After arriving in snowy Cappadocia and settling in my cave room in Goreme, as usual, I went for a walk through its streets to get a sense of this quant little village. It has quirky and unique houses and hotels that are built around volcanic rock formations. Most of the streets are cobbled-stoned. The main avenue is dotted with tourism shops offering balloon rides, bicycle hires, guided tours or dining experiences. The villages economy is dependent on the tourism industry. There are hardly any local teenagers in the village. I can only assume that they go to boarding school in nearby towns. I walked passed a primary school and watched a teacher throw a tantrum on the playground as little children blasted each other with snowballs. You can guess on whose I was. My city-sploring took me through various little alleyways to look at the various accommodation options on offer and to see how the locals live. Interestingly, the locals understand the importance of tourism to their livelihoods. They are incredibly warm, friendly, engaging and they literally welcome you into their homes without having any sinister motives of trying to get you to part with a few liras. There is a nice little ordinarily looking ten seater diner about a five minute walk from where I am staying. The owner agreed to make breakfast for me according to my specifications. It varied from his menu. We got chatting in his little kitchen. After a while he ended up doing the chopping and cutting up while I stirred the pan. He loved my concoction. There was enough for two so we both sat down to eat. It was fascinating to learn that he speaks six different languages fluently. I used google translation to cross-check a little test that I gave him. He has learnt these languages over the decades simply from engaging with the tourism market. He is also a Bollywood fan and he didnt hesitate to belt out a few Bollywood numbers. When I told him that I am not Ashwaria Rais family but that I am from South Africa, did we have a ball talking about his passionate admiration for Nelson Mandela. After my long enjoyable encounters through the little village my body was literally frozen and so, I went to defrost at the local hammam. Tonight, I am going off to see a sema ceremony with whirling dervishes and I will party thereafter with some of the folks who are also staying at the same place where I am. Tomorrow I go off on a guided tour of surrounding sites and places of interest. The photo is of Shoestring Hostel where I am staying. My harem is the private room right at the top.
Posted on: Mon, 22 Dec 2014 17:14:48 +0000
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