Sunday, May 3, 2015

Day 3 - Cappadocia


Goodbye and Thank you Mr Lee Kuan Yew

It was a mixed feeling traveling when the rest of the nation was mourning for the lost of our founding prime minister Mr Lee Kuan Yew. During the funeral possession, it was pouring heavily (as though the sky was crying together with us) and the roads was lined up with people soaking wet under the pouring rain just to bid the last farewell to Mr Lee. I wanted to be there, standing in the rain in solidarity with my fellow Singaporeans to express our gratitude to Mr Lee.

Watching the funeral procession at the guesthouse lobby (with the best wifi connection), 
as we were not in the mood to check-in or listening to the day-tour packages.

CAPPADOCIA

Wiki: "Cappadocia (/kæpəˈdʃə/; also Capadocia; Turkish: Kapadokya, Greek: Καππαδοκία Kappadokía, Armenian:Գամիրք (Gamirq), from Ancient Greek: Καππαδοκία, from Old Persian: Katpatuka) is a historical region inCentral Anatolia, largely in the Nevşehir, Kayseri, Aksaray, and Niğde Provinces in Turkey. In Ancient Greek Καππαδοξ (genitive -οκος) means "a Cappadocian".
In the time of Herodotus, the Cappadocians were reported[citation needed] as occupying the whole region fromMount Taurus to the vicinity of the Euxine (Black Sea). Cappadocia, in this sense, was bounded in the south by the chain of the Taurus Mountains that separate it from Cilicia, to the east by the upper Euphrates and theArmenian Highland, to the north by Pontus, and to the west by Lycaonia and eastern Galatia.[1]
The name, traditionally used in Christian sources throughout history,[citation needed] continues in use as an international tourism concept to define a region of exceptional natural wonders, in particular characterized by fairy chimneys and a unique historical and cultural heritage."

View from the guesthouse

Goreme Town


Caves

More Caves


Chapel in one of the caves.

It used to be a Christian region, and slowed everyone converted to Islam.

"Early Christianity[edit]
The Cappadocian Fathers of the 4th century were integral to much of early Christian philosophy. It also produced, among other people, another Patriarch of ConstantinopleJohn of Cappadocia, who held office 517–520. For most of the Byzantine era it remained relatively undisturbed by the conflicts in the area with theSassanid Empire, but was a vital frontier zone later against the Muslim conquests. From the 7th century, Cappadocia was divided between the Anatolic andArmeniac themes. In the 9th–11th centuries, the region comprised the themes of Charsianon and Cappadocia.
Cappadocia shared an always-changing relationship with neighbouring Armenia, by that time a region of the Empire. The Arab historian Abu Al Faraj asserts the following about Armenian settlers in Sivas, during the 10th century: "Sivas, in Cappadocia, was dominated by the Armenians and their numbers became so many that they became vital members of the imperial armies. These Armenians were used as watch-posts in strong fortresses, taken from the Arabs. They distinguished themselves as experienced infantry soldiers in the imperial army and were constantly fighting with outstanding courage and success by the side of the Romans in other words Byzantine".[6] As a result of the Byzantine military campaigns and the Seljuk invasion of Armenia, the Armenians spread into Cappadocia and eastward from Cilicia into the mountainous areas of northern Syria and Mesopotamia, and the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia was eventually formed. This immigration was increased further after the decline of the local imperial power and the establishment of the Crusader States following the Fourth Crusade. To the crusaders, Cappadocia was "terra Hermeniorum," the land of the Armenians, due to the large number of Armenians settled there.[7]

Turkish Cappadocia[edit]

Following the Battle of Manzikert in 1071, various Turkish clans under the leadership of the Seljuks began settling in Anatolia. With the rise of Turkish power in Anatolia, Cappadocia slowly became a tributary to the Turkish states that were established to the east and to the west; some of the population converted to Islam with the remainder forming the Cappadocian Greek population. By the end of the early 12th century, Anatolian Seljuks had established their sole dominance over the region. With the decline and the fall of the Konya-based Seljuks in the second half of the 13th century, they were gradually replaced by the Karaman-basedBeylik of Karaman, who themselves were gradually succeeded by the Ottoman Empire over the course of the 15th century. Cappadocia remained part of the Ottoman Empire for the centuries to come, and remains now part of the modern state of Turkey. A fundamental change occurred in between when a new urban center, Nevşehir, was founded in the early 18th century by a grand vizier who was a native of the locality (Nevşehirli Damat İbrahim Pasha), to serve as regional capital, a role the city continues to assume to this day.[8]
In the meantime many former Cappadocians had shifted to a Turkish dialect (written in Greek alphabetKaramanlıca), and where the Greek language was maintained (Sille, villages near Kayseri, Pharasa town and other nearby villages), it became heavily influenced by the surrounding Turkish. This dialect of Greek is known as Cappadocian Greek. Following the 1923 population exchange between Greece and Turkey, the language is now only spoken by a handful of the former population's descendants in modern Greece."

Cherry Blossom. =)


Beautiful Surprise!!


Jumping shots with friendly locals.

These ladies are University undergraduates and are quite friendly and shy. 


More Caves


The nicest experience is always the most unexpected. I truly enjoyed the experience of getting lost and trying to find a way to the vista point with great views.

Negotiating steep slope

Nope, too steep! Can't go higher.


It's great to be lost in such a beautiful scenery.
Having the place to ourselves. =)


This is too steep too!!


Finally, we were rewarded with a great view of Cappadoccia.


Beautiful!!

Good weather.

I told myself that I want to come here again for the next 2 nights, but I need to enjoy the scenery while it last. Unfortunately, due to weather and timing, we did not come back to enjoy this place again. 

It is a reminder to enjoy every moments in life. 
We often assume that we would enjoy it later or again, and sometime, the opportunity does not come by again. So gotta seize the day!


Goreme Town


=)

Beautiful Sky

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