DAILY SPACES


Urban landscape project. Investigating the dual conception of space: the integration in one, the separation of the same.

LANDSCAPES OF KAPADOKYA


Not many times in life will you be able to get as astonished by immense beauty as you will be if you visit the region of Kapadokya, in Central Anatolia. I traveled to Turkey with the intention of visiting Ankara, Kapadokya, Antalia and Pamukkale, but when I got in Kapadokya I felt like I was in a dream, and didn't want to leave... Everyday there were more things to experience... Fighting the cold while trekking to get to wide landscapes, dealing with a difference of 10 degrees (from 7 to -17º) in 10 days, sleeping in warm hotel caves, getting to countless fairy chimneys like in a fairy tale, facing arid and snowy pictures equally, being woken up by air balloons, finding old abandoned churches in every KM, ...

I got to Göreme, Kapadokya's main land, to stay for 3 or 4 days, and discovered there was so much more to see that is not said in travel guides and that common travelers or tourist have absolutely no idea whatsoever about. Soon I realized Göreme was the littlest thing to see in Kapadokya. And thus, my 8 magical Kapadokyan days started.


THINGS TO CONSIDER IF EVER GOING THERE:

1. Alternative trekking: I trekked from Çavusin to Göreme on my own. It is said you shouldn't do it because it is dangerous as the landscape is kinda the same all the time, but if you have a good sense of orientation (I don't, but my boyfriend does) it's the best excursion you can do (for free, no tourist, you take your time, it's easy, and you find 30 times what you find in Göreme Museum).

2. Ürgüp and Uçistar are the best views of the region. If you think you know what a castle is, wait until you get to these two places, they will rock your world, specially during the sunset.

3. Çavusin has the most special light on a sunset I have ever seen (and I have seen quite a lot).

4. Getting to an underground city, 58 flats, 80 meters... is something you can't imagine until you experience it. I fervently recommend the one in Derinkuyu.

5. You can't miss Ilhara Valley and dedicate as much time as it needs. Its vastness is eternal.

6. Don't doubt about it: Zelve is worth seeing.

7. There are small towns, like Mustafapaça, not very known by tourist, where you can visit many places related to Otoman/Bizantine/Christian/Muslim periods. They look more authentic, more humble and less affected by the tourism impact.

8. And the last but not less important! Don't miss Abanos for meeting the darkest and most romantic cafeteria you will ever know. By the river. A place I bet not many westerners had the possibility to be (we arrived to the town, and to the place because we were driving nowhere). Drinking a salep (hot drink made of whipped milk and cinnamon) with your love with a blanket on you, while having a romantic conversation in front of the river, watching the cold outside and being in a place that looks like Henry Miller's favorite spot for writing on a Sunday... feels like heaven to me.



I don't want to spoil your future trip, so here is a little of what I saw, but never all...