadocia. This is not your typical museum. As the name suggests, you will be outdoor in the open air exploring the troglodyte dwellings and marvelling at the fairy chimneys and the interior of the caves. Some of these caves are churches, carved by the orthodox Christian monks back in the 1000 to 1200 AD.

The current admittance fee is TL25. It’s not that big but do put aside at least two hours to explore the area.

Back in December, we had a personal tour guide for the day so this time I was happy to just wander on my own.

Once you’ve exited and one your way back to Goreme, just a few meters going downhill, there is another church on your right. The most prettiest of the whole lot which is still undergoing restoration – but one can enter and have a look. I am not sure many people realise this fact. Don’t miss it!

When I got back to the main town area, I bumped into Veli. We chatted for a bit and agreed to meet at Chelebi later. Veli said he’d take me hiking through Rose Valley. We then parted, Veli to Urgup and I continued on my own way.

I then bumped into Mustafa at the town mosque! He is a 70 year old man whom I met back in December. We got into a conversation then as he speaks English rather well. When I asked him, he said that he only started to learn English at the age of 50 through interaction with tourists! Now that’s impressive!

I approached him and gave my salam. I asked, “You are Mustafa, right?” He said yes but he looked puzzled.

Of course, I didn’t expect him to remember me, but still I asked, “Do you remember me? I am Su. We met last December.”

I saw him slowly smile. “I remember you now” he said.

Back in December, he invited me for tea at a cafe so I said, “Let’s go for tea. It’s my treat this time.” While he was in on the idea of having tea, he insisted that he’ll pay. I had to persuade several times before he agreed to let me pay this round.

Actually, I was hungry and dying for lunch but no amount of persuasion could convince Mustafa to have lunch with me, at my expense. Maybe it’s the male ego thing, or maybe he’s just being hospitable – he did say I am a guest in his hometown. I didn’t want him to have to pay for my lunch, so I settled for tea.

Apple tea and mulberry tea. You’ve got to try the different fruit tea when in Turkey!

After two glasses of tea, I excused myself before my stomach starts to growl and embarrass me, and went in search of some food.

When I got back to Chelebi, Ismail was talking to this guy whom he later introduced as his brother in-law. It was a warm day and being such a great host, Ismail said, “I can offer you some dondurma (ice-cream). Would you like some?”

Heh. As if you needed to ask. Yes please!

So for the next hour or so, we sat at the terrance chatting and eating dondurma.

Veli came later and off we went on our hike.

Friday, 4 May

It’s my balloon ride day. Somehow, Veli managed to pull strings to get me on one. “Emergency case”, he claimed to his cousin who happens to run a hot air balloon business on the day I arrived at Cappadocia.

Well, actually, I did text him in advance to inquire of the bookings. He did say it’s a busy period for them and I would be better off booking in advance but when I asked whether I needed to go and book online or he could kindly book it for me, he never responded. He thought I booked and I thought he booked!

Well, what’s important is that it got sorted in the end. Thanks Veli!

That morning, I had to peel my eyes to at 03:45. The van pick up was at 04:05!

After everyone got picked up (I was the first), we were taken to Turkiye Balloons head office where we were served an early breakfast. For goodness sake, it was not even 05:00! Some guests were piling their plates like there was no tomorrow!

Let me just tell you this – to be floating in a hot air balloon with hundreds of other balloons around you is truly magical.

After slightly over an hour in the air, we landed smoothly on the back of a trailer. In line with tradition, we celebrated the event with a champagne toast (or juice). We were all presented with flying certificates!

By 08:00, I was back at Chelebi.

After breakfast, I wanted to find the post office to send postcards to my family in Malaysia. I do this a lot on my travels. Am I the only one who still send postcards? Despite living in a high-tech era where messages and photos are shared through social media within seconds, I still like the snail mail every now and then. The joy of opening an actual letter or card is a whole different feeling than to getting a message via WA. But snail it is. One of my brother still has not received his postcard, and it’s been a month!

Ismail was going home after his shift ended as I was about to leave and offered me a lift.

Later that afternoon, when I went to the terrace, Dilek, the cook offered me dondurma. She doesn’t speak English and I only know a handful of Turkish words. Still we managed to communicate. She’s the best, no doubt. Dondurma topped with strawberries on a hot day? Bliss.

With nothing much to do, I was starting to feel bored. Veli was on duty that day and he was at the reception so I popped by.

Veli hard at work…

When I told Veli I didn’t know what to do, he asked “Do you want to go horse riding?”

“Yes”, I said “but you were supposed to teach me.”

“My friends can teach you” Veli said. “In all honesty”, he continued, “all you need to do is sit on the horse and let it do all the work.” Haha.

He made a call and spoke in Turkish. Then he said to me, “Ok, they’ll come to pick you up at 16:30.”

So off I went horse riding, in the land of beautiful horses. And I loved it!

Yes, I hadn’t explain earlier: Cappadocia or known locally as Kapadokya means “Land of Beautiful Horses”. I was told that many beautiful wild horses were found in the area in the olden days, hence giving it its name.

So it’s just fitting that since I was in the Land of Beautiful Horses, I went horse riding – with the Dalton Brothers no less!

Part way through, we stopped at a makeshift cafe for a rest and some drinks. We were told that there is a nice church at the back of the cafe so after some drinks, off I went to check it out.

After some rest, we continued our way into the sunset.

Back at Chelebi, I showered and got ready for dinner. Veli had already made reservations and I was hungry for testi kebab.

Saturday, 5 May

After breakfast, I decided to go for a walk. I needed the exercise since I’ve been eating far too much here. The weather has changed and it’s back to cloudy with a chance of rain. No balloons today.

On my walk, I saw a field of poppy flowers…

Sheeps grazing…

Bees flying from one flower to another sipping nectar…

and of course the unique surroundings and landscape.

When I got back to Chelebi, Dilek and Mensure, the housekeeping lady were cleaning the room next door. Mensure saw my dslr and asked that I take her photo. Somehow it became a mini photoshoot.

Since dark clouds were rolling in, I stayed at Chelebi and tried to sort my photos. In the kitchen, Dilek and Mensure were preparing lunch. Ismail came up to the terrace.

Here he is. Besides skillful at running hotels, he is also talented at reading your fortune using leftover coffee grounds in your cup. He predicted that I’ll have four husbands! You read that right. FOUR. Gulp! Hmm… I’m still waiting for the first candidate to show up.

When it was time to eat, they insisted that I joined them too. Touched.

The dark clouds came and gone, and still no rain so I  went to town. I wanted to get some fruit tea to bring back to London. Whilst at that, I also got some Turkish delights for the Chelebi troop.

So, what more to do? I am pretty sure I haven’t been to Devrent Valley yet. I wanted to check it out but like I said earlier, I didn’t fancy joining the bus tour. So Ismail arranged a cab for me. The cab driver drove me there, waited for me while I explored the valley and then took me back to Chelebi. All for TL75. Not bad.

When you’re in Devrent Valley, let your imagination run wild.

Ismail’s brother in-law was there when I got back to Chelebi and the three of us ended up at the terrance chit-chatting. The rain finally came. At one point the brother went out to get dinner and came back with three pizzas, one for each of us. I was still full from lunch but also all three had beef toppings, so I politely declined – as I explained, I don’t eat four-legged animals. Another brother in-law came and after a few minutes, I excused myself and let the boys continue on through the night.

Sunday, 6 May

My time at Cappadocia was coming to a close. I woke up in the morning and went for a walk.

I was one of the last to come up for breakfast. For the past four days, I had been sharing my breakfast with kitty cat (the boys never gave her a name!) – she gets the salami, but because I was late today, she had already worked her charms on someone else and must have already been fed. She was no where in sight. I called several times but she never came until I was about to leave…

…she came to say goodbye (and ask for more food!).

After that, there was nothing more to do besides pack, say my goodbyes and check out. This time, I remembered to return my room key!

My trip back via Nevsehir – Istanbul – London Heathrow was uneventful.

To Veli and Ismail, tesekkur ederim from the bottom of my heart. You will be sorely missed. I hope to come back, one day.