TURKEY

Location - South east Europe/Middle East; Capital - Ankara; Population - 50 million; Currency - Turkish Lire MORE TURKEY

I said goodbye to the Kurdish south east and headed for the Cappadocia region in central Turkey - November 2013.

After suffering rampant inflation and a couple of currency changes, the country has now settled on the Turkish Lire

Goreme is the tourist centre for visiting the remarkable rock sculptures in Cappadocia - Goreme

The 'fairy chimney' rocks have been carved through a mix of natural and man-made forces - Goreme

An artistic sign marks a shop entrance on the way to Goreme Open Air Museum - Goreme

Goreme Open Air Museum protects several 9th to 11th century rock-cut churches, formerly inhabited by Byzantine monks - Goreme

On entering Goreme Open Air Museum the first building you'll come across is the Nunnery and Monastery - Goreme

The Nunnery and Monastery occupies six floors, but it's interior was closed to visitors when I was there - Goreme

The 13th century Carikli (Sandals) Church - Goreme

The entrance to St Catherine's Chapel - Goreme

Karanlik, or the Dark Church, is one of the most impressive - Goreme

It's frescoed interior has been restored to display vivid colours - Goreme

The Chapel of St Barbara is named after Saint Barbara - Goreme

The view opposite the Chapel of St Barbara - Goreme

There's carvings everywhere you turn in Goreme

The way to go. An early morning balloon flight over Cappadocia is a very popular tourist activity - Goreme

The Open Air Museum is a series of stairs, alleyways, caves, churches, monasteries, chapels and frescoes - Goreme

There's plenty of other rock-cut caves scattered around Goreme

These fairy chimneys are next to the Open Air Museum car park - Goreme

A 15 minute walk from the museum is El Nazar (Evil Eye) Church - Goreme

Wander around Goreme and surrounding valleys and see what you can find - Goreme

Restaurants serve slow-cooked kebabs by tapping the base of these baking pots - Goreme

The fairy chimney on the right was my room for the night - Goreme

The fairy chimney entrance - Goreme

I loved the inside of these rooms. Most converted fairy chimneys have a history and mine was used as a winery. Others were stables and Byzantine family rooms - Goreme

I also stayed at the cheaper Dorm Cave, but it too had a great ambience - Goreme

Walk up a steep road to Sunset View Hill for brilliant views of Goreme

The warm glow of a fading sun falls on Gulludere (Rose) Valley - Goreme

People gather at Sunset View Hill, with the distinctive Uchisar Castle in the distance - Goreme

The hotel and fairy chimney lights come on for an atmospheric snap - Goreme

Sari Han was a caravanserai and is now a popular place to watch the Whirling Dervish ceremony - Avanos

The ceremony, or sema, is performed by the Mevlevi religious sect - Avanos

The 'whirling' part of the sema enables the dervishes to communicate with God - Avanos

It's pretty hard to make out in this photo but in the middle/right is Uchisar Castle - Uchisar

More caves and tunnels in weird and wonderful rock formations at Uchisar

Hanging out the washing - Uchisar

These rocks in Urgup, a few km from Goreme, are known as the Three Beauties

Devrent Valley is home to volcanic rock formations which resemble various animal forms

Can you guess the creature? A camel at Devrent Valley

The tops look kinda fungal to me - Devrent Valley

Pasabag is famous for its huge fairy chimneys

For some reason this reminds me of Donnie Darko - Pasabag

Mushroom-shaped fairy chimneys - Pasabag

Making use of the natural surroundings - Pasabag

A former church at Pasabag

Pasabag is a great place to wander around

For me a drawback of tours is being dragged along to souvenir shops, but it was interesting to see how clay was transformed into these colourful vases and plates at Avanos

The village ruins at Cavusin

Looking towards the Gulludere (Rose) Valley at Cavusin

Dug into the rock face are old pigeon caves - Cavusin

A couple more unusual rock formations at Cavusin

The Rose Valley really takes after its name; you can make out a horizontal band of deeper reddish pink - Cavusin

Dwarfed at the base of the Rose Valley - Cavusin

There's a plateau at the top of Cavusin where you can look down at the village below

My last tourist site in Cappadocia was the underground city at Kaymakli

The underground city is spread over eight floors, four of which are open to the public; this was the wine cellar - Kaymakli

The city dates back centuries and was home to stables, granaries and living quarters, supported by ventilation shafts - Kaymakli

I'm not sure what lake this is, on the way from Cappadocia to Ankara, but it looked beautiful in the fading light. Maybe it's Lake Tuz? (Salt Lake)

Genclik Park is in Ankara's old quarter

There were many events commemorating the 75th year since the death of the founder of the Turkish Republic, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk - Ankara

Anit Kabir, meaning memorial tomb, is the mausoleum of Ataturk - Ankara

Statues at the head of Lion Road, the walkway leading to Ataturk's tomb - Ankara

The Turkish flag is draped from the Hall of Honour at Anit Kabir - Ankara

Waiting until 09:00 when the mausoleum is opened to the public - Ankara

In the meantime crowds began chanting what I presume were support for the Republic of Turkey and of Ataturk himself - Ankara

Soldiers begin the march to the Hall of Honour and the opening of Anit Kabir - Ankara

A quote from an Ataturk speech outside the hall entrance - Ankara

The tomb of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the first leader of the republic of Turkey, who died in 1938 - Ankara

Anit Kabir also has a museum honouring the life of Ataturk along with a history of the founding of Turkey - Ankara

The side-streets around Kizilay metro station are buzzing with life at the weekend and definitely worth a stroll in the evening - Ankara

Finger Gate (Parmak Kapisi) marks the entrance to the citadel in the old quarter of Ankara

Shops on the walk up to the citadel's Eastern Tower - Ankara

Alaettin Mosque's minaret rises above the market - Ankara

Walking the walls of the Eastern Tower - Ankara

Take in the whole of Ankara from Sark Kulesi (the Eastern Tower)

The Tower gives superb 360 degree views of the capital - Ankara

In need of some 'renovation' - Ankara

The old city walls, Anit Kabir, Genclik Park and the surrounding mountains can all be seen from the tower - Ankara

Shopkeepers get themselves comfortable - Ankara

A statue of Ataturk on horseback in the old quarter - Ankara

A restaurant-filled street in the tourist-heavy quarter of Sultanahmet - Istanbul

Sultanahmet is a lively area at night, with several bars to add to the restaurants and souvenir shops - Istanbul

The stunning Sultanahmet Mosque, better known as the Blue Mosque - Istanbul

The Blue Mosque was built in the 17th century and contains the tomb of its creator, Sultan Ahmed I - Istanbul

The Blue Mosque gets its name from the colour of the tiles - Istanbul

I only had about 12 hours in Istanbul before my flight, but I made sure I saw this gorgeous mosque. Next time I'll venture inside

Separating the Blue Mosque from the Aya Sofya are the fountains of Sultanahmet Park - Istanbul

The Aya Sofya was originally a church, then a mosque, before it became a museum in 1935 on the orders of Ataturk - Istanbul

The current Aya Sofya structure was built as a church in the 6th century; in 1453 the Ottomans converted it to a mosque - Istanbul

The Aya Sofya, or Hagia Sophia, stands behind a Sultanahment Park fountain - Istanbul

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LINKS

www.goturkey.com - Turkish tourist board

www.evisa.gov.tr - online Turkish eVisa application

www.tcdd.gov.tr - Turkish railways

www.turkeytravelplanner.com - bus travel advice

I am not responsible for the content of external websites.