THE WHISPER OF THOUSANDS OF YEARS OF HISTORY: GÖREME HISTORICAL NATIONAL PARK
One of the fairy tale-like lands in Cappadocia, Göreme Historical National Park is worth seeing not only for its geographical beauty but also its flora and fauna.
One of the fairy tale-like lands in Cappadocia, Göreme Historical National Park is worth seeing not only for its geographical beauty but also its flora and fauna.
There are places that draw you to them with an endless curiosity like a magnet and when you visit them, you say, “I’m so happy to have come here!” Göreme Historical National Park is a place that has a lot to whisper in your ear from the depths of its thousands of years of history. It is a unique art gallery that is awe-inspiring and generously rewards visitors for coming.
Reminding one of a mystical fairy-tale land made of mud kneaded and shaped by the thin and elegant hands of a skillful fairy, Göreme Historical National Park, which covers 24,420 acres of land, was declared a national park in 1986. A year earlier, it was admitted to the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Located in the bow of
Kızılırmak river, Cappadocia continues to attract attention both with its past and present. It is known that the region, which was formed by the touch of the winds, rain, and volcanoes, has been settled by various civilizations and used as arable land throughout history. The part of the national park which remains between Mount Hasan and Mount Erciyes’ volcanic area, in Central Anatolia, consists of the settlements of Ürgüp district, the village of Çavuşin, and the towns of Ortahisar, Uçhisar, Zelve-Aktepe, and Göreme.
The frescoes on the walls of the churches and chapels that remain within the boundaries of the Göreme Historical National Park offer visitors history lessons in this thousand-yearold area.
In Cappadocia, the handcrafts that are passed on from generation to generation, are executed by various guilds and societies today. Just to spite the era of mechanization, with their dexterous handmasters add artistic value and functionality to the local earthenware. Especially the pottery made in Avanos is used to decorate houses’ most beautiful corners. Göreme is rich in both cultural and environmental terms. Many
endemic plants grow in this region. These plants, at times inspire crafty hands who weave carpets and rugs, and at other times are turned into dyes that lend their color to those carpets and rugs.
As a result of its geographical makeup, amongst the animals that are indigenous to the region are the roughtail rock/ starred agama (Agama Stellio), Europe’s second biggest lizard which lives among the volcanic rocks and dubbed “rockliz” among folks, and the mountain Jerboa known to be a nocturnal creature that lives in the desert. Nevşehir, whose prairies are home to zillions of butterflies, is also known as the homeland of a moth called “Zygaena Kapadokia” which flutters its wings exclusively in the rural areas of Nevşehir and Cappadocia.
The Göreme Historical National Park presents countless experiences to its visitors with its impressive heritage on land and its mysteries underground. You can experience such enticements not only by cycling or riding in the valleys but also with all-terrain vehicle (ATV) tours across predetermined courses.
If you are not content with experiencing this beauty on land want a bird’s-eye view, then you can hop on a hot-air balloon at daybreak and watch the splendor of the colorful balloons floating on a clear blue sky above the enchanting fairy chimneys. This exploration and the feeling of being free as a bird will
be forever associated in your mind with Göreme Historical National Park.
While you explore the national park, which is a natural movie set, you will feel that you are a part of a fairy-tale land and will leave with memories one more beautiful than the other. Enjoying the Turkish Nights shows where regional dances and wedding traditions are reenacted in the restaurants bored into rocks, you will have the chance to taste the local delights cooked in the famous earthenware of Cappadocia. You can reach Nevşehir Cappadocia Airport by direct or connecting flights and from there visit Göreme Historical National Park.