A day of Adventure in Cappadocia

We were up at 3.30 am to be picked up from our hotel at 4 am to go hot air ballooning. They take you to their office for brekkie and to settle the payment, then we were off again to where the hot air balloons take off. In our balloon, there were about 20 people, plus the guy who runs the show (i.e. makes sure we don't crash in to one of the hundred other balloons). I was nervous, mainly because of how many balloons there were and I couldn't comprehend how there was enough sky space to fit all the balloons. They showed us landing position (crouch down, facing a particular way, holding the handles). Then we were off! It's only then that you realise how many balloons there are! The hot air ballooning was definitely a highlight, and definitely our favourite thing so far! Its such a good way to see the landscape, especially during sunrise. 

 Firing up for the ride! 

Inflating the balloon 

Most of the remainder of the day was all about rest! We just hung out at the hotel, on the terrace and drinking cey (tea).

Later in the arvo we hired a quad and discovered more of Goreme (oh, and its pronounced Gor-eh-meh, not Goreeme, like we originally thought. Oops).  It was so dusty, but it was fun! We stopped at 3 or 4 different spots along the way. The best was definitely the spot for the sunset! 

Us in our cool helmets

 Some of the landscape along the way

A quick photo in front of the penises.. I mean rocks. There are inappropriate photos of Jason that he insisted I took. You can imagine. 

 We stopped here for the sunset

Our quad 

 Making a flower crown 

 Flower crown and a face full of dust

 Pretending I can ride this thing. No, I didn't ride it at all. I was on the back. 

 Runs best on flower power

Jace you got a little somethin' somethin' on you helmet

The next day was another cruisy day. We hung about again, eventually heading out for a late lunch and to Goreme Open Air Museum. It was about 1km from the main part of town, so we walked there. The museum has rock-cut churches within the caves, date back to the  10th, 11th and 12th Centuries and is UNESCO World Heritage Listed. It was a super hot day and I had a headache, so unfortunately, we didn't stay too long, nor did we get any photos. 

That night, being our last night in Goreme, Cappadocia, we went back to Topdeck restaurant. It was raining when we left, which was definitely a welcome to finish such a hot day! 

 Walking to dinner

The streets of Goreme are pretty at night

We left the following day and sat on a bus for 10 hours to get to Antalya. We stopped just overnight to rest before jumping on a bus again for the next destination. More details in next blog post. Check back soon! 

Love Gem & Jace. xx