New Europe
Day Forty-three: Göreme, Cappadocia
With Andus Emge at one of the rock-carved Christian churches at the Göreme Open-Air Museum, many of which are over a thousand years old.

Hasan's hotel in among the rocks is called the Anatolian Houses and every room is carved in a different shape and decorated with carefully chosen local artefacts. It's out of season at the moment and we have the place almost to ourselves. Hasan was born, the son of a carpet-weaver, in these caves he's converted. Starting out with just a donkey and an English dictionary, he began to show tourists around.
I ask him how much physical closeness to the Middle East (Syria is little more than 200 miles to the south) affects this part of Turkey.
'Of course we are believing in the same religion,' and here his brow furrows, 'but the mentality of our life is totally, totally different with Easterns than with Europeans. West has always been more exciting for the Turkish people.'
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PALIN'S GUIDES
- Series: New Europe
- Chapter: Day Forty-three: Göreme, Cappadocia
- Country/sea: Turkey
- Place: Göreme
- Book page no: 109
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