Cappadocia & Central Anatolia - Discover Turkey: Experience the Best of Turkey - page 496

Eğirdir , which offers hearty pensions and outdoor activities beneath Davraz Dağı
(2635m).
There is more beautiful scenery in (5) Cappadocia . Göreme is the best base for ex-
ploring the region's fairy chimneys, Byzantine cave churches and underground cities, its
troglodytic accommodation and village lanes surrounded by sinuous valleys.
It's possible to see the best of Cappadocia in a couple of days: start the day with a dawn
hot-air balloon ride over the fantastical landscape, take a tour to remoter spots such as
Soğanlı, and see in the sunset on a valley walk or panoramic restaurant terrace.
CAPPADOCIA TO SAFRANBOLU Historical Journey
Get off to a stunning start in (1) Cappadocia , where you can acclimatise to the surreal
rocky moonscape by wandering around Göreme village and making numerous çay stops.
To explore the region's fascinating Byzantine history, mix tours to Ilhara Valley's cave
churches with shorter missions on foot and scooter.
After you wave goodbye to the fairy chimneys, it's worth spending a night in Turkey's
oft-overlooked capital, (2) Ankara . Here you can visit the Museum of Anatolian Civil-
isations and the Citadel, to join the nationalistic pilgrims at the mausoleum of Turkey's
founding father, Atatürk, and experience a modern Anatolian city. Next, return to the
countryside at the ruins of (3) Hattuşa , which was the Hittites' mountain capital over
3000 years ago.
Fast-forwarding a few millennia, an Ottoman double-bill awaits in riverside (4)
Amasya , its half-timbered houses overlooked by cliffs riddled with Pontic rock tombs,
and (5) Safranbolu . Alleys lined with candy stores, cobblers and Turkey's finest collec-
tion of restored Ottoman mansions give Safranbolu storybook charm.