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The cave homes of Ortahisar in Cappadocia, Turkey.
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Around 8 million years ago in the Cappadocia
region of Turkey volcanic eruptions formed a large plateau of
volcanic ash, lava and basalt. Later, tens of thousands of years
of sharp changes in temperature, heavy rains, and melting snow
produced what are known as 'fairy chimneys', up to 40m tall. The
caves formed as part of this erosion have housed
the Assyrian, Hittite, Byzantine, Seljuk and Ottoman
civilizations. Ortahisar (right) is one of the many villages that
occupy this labyrinth of caves. |
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On both sides of the road into Ortahisar you find
doors in the rocks. These lead to naturally air-cooled caves used to store lemons, oranges,
apples, potatoes, quinces and onions for the village.
It has been many centuries since the caves were
used as a secret refuge by people escaping persecution, so the
caves now have elaborate façades of carved stone (far left).
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a
tour of Cappadocia's caves |
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The door (picture near left) is the entrance to
Evelien
Bogaart's
beautiful cave home in the old part of Ortahisar.
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Her home is partly
carved from
the rocks and partly built with the local stone. The rooms that have been added to
the
original caves are built with arched ceilings (far left).
The walls are very thick and
keep the house cool in summer, while the temperature outside is
more that
40C, and warm in winter when it can be as low as -25C.
Evelien, a cultural anthropologist, moved to
Ortahisar from the Netherlands in 2004 to live in a
paradise for nature and culture lovers. The interior of her home
reflect the colours and culture that surround her.
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Spices for sale, like
turmeric and cinnamon, in the neaby Urgup market.
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You can read Eveiien's blog (in Dutch) at
turkijenatuurlijk.com to enjoy her experiences of the region.
If you are not a Dutch speaker use this
translation to English.
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Herbs and spices in Urgup market
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