The Hennings: Our Trip to Kappadokien

Sorry that it has been a LONG time since we have updated our blog but it has been rough couple of years. We have lost a few family members among our little travel group as well as family members of friends so travel has been limited but the travel group is back on track and this year we once again traveled to Turkey but to a new area Kappadokien (in English Cappadocia). What the real name should be Bedrock as in the hometown of the Flintstones. Kappadokien is a land made of Sandstone that people for about a 1000 years used for housing. They would hollow out the pinnacles and make them into houses, some were even like apartment buildings. It was a crazy world to view. The most popular way (and way to expensive for us) is to view the entire area by hot air balloon. I am sure it would have been fabulous but we enjoyed our three day tour of the area while staying grounded. After our tour we headed to our favorite hotel, The Crystal Sunrise Queen Hotel in Side. It is located directly on the southern Mediterranean coast so the water is warm and the waves are small, just our style.

OK, so here we go......

As always the tour began with a beer at the airport.

On our way in Turkey, Wolfgang did what all good Turkish men do, he enjoyed a glass of black tea called Cay. Black tea with LOTS of sugar. Muslims may not drink alcohol unless it is for medicinal purposes so Raki is considered medicine although it tastes just like Greek Ouzo and is just as potent.

Ella and I just drank Turkish Coffee. The tea might have been a better choice.

The highest point of the pass from Antalya to Kappadokien. That's 1824 meters high. Using simple math times it by 3 and you will get the measurement in feet. Sorry, I am not doing the math!

A picture of Wolfgang at the same pass. A much more dramatic picture.

This is a clock located inside a Mosque. It represents the time for each hour that a Muslim must pray. It is changed every day according to sunrise and sunset. Gee do you think it is a Timex?

This is the same Mosque. It is made of wood and is recognized by UNESCO as World Heritage Site because of it's age and how rare it is to still find a Mosque made of wood.

All right, we always have a few animals and we thought this guy was very handsome.

Our tour bus. Wolfgang sat just inside the back door and Ella and I sat across the back seat. It was a bit of a rough ride but it gave us lots of room and a great view.

Ella is thinking about purchasing this fixer-upper. A few structural issues yes but a great location. It has real potential!

Konya is the location for the original Mosque of the Dervishes. Yes, as in the whirling Dervishes. My mother always use to say that we kids were like a group of Whirling Dervishes so I had to see from where my namesakes originated.

This is the Mosque. It is a very beautiful location and is popular for the Turkish people to visit. The Dervishes are no longer here. Now you only find them at a Dervish Show (according to our guide they are not shows but religious ceremonies but we had to pay...)

This is a display of the Dervishes and after seeing the religious ceremony (it was a show), it is a perfect display.

A birdhouse Turkish style.

I included this picture because it is who we are, two loud Americans. Oh, just so you know, we were with a German tour group, much more conservative as you can tell by the others in the pictures. They were also in our group.

Our hotel. Great isn't it. Gee what does it remind you of, hmmmm? Don't you just want to say Yabadabadoo!

This is a shoe stand to have your shoes polished. Fabulous isn't it.

The beginning of the hill houses. This is now abandoned because it has started to slide down the mountains. The new village is about 200 feet farther along the road. Why the new place is safer, well you know location is everything.

OK, this is a cave that we visited. They say that it is 8 stories deep and was used to protect the citizens against invaders from other lands. Supposedly about 4000 people could live in this Underground City for months. After visiting this site, they were really small people and must have not had a problem with living a smelly life. I mean really think about the bathroom situation and no showers!

Watch your Head and don't fall down the open holes.

A great shot of Ella and Wolfgang climbing through the cave. Just so you know, standing straight up was even hard for Ella so you can imagine Wolfgang.

No matter where you are in the world, there is always an opportunity to shop.

So this is the beginning of our tour of Kappadokien. The rock formations at the top are completely hollowed out and we climbed up through the rocks to the top. See that little red flag of Turkey....

Getting a little closer. Notice all the "windows".

Here we are at the top. Hey, someone had to take the picture!

A view from the top at one of the apartments below. The little holes were actually used as Dove Cotes.

It was a little Windy.

If any of you have ever seen Vasquez Rocks, this is the extreme. Isn't she cute!

Our best picture. The day started out pretty cool and everyone laughed at our shorts but later in the day, we were comfortable.

OK, what do first think when you look at them?

What a great time we had - as always!

OK, the next few pictures are what we think look like for animals. This one is a Tortoise.

Two ducks kissing. Hey, we were on the bus a lot and remember in the back!

OK, this is for Wolfgang. This is a Nebelkrähe or a Foggy Crow.

OK, this area was a religious area of Kappadokien. In these hills, people made little churches inside them and then painted religious painting on the walls. LOTS of little churches, a few too many to view.

Waiting to view a kitchen for one of the churches. I know, we thought that they were kidding too.

Climbing up to see the best of the little churches.

Another area of Kappadokien where people made their homes in the mountain sides. Our guide informed us that his parents use to sell fruits and vegetables to the people living here. That was in the 1920's. Unbelievable isn't it that people were still living in these caves until then.

Always climbing up and down. You would think that these folks would have come up with some kind of elevator system.

Notice the tree growing out of the roof of this cave. They are starting to lose large chunks of these caves because of the water damage.

OK, here we are at the religious ceremony. Notice the WWW site at the bottom of the sign.

OK, these guys are the real Dervishes. It was interesting but definitely a one time thing. Ella pointed out that they spun to the left which is backwards and much harder. The music was wonderful.

This is a sign for a Caravanserai. They were used for Caravans traveling from the Far East to Europe. Caravanserai were located every 30 kilometers which was about the average distance for a camel to travel in a day. Caravans could go inside these HUGE walled complexes and spend the night. Kind of like a 13th century Motel. I am not sure if they "left the lights on".

Inside the covered area. There was a large open area first if you didn't want to stay inside. Only Wolfgang went in to look around, the camel smell seemed to still linger. At least that is what Ella and I thought.

The outside and only opening into the Caranserai.

Our bus stopped along the way for a break. We enjoyed some tea.

I loved this statue on the side of a fountain. Notice what he is standing on, hands. I don't know who he was or why but the cute little shorts and the grapes, he had to have been a German hiker!

We stopped for lunch on the way back and we enjoyed Turkish Pizzas.

This is the blank that was used to serve us our three Turkish pizzas. They were excellent. We ate every bite.

Birds. Storks but not real like what we have in Geinsheim. Turkey has Storks too. We saw them along the way. Oh, and we also saw wild Turkeys too, no kidding.

Do I need to explain.

OK, the tour is over and we made it back to the Sunrise Queen for an eight day blob and drink package. It was as wonderful as ever. A view from our room.

We walked into Side one day for a little shopping and had to stop for a booster before we walked back. The bay behind us is a home for sea turtles. We of course were only interested in the beers on our table.

OK, so this is a creative way to recycle toilets. Hey all you Rednecks, here's an idea.

Two years ago, Wolfgang and I did Para sailing and so we got Ella to do it with me this year. It all started out OK.. About 5 seconds after this picture a huge wave hit this little boat and soaked Ella. She knew there was something coming.