I was sitting in a bar in Baku, Azerbaijan and my friend Nal asked us if we would visit Turkey soon and because we had already been, it wasn’t on my list to return, however tales of great hospitality and exciting activities changed our minds.
For visa reasons we decided to fly into Istanbul and work our way over to Iran. Overlanding it through Turkey gave us some amazing added bonuses on route and the opportunity to see Ankara, Adana, Trabzon and Dogubayazit before crossing into Iran. From Ankara we got a bus to Goreme in Cappadocia. At Goreme, the biggest bonus is getting up early to see the sunrise over the other worldly moonscapes of Cappadocia. (above and below).
We spent two nights in Goreme where we stayed in Cave Villas, literally carved into the rocks.
Hot air balloons blowing up in Goreme before dawn.
It was very cold so gloves, hats and coats were needed. We arrived at the viewing point at 6am and as the sun began to come out, the hot air balloons begin to go up. There were probably about 70 of them.
Base yourself in Goreme to save time. The sunrise walk in Goreme to the view point is quick and easy, plus you don’t need to drive anywhere to see the viewpoint. Some of the other towns and villages in Cappadocia are a bit further out. It’s worth adding this to your list.
Top photo credit: Reversehomesickness.com.
Jonny Blair is a self confessed traveling nomad who founded and blogs at Don’t Stop Living. He sees every day as an adventure. Since leaving behind his home town of Bangor in Northern Ireland ten years ago he has traveled to all seven continents, working his way through various jobs and funding it all with hard work and an appetite for travel. Don’t Stop Living, a lifestyle of travel’ contains over 1,000 stories and tips from his journeys round the globe. He wants to show others how easy it is to travel the world, give them some ideas and encourage them to do the same but most of all he aims to constantly live a lifestyle of travel. He is currently based in Hong Kong and on Twitter @jonnyblair.
