Cappadocia, the Balloon Capital

 Cappadocia (Turkish= Kapadokya) is world famous for its hot air balloon launches.  Every day, weather permitting, you will see balloons beyond counting launched at daybreak.  Proper balloon handling requires an extensive ground crew, chase trucks, passenger vans, refreshments, marketing, etc.  A balloon ride is not cheap, but demand for balloon rides is strong.  While we were there, about 70% of tourists were from Asia which, we were told, coincides with an extended holiday period in China.

Inflating our balloon from the installed burners, pre sunrise.

These balloons are really big.  At this point, the balloon is self-supporting but not ready for lift off.

The balloon starting to build lift.

The two men standing in blue are the crew.  Everyone else is gawking at the scenery below.

We flew Turkish Airlines to Nevsehir Airport and used a shuttle to the town of Goreme in the Cappadocia region. Early the following morning we were up and ready for our balloon flight.  The typical balloon holds about twenty passengers with two crew members.  The 'basket' is actually rather large, a rectangular metal frame with four sections, so you don't feel crowded.  The crew is able to rotate the balloon so that you get a 360-degree view of surroundings.  Of course, they also control altitude, dropping low over some features while rising to 3-4000 feet altitude at other times.  The ride is very solid, like you are standing on a platform.  You just have to trust that they know what they are doing.

Balloons, beyond counting, rising to feel the warmth of sunrise.

Balloons at initial launch before sunrise touches the land.

Looking down on a village, we see true visible topography in three dimensions.

A hilltop village.  At night it was illuminated by the glow of many windows with an engaging effect.

After an hour of floating in the sky, the crew brings the balloon down while coordinating with the ground crew.  They were able to accurately land that basket right on a towed trailer.  

When windy, the landing can be exciting, but on our day winds were calm.  The balloon and basket were brought down in a farmer's field onto a trailer towed by a chase truck.  Then we all had a sip of champagne.  For those not participating in a balloon ride, hundreds of people also get up early to watch the mass launchings from atop cliffs surrounding Goreme in its valley.

These are natural stone shapes that have been hollowed out to create homes inside.

Rock formations waiting to become a new housing subdivision (I am kidding).

This is the natural terrain before being altered by civilization.

Observers on the ground gathering at sunrise.

Looking down on Goreme from the surrounding plateau in early evening.  The area is greatly supported economically by balloon tourism.

Many trinkets for sale.  Also, jewelry & leather goods.  Our concern was finding a laundry service.

Really pretty when the entire balloon lights up in the predawn darkness.

At this point, Goreme is prosperous and expanding; new hotels going up.  Tourists really seem to enjoy sleeping in cave rooms dug into the volcanic stone.

When the balloons fire off their burners to gain altitude, the entire balloon lights up.  

I lost count, but a typical morning includes about 100 balloons.  Figure 20 people per balloon and about $250 per person.  That is a half-million-dollar spectacle.

It seems like no two balloons are the same color.  Do they remind you of Christmas tree ornaments?

Goreme experienced record tourist visits this year.  It is at the point where the number of tourists is starting to adversely affect the enjoyment of the experience.  Our hotel was at a great location, but the staff seemed to do the minimum to earn their paychecks.  Our room looked worn and neglected.  Some entrepreneurs were starting to charge people admission to walk the trails from the valley to the overlooking cliff plateaus in order to watch morning or evening sights.

This underground church was completely chiseled out of the lava rock.

We did a day long excursion of the surrounding area.  Geologically, the area was formed from a soft lava flow.  Early settlers discovered that the thick but soft rock could be carved or excavated to create underground homes and other buildings.  Something I didn't know previously was that early Christian communities came here to avoid persecution by the Romans and built what is now called an "underground city" to shelter themselves.  They did not actually live in the underground complex, but it included kitchens, storage areas, shops and defensive positions where up to 5,000 people could hide in an emergency.