Göreme Open Air Museum
Göreme is one of the most important destination of Cappadocia. It can even be called the heart of Cappadocia. Göreme Open Air Museum is also quite important and must be seen. This museum has great importance for the history of Christianity. Here is the place where the monastery education starts. From 4th century AD to 13th century AD the monastery life took place intensively. Almost every rock block has churches, chapels and seating spaces. In the churches here, you can see many scenes from Bible, Torah and the life of Jesus. This scenes are frescoes processed by two different methods on the wall of the churches. Göreme Open Air Museum has been on UNESCO World Heritage List since 1985. This museum includes Girls and Boys Monastery, St Basil Church, Elmalı Church, St Barbara Church, Snake Church, Pantokrator Church, Crusader Church, Azize Catherine Church, Dark Church, Çarıklı Church and Tokalı Church.
Ihlara Valley is in Aksaray province, in the Cappadocia Region. The formation of the valley started with Hasan Dağ sprayed lava and formed volcanic layer. Over time this volcanic layer was eroded by the effects of winds, floods and the Melendiz Stream. The ground is deeply carved and Ihlara Valley is formed with depth of 120 meters and a length of 14 km. It takes about 400 steps to descend into the vallay. And when you arrive the last step, a fascinating greenery waits you. The river running through the middle of the valley also accompanies this green environment. It is possible to walk on both sides of the river. This valley starts with the Ihlara Village and ends with Selime Village, and has average of 6 km walking area. Like everywhere you will go at Cappadocia region, Ihlara Vallley is one of the important points for Christianty. Important sect founders such as Basilius, Gregorius come to the region in 4th century an established a monastic life. Contrary to monastic system in Egypt and Syria they tried to spread their religion among people who spoke different languages without breaking their connections with world. You can see many churches in valley. On the walls of these churches there are fresoes depicting different scenes.
The Paşabağ Valley is also known as Valley of Priests or Valley of Monks. In time this valley was an area where monks were retreating. When you walk here, you can see that that there is a very good place to retreat with silence and being in nature. The rooms, which were built in order to isolate themselves from the world were mostly carved into interior places. There are also chapels with frescoes on the walls. This valley also known as the seclusion of St Simeon for about 15 years.
Current name is Mustafapaşa Village. It is 5 km away from Ürgüp. Sinasos is an exchange village. In this village, where the Greek population is high, traces of Christianity and Greek culture can be found abundantly. St George, St Vasilos and St Stefanos Churches and St Basil’s Chapel are some of the remarkable structures. Gomeda Valley is also unique valley and it is one of the places worth seeing here. St Basil’s Church are in Valley. The church on the Golgoli Hill, an old settlement, and carved rooms into rocks they are also worth seeing. Another important valley is Hidden Valley. There is also church of St Gregorios carved into rocks in the Hidden Valley.
One of the thing that attracts the most attention and raises many questions about Cappadocia is the underground cities. Advantage of Cappadocia’s easy to carve volcanic rocks, people built this underground cities by carving the volcanic rocks down. Cappadocia has a long history and it experienced many wars and invasion in past. People moved their living spaces underground to protect and hide from this wars. There are supply tanks, water wells, chimneys that provide ventilation, toilets and places for worship that provide shelter for thousands of people for a long time without going out. The first written source about the underground cities of Cappadocia is Ksenehon!s Anabasis book. Ksenephon sided with the Isparta army in the war against the Persian King Artaxerxes. He wrote that the Isparta army got tired and stayed in underground cities at Kaymaklı and Derinkuyu. It was written in 400s. The rock reliefs of Hittite civilization, it was founded 2000 BC, prove the antiquity of its past. According to Martin Urban the age of underground cities of Cappadocia is dates back to 7-8 centuries BC.
Zelve Open-Air Museum is located in Zelve Valley. This valley, which is on the Göreme-Avanos road, has experienced the history of Christianity intensively. Until 1950s, it used as a settlement for local people. Zelve has houses carved into rocks, churches, monasteries, tunnels, dovecotes, mosque and village square. Today the museum is open to visitors. Zelve Open-Air Museum is spread over the area where 3 valleys are located. Üzümlü Church and Balıklı Church are located in first valley, Zelve Valley. They got this names because of their grape and fish reliefs. The Church of the Holy Cross in the second valley, there is a rock mosque and a monastery. Zelve Mosque was converted from a church and it reflects landforms of the region with its cut store walls and altar carved into rock.