Cappadocia

Wat te doen hier

• Nationaal park Göreme

  Nationaal park Göreme (Turks: Göreme Millî Parkı) was een historisch nationaal park in Turkije. Het park besloeg een oppervlakte van 95,72 vierkante kilometer. Het park werd opgericht in 1986 en omvat rotskerken en tufstenen rotsformaties (schoorstenen) in Cappadocië. Het is sinds 1985 Unesco-werelderfgoed. In 2019 werd de nationaalparkstatus opgeheven.

• Cappadocië

  Cappadocië (ook wel Kappadocië of Kappadokië; Turks: Kapadokya; Grieks: Καππαδοκία, Kappadokía; Latijn: Cappadocia; Armeens: Գամիրք / Կապադովկիա, Gamirq / Kapadovkia) is een landstreek ten zuiden van de steppe in de Turkse regio's Centraal-Anatolië en Oost-Anatolië. Het gebied staat op de werelderfgoedlijst van UNESCO en wordt deels beschermd door het Nationaal park Göreme. Het gebied heeft een oppervlakte van 2000 km² en ligt tussen de rivieren de Eufraat en de Halys (Kızılırmak). De hoogste top in het gebied is de vulkaan Erciyes Dağı (3917 meter). Daarnaast bevinden zich in het gebied nog twee andere vulkanen: de Hasan Dağı en de Melendiz Dağı. De belangrijkste en grootste steden in dit gebied van Midden-Turkije zijn Nevsehir, Kirsehir, Aksaray, Nigde en Kayseri. Ten tijde van het Romeinse Rijk was Cappadocia een Romeinse provincie, die in het oosten grensde aan Armenië en daar ook een tijd deel van uitmaakte. In het zuiden grensde ze aan Mesopotamië, Syrië en Cilicia, in het westen aan Galatia en in het noorden aan Pontus. Het oosten is bergachtig en vulkanisch, in het westen is Cappadocië vlak met veelal plateaus.

• Göreme

  Göreme (Turkish: [ɟœˈɾeme]; Ancient Greek: Κόραμα, romanized: Kòrama) is a town (belde) in the Nevşehir District, Nevşehir Province in Central Anatolia, Turkey. Its population is 2,034 (2022). It is well known for its fairy chimneys (Turkish: peribacalar), eroded rock formations, many of which were hollowed out in the Middle Ages to create Christian churches, houses and underground cities. Göreme was formerly known as Korama, Matiana, Macan and Avcilar. Göreme sits at the heart of a network of valleys filled with astonishing rock formations. Being a centre of early Christianity, it also has the most painted churches, as well as hermitages and monasteries, in Cappadocia. Once an agricultural settlement, modern Göreme is best known for its flourishing tourism industry, in particular for its hot air balloon rides, and many boutique hotels created out of old cave homes, in addition to ecclesiastical structures connected to its early Christian heritage. The village sits within the Göreme National Park which was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1985. The nearest airports are Nevşehir Kapadokya Airport and Kayseri Airport. The village is also served by long-distance buses from all over Turkey.

• Love Valley, Cappadocia

  Love Valley, (Turkish Aşıklar Vadisi) is a valley in Göreme Historical National Park, located in Cappadocia, Turkey. It is known for its rock formations called fairy chimneys.

• Churches of Göreme

  Göreme is a district of the Nevşehir Province in Turkey. After the eruption of Mount Erciyes about 2.6 million years ago, ash and lava formed soft rocks in the Cappadocia region, covering an area of about 20,000 square kilometres (7,700 mi2). The softer rock was eroded by wind and water, leaving the hard cap rock on top of pillars, forming the present-day fairy chimneys. People of Göreme, at the heart of the Cappadocia region, realized that these soft rocks could be easily carved out to form houses, churches, and monasteries. These Christian sanctuaries contain many examples of Byzantine art from the post-iconoclastic period. These frescoes are a unique artistic achievement from this period. In the 4th century, small anchorite communities began to form in the region, acting on the instruction of Saint Basil of Caesarea. They carved cells in the soft rock. During the iconoclastic period (725–842) the decoration of the many sanctuaries in the region was held to a minimum, usually symbols such as the depiction of the Christian cross. After this period, new churches were dug into the rocks, and they were richly decorated with colourful frescoes. They were in use until the Greco-Turkish population exchange in 1923.

• Zelve Monastery

  The Zelve Monastery is a Byzantine-era monastery that was carved into the rock in pre-iconoclastic times. It is part of the Zelve Open Air Museum, located between Ürgüp and Avanos, Turkey.

• Uçhisar

  Uçhisar is a town (belde) in the Nevşehir District, Nevşehir Province in Cappadocia, Turkey. In 2022, its population was 3,555. It is 7 km east of Nevşehir, 12 km west of Ürgüp, and 10 km south of Avanos. Situated on the edge of Göreme National Park, Uçhisar consists of an old village huddled around the base of a huge rock cone and a new one closer to the road that runs from Nevşehir town to Göreme. Like most of Cappadocia, Uçhisar once made a living from agriculture but now depends almost entirely on tourism, with many of its fine old stone houses turned into boutique hotels. French incomers and Turks returning from France have played a large part in the move to convert the houses into hotels. Uçhisar means "outer citadel" in Turkish and refers to the huge rock cone that is its central feature. In antiquity, the Güvercinlik Valley that overlooks Uçhisar was known as Vasil Potamus or Vasilius (Basilius, named after St. Basil).

• Göreme Historical National Park

  Göreme Historical National Park (pronounced [ˈɟœɾeme]; Turkish: Göreme Tarihî Milli Parkı) is a national park in Cappadocia in central Turkey. It occupies an area of nearly 100 km2 (39 sq mi) and is located in Nevşehir Province. It became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985 under the name Göreme National Park and the Rock Sites of Cappadocia. The park features a rocky, water- and wind-eroded landscape with a network of ancient, interconnecting underground settlements.

• Çavuşin

  Çavuşin is a village in the Avanos District in Nevşehir Province in the Cappadocia region of Turkey. Its population is 421 (2022). It is on the road between Avanos and Göreme, about five kilometres north of Göreme. The older part of the village lies on and around a large ridge of rock visible for miles around. Most of the modern homes are closer to the main road where villagers were rehoused in the early 1960s amid fears that their old homes might collapse. Until recently Çavuşin was more or less ignored by tourism despite its proximity to the Göreme honeypot. However, in the 2010s more hotels opened in Cavuşin too, especially in the older part of the village.