ANATOLIA AND CAPADOCCIA
In April (2004), we took a 6-day-jeep tour in Turkey. This was an organized trip run by the Geographic Society of Israel and included 2 days (the first and the last) by bus, and the four days in the middle by jeep. The jeeps were either for 2 or 4 passengers and were driven by us. It was a great trip! The group was terrific, and the weather was absolutely perfect.
Most of our time was spent in the Anatolyian mountains but the highlight of the trip was the time we spent in Cappodocia. Cappodocia is an incredible place, with wierd geographic formations and people who live in them. It's got ancient churches, underground cities, fantastic scenery, and lots of it. It's impossible to describe with words, and even the pictures of it do not do it justice. At the bottom of this page is a list of links which should help you understand Cappadocia.
Our itinerary was as follows:
| Day 1 | Flight to Istanbul, bus tour of the city, flight to Mersin, located on the central Mediterranean coast of Turkey, overnight at the Mersin Hilton |
| Day 2 | Jeep through trails in the Taurus Mountains, overnight in Chamlyayla at the very rustic hotel called the "DAG HUNTING LODGE" |
| Day 3 | Jeep trek through into the Bolkar mountain range reaching an altitude of 2000 meters. Overnight in Cimisli |
| Day 4 | Drive north into Cappadocia, overnight in Urgup, the major city in this area |
| Day 5 | Cappadocia by jeep, overnight in Urgup |
| Day 6 | Last day by bus around Cappadoccia, visit the underground city of Kaymaykla, fly home |
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Below is a map of Turkey with the area we visited highlighted. "Valley of the Fairy Chimneys" refers to Cappadocia. To see the a detailed map of the routes we took and the places we stayed, click on the map. |
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Our Israeli guide was Zvika, who kept us on our toes with his "wry" sense of humor and never ending collection of 'red herrings" and humorous diversions. His knowledge of Turkey is impressive and he clearly loves the country and enjoys imparting his knowledge to others.
Assisting Zvika was Salih, a doctoral student in Byzantine history, who has figured out that it's easier making a living in tour guiding than in Byzantine history! He was a great help and everybody enjoyed his company. You can see both Zvika and Salih in several of the pictures below.
The group was great. We were 26 travelers in 7 jeeps (9 including guides and local staff). Everybody got along and the most interesting aspect of the group was the wide range in ages. The youngest was 13 (Gilad on a Bar Mitzvah trip with his father, Avi) and the oldest was Lilo, a lady who has done a vast amount of traveling and almost 90!! We also had an entire family, parents Rami and Dorit, with their 2 teenaged daughters.
Everybody had a great time. The pictures below speak for themselves.
Click on the thumbnails to see a full size picture.
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ZVIKA AND THE OBELISK IN ISTANBUL |
TEA HOUSE IN ISTANBUL |
LUNCH IN ISTANBUL |
THE MERSIN HILTON |
WHICH JEEP IS MINE? |
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ON DAY 1 - OUR FIRST WATER CROSSING |
AN ELEGANT PLACE FOR A TEA BREAK |
THE UNFORGETTABLE HUNTERS LODGE IN CHAMLIYAYLA |
BREAKFAST AT THE HUNTERS LODGE |
THE VIEW OF CHAMLIYAYLA AT SUNRISE |
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JEEP INSPECTION ON THE MORNING OF DAY 3 BEFORE SETTING OUT |
A LOCAL GUIDE POINTING THE WAY TO THE NEXT HOTEL |
A PLASTIC TENT USED BY THE SHEEP HERDING YORUK POPULATION |
HERE ARE ALISA AND RUTHY COMMUNING WITH THE LOCAL POPULACE. RUTHY IS ON THE TRACTOR. |
OUR FIRST ENCOUNTER WITH THE CAPPADOCIAN LANDSCAPE. THIS IS THE IHLARA CANYON |
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SOGANLI SCENERY |
THE "DOLL MARKET" IN THE VILLAGE OF SOHENLA, WHERE SOME PEOPLE STILL LIVE IN CAVES. |
ROADSIDE MARKET WITH "CONES" IN THE BACKGROUND |
GOREME, ONE OF THE MAJOR TOWNS OF CAPPADOCIA |
ORTAHISAR WITH ITS' "CASTLE". THE CASTLE WAS INHABITED AND IS STILL ACCESSIBLE. |
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| THE CAMEL AND THE CONES | MANEUVERING THROUGH THE RUGGED COUNTRYSIDE | MORE FANTASTIC SCENERY | THE UNDERGROUND CITY OF KAYMAYKLA | ARIEH TELLING ALISA ANOTHER JOKE IN THE KAYMAYKLA MARKET |
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HERE WE ARE TURNING THE JEEPS AROUND, SOMETHING WE GOT VERY GOOD AT. |
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HERE ARE LILO, ZVIKA, ALISA, AND SALIH. |
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LILO AND AMI SHOPPING FOR LUNCH IN CHAMLYAYLA. |
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EVERYBODY'S FAVORITE MEMORY "PHALLIC VALLEY" |
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If your browser doesn't support the script used on this page for viewing the full sized pictures, you can see them all in separate page by clicking here. |
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Below is a list of links which may help you understand what Cappadocia is like and why it's such a great place to visit. |
| MAGNIFICENT TRAVEL | EXCELLENT GENERAL INFORMATION SITE ABOUT CAPPADOCIA INCLUDING LOTS OF DETAILED HISTORY |
| TURIZM.NET | GENERAL INFORMATION AND HOTEL BOOKING |
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Writers have struggled to describe what they have seen here. |
A GOVERNMENT SITE WITH GREAT PICTURES AND LOTS OF INFORMATION |
| GREAT ADVENTURES |
A COMPLETE GUIDE TO TOURING CAPPADOCIA INCLUDING DESCRIPTIONS OF ALL THE MAJOR POINTS OF INTEREST. |
| FOCUS ON CAPPADOCIA | LOTS OF GOOD HISTORICAL AND GEOLOGICAL INFORMATION |
| WRIGHT'S PHOTOS | A BIG COLLECTION OF PICS OF CAPPADOCIA |
| TISCALI.COM |
DESCRIPTIONS OF THE HISTORY, GEOLOGY, CAVE CHURCHES AND UNDERGROUND CITIES OF CAPPADOCIA |
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This is a page from our site "Travels with Steve & Alisa". It describes one of the many trips we have made together. We've built these pages not just to describe our trips, but to help other travelers if we can. Please use the information we've provided freely, and let us know if you have any questions we might be able to answer about your own planned trip, or just let us know if we have helped you. Or perhaps you have some information we could add to the site. Visit our home page using the link to the right. Enjoy your next trip!! ~Steve & Alisa~ |
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