Goreme

Goreme

Turkey
Anatolia
Cappadocia
Goreme

The almost mythical region of Cappadocia nearly lost and forgotten in the remote Anatolian depths remains a land of mystery and awe since the Biblical age and the very early years of Christianity when it was a substantial part of the thriving Byzantine empire. During that time many worshippers seeking divine penitence and mercy were finding refuge there building subterranean caves and churches on its deserted and mountainous surface and becoming heremites for life.Even emperors chose to terminate their wordly and voracious lives seeking God's mercy as simple monks in these caves.
In more recent time Cappadocia tries to retain common interest counting not so much to the glory of a past history as to the admirable spectacle of its awesome geography with the sedimentary rock formation and volcanic deposits that erupted from many ancient volcanoes approximately 9 to 3 million years ago. These rocks, especially near the region of Goreme eroded into hundreds of spectacular pillars and minaret like forms. Goreme itself became a monastic Christian center between 300- 1200 AD(Byzantine era). The Goreme open air museum is one of the most visited sites of the monastic communities in Cappadocis housing more than 50 carved from rock Christian churches and chapels some having superb frescoes dating from 9th to 14th century.

In the photo some of the rock formations in Goreme.The most spectacular of them have been presented in earlier photos in the gallery)