I would say I got up early this morning to fly to Cappadocia, but I never got a single minute of sleep last night. I was up til almost 3 am getting organized and then up at 0500, but never did actually fall asleep.
The driver was on time to pick me up at 0545, there was an accident on the way to the airport, but it didn’t delay us too long. I was checked in by 0640. The flight to Cappadocia was supposed to board at 0700 (it was actually a few minutes late).
They board with those damned busses instead of gates, so there’s a mad rush to get to the plane when they stop and let you off. I had a window seat but it was pretty cloudy for most of the way. It was a short flight (only about an hour), but I was nodding off most of the way.
I perked up over breakfast, and the sky cleared up as we neared Nevshahir (anyone know how to make the Turkish letters?).
The driver was waiting for me at the airport, but we had to wait for a few other passengers. Once we got to the travel agency’s main office, I had to wait some more for another group to show up. I was nodding off again.
We finally got on the road around 0930, which was pretty much on schedule.
It was a long day, full of interesting sights to see and things to do. Uchisar Castle, Goreme Open Air Museum, Cavusin village, Pasabag fairy chimneys, (lunch), Avanos pottery demonstration, Devrent Valley, Urgup fairy chimneys, and a carpet factory to top it all off!
I’ll have to give you the rest of the story tomorrow. I’m just too tired to go into it all tonight, and I have to get up early again tomorrow. They’re picking me up at 0530 for a balloon ride. 🙂
One thing I’ve learned since I got here. Don’t book any tours before you get here! It’s much cheaper here than in Istanbul. For example, I noticed a balloon tour posted for 240 TL, (around $80), when I was quoted $160 for the same thing in Istanbul!
I think that goes for the whole trip. I decided to do this on the spur of the moment, so I didn’t take any time to plan or research. I know I could have saved a ton of money by booking my flights, hotels and transfers myself. At least on the Istanbul side. It’s easy enough to take the metro from Sultanahmet to the airport. That saves a ton of money right there!
Hope you all have a good night, sleep well. I know I will. 🙂