Friday, July 01, 2011

Day 12 - Cappadocia (Kaymakli Underground & Carpetium)

Day 12
Friday, July 1st
Weather - 77 degrees, sunny
Plans - Kaymakli Underground City, scenic Cappadocia photo opportunities, Carpetium Turkish Carpets


Kaymakli Underground

The largest underground city is located not far from where we were yesterday. Developed as a place of sanctuary against frequent Persian attacks, the Greeks living here in Cappadocia needed a safe-haven every once in a while for the aggression. This was a decent place, and the underground city was quite a feat of human dominance. There were ventilation shafts, communal kitchens, and even wineries. It was a quick visit, too! Here's a video of traveling through the underground city - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZaGcCuxPlR8

Scenic shots

Man, as if we couldn't get enough of the view...





Check out this video of the landscape, too - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUDZUozy-EU


Carpetium

I really didn't predict the presentations at the Carpetium would be as incredible as they were, but, like many other things, I underestimated its splendor. First we received fine explanations as to how the thread is made and woven, most especially the expensive silk rugs, as seen in this video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DvO9Hzzik3Y

We then received the full sales pitch, which was the absolute most entertaining and enjoyable sales pitch I've ever seen. They must've had 100 rugs laid out in front of us, of every size, color, region, pattern, and material you could imagine. The best thing to describe it would be the rug circus, but better, and with food (great pita breads, pizza-like style) and wine (sarap). Heck, they even had a birthday cake for one of the ladies who was celebrating her day today!

Mark, Gary, and I talked about setting betting parameters as to how many women would buy carpets. He put the over/under at 5 and, while I originally took the under, I backed out and Mark supplanted my bet. It's a good thing because the ladies purchased 6 carpets, one of them a beautiful cotton/wool blend that was 10'x13' and about $4,500.

I had so much fun, even though I didn't buy anything. Mark completed his burpees for the day here, too - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLYprVPw19Q


For now I'm off to dinner; tomorrow we have a nice 4 hour travel to the capital city, Ankara, where we'll meet much more contemporary issues of Turkey!

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