Hey guys! how have you all been? I am now back in India and I can’t begin to explain how surreal Turkey was. Also, for the record, I have been trying to get this post up for a week now and my laptop just keeps on crashing. It is so frustrating that I am getting annoyed just typing this. Anyways, let us just get started.

If you don’t know why I was in Turkey and more specifically Adana, I would recommend checking out my last blog post. Now, we had a vacation week in between work, and I with a few other friends of mine travelled to three cities there. The first one as you know by the title was Cappadocia.

When I think about this place, the first thing that comes to my mind are the fairy chimneys. These rocks look so whimsy yet magical. And while talking about all things magical how can I miss the hot air balloons! We were honestly supposed to stay in Cappadocia only for one night but since we woke up a little late, (thanks to the tiring over night bus) we extended our stay because you just simply cannot miss it. I haven’t seen anything like this in my entire life and I cannot express how fortunate I felt while I stood on the roof of our hostel and saw the sunrise and the ballons fly high up in the air.

Some things to keep in mind:

• It is largely located in the Nevşehir province, Central Anatolya.
• This city is a little expensive compared to the others we visited, solely because of the tourist attractions and the fact that there is no closeby place from where you can buy basic things like water, food, etc.
• This city is almost always a little colder than others. Like, if it is 27°C in Istanbul, then it is around 21°C in Cappadocia.
• If you have time, there are many places near Cappadocia in the Nevşehir area for you to visit.
• Do a complete research regarding hotels and hostels before booking. There are many hidden gems here.

Things to do:

• Experiencing Hot Air Balloon ride: I mean duh! Cappadocia is famous for this. The balloon ride is a bit expensive but a once in a lifetime opportunity. You can enquire about it beforehand. If you don’t want to spend so much on a hot air balloon ride, still wakeup at 4:30 in the morning to enjoy the amazing view of sunrise along with the hundreds of hot air balloon.

• Walking and Climbing in Rose valley: The valleys in Cappadocia have been formend as a result of volcanic erruptions and the compressed volcanic ashes. If I am not mistaken, love valley is the most famous one here but since we were a bit short on time we visited the rose one. Walking and climbing these fairy chimney type rocks is a must when in Cappadocia!

• Visiting Goreme Open Air Museum: The Goreme Open-Air Museum resembles a vast monastic complex composed of scores of refectory monasteries placed side-by-side, each with its own fantastic church. It contains the finest of the rock-cut churches, with beautiful frescoes (wall paintings) whose colors still retain all their original freshness. It is also a member of the UNESCO World Heritage List.

• Getting Lost in Derinkuyu Underground City: Located about an hour away from Cappadocia in Nevsehir, if the Underground city of Derinkuyu. To be honest, I have never seen anything like this. Just walking inside the underground city, trying to imagine what life back then was like is so intruiging yet captivating. Recognised tour guides are available for a fixed price and so are the audio books.

• Exploring Uchisar Castle: Now I did not visit this place due to the lack of time but I would recommend you guys to do so. This tall volcanic-rock outcrop is one of Cappadocia’s most prominent landmarks and visible for miles around. Riddled with tunnels, it was used for centuries by villagers as a place of refuge when enemy armies overtook the surrounding plains. Wind your way up the stairs to its peak for panoramic views over the rock valleys of the Cappadocian countryside. (Taken from Lonely Planet)

So that was it for this post, hope you all enjoyed reading it!