Cappadocia Experience

🇹🇷 iyi akşamlar 👋🙂 – good evening!

Back in the land of spices and warm evening air. Even the hotel room seems to carry a faint scent of the East.
After a slight delay, we finally drifted away from the gigantic man-made wonder that is Istanbul Airport and headed toward Antalya,
resting on the southwestern coast of Anatolia, just south of the Taurus Mountains.

From above, the mountain range briefly revealed itself through thick clouds that looked almost Arctic from the sky.
Beneath that white blanket stretched a rugged, earth-toned landscape scattered with small settlements.
Antalya, the largest among them, unfolds like a true Mediterranean metropolis — ending dramatically in cliffs above the sea.

At the airport, surrounded by an endless fleet of buses, finding ours felt like a small expedition of its own.
Thankfully, the coordinator kept the instructions simple: “Past the Ice Cream sign and all the way to the end.”
He conveniently forgot to mention just how far “the end” actually was.

Meeting Our Guide

It didn’t take long to realize our guide wouldn’t be overly formal.
Before even starting the official briefing, he introduced himself with complete seriousness:

“My name is Haris. I will confess something very important.
I’m Montenegrin — but I actually enjoy working.” 😁👍
(In Balkan folklore and jokes, Montenegrins are stereotypically portrayed as extremely relaxed — even lazy. It’s a playful regional stereotype rather than a serious belief, and it’s often used in self-irony.)

Towards Cappadocia

Over the next few days, he will lead us through the lunar landscapes of Cappadocia —
a geological wonder that almost feels otherworldly. More about that when the time comes.

For now, following Haris’s wise Balkan advice, we might start with a welcome cocktail or two. 🍹