Cappadocia

Today we awoke early and bid a find farewell to our wonderful crew and our deluxe floating home.  It was hard to leave the comfort and hospitality of the crew and several people mentioned trying to kidnap our chef and take him with us to Cappadocia. We drove 30 minutes to the Dalaman airport and then boarded our flight to Cappadocia via Istanbul.

  We landed and were treated to a great meal at an old Greek mansion where we tasted various local specialties including delicious dolmas, fresh beans, borek, and more.  The house is set in an old Greek village and the local architecture is stunning.  Lots of stone buildings, churches, and arched bridges are woven throughout the little sandstone canyon where the town was built.  

After lunch we went to a local pottery workshop where we learned  about the 1000 year old pottery tradition of this region.  It was very informative to see the various stages of pottery production and at the end the kids all got to try throwing pottery on a traditional pottery wheel.  It was a total blast to watch their faces as the clay transformed before their eyes.  We then toured the finished products and marveled at the incredible artistry that the crafts people hand drew onto these pieces.  

As the sun set we made our way to our amazing cave hotel situated on the cliffs of Uchisar village.  We checked in to our fabulous cave suites that are hand carved into the local stone and beautifully furnished with antiques and rugs. The rooms are huge with enormous bathrooms that make you want to take a “shower several times” a day as the Travel and Leisure reviewer wrote.  The walls are cream colored and local stone arches help support the chiseled roof.  We met in the stylish lounge for wine tasting and appetizers and had a great time recounting the trip to that point.  The views over the local valley were superb.  

We had some local wine made of Okuzgozu grapes, on the terrace of the hotel, overlooking the valleys. And we were completely satisfied as we lay our heads down to sleep in the enormous beds in our cave hotel...