Cappadocia... Cappadocia is a picture drawn on the earth by nature, it is a poem. Cappadocia, which is situated within the triangle of Nevsehir, Aksaray and Kayseri is bounded by Erciyes with a height of 3,916 m (12,848 ft) in the east and by Hasandag, a volcanic mountain of 3,253 m (10,673 ft) high in the south. The tough rocks, formed by the lava spurted by these two mountains during geological times, had kept on taking constantly changing shapes with kind effects during the course of time, and the wonders of the world of today were created. During the early times of the spread of Christianity, the people who needed to hide themselves from the Arab raids, carved out these tough rocks thus constructing churches and built underground cities to defend themselves against the raids. The settlements in Cappadocia had come into existence, mostly in the valleys of Göreme, Ihlara and Soganli. The people who had settled here, worshipped in the churches that they carved out of the rocks, and they dealt with agriculture to meet their own needs. The water sources in the valleys made this region productive. The most intensive settlement was in the vicinity of the township of Göreme. It is possible to see many churches together today in the locality made into an open air museum. Let us begin discussing the churches in Cappadocia, by describing the churches in this open air museum. In Göreme, at a distance of 7 km (4.3 miles) from Ürgüp, the first ancient structure that appears in front of us is the Maidens Monastery. The monastery, belonging to the first half of the 11th century, and is an interesting building of six stores. The Chapel of St. Basil is situated on the opposite side of the promenade road in the museum. The Church with Apple, one of the most important churches in Göreme, appears in sight thereafter. The church, planned in the shape of a closed Greek cross, ends with three abscissas. The church belongs to the 12th century and the frescos in it display the scenes based on the contents of the Bible and also inspired by the Pentateuch. The Church of St. Barbara is situated beyond the Church with Apple. In this church which belongs to the first half of the 11th century and the descriptions of Pontacrator Christ, Georgios, Theodoros and Saint Barbara are worthy of attention. The Church with Snake, situated here, also belongs to the 11th century and the scene of Deisis is displayed on its long wall.

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Descriptions of Saint Onesimos Georgios, Theodoros, Constantine and Helena are seen here. On the rocky mass that heightens from the south of the open air museum towards the west of it, there are monasteries grouped together and 8 churches, 7 dining halls, grave chambers and wine factories. The church which is situated here, has two stores and the frescos inside have been recently restored and fortified. The events included in the contents of the Bible and the Pentateuch, are described in vivid colors in the frescos.

The Church with Sandals (Çarikli Kilise) is situated at the extreme north of the valley. The Church with Sandals belongs to the 12^th century, has a dining hall under it, and there descriptions of the scenes from Christ's life and from the Pentateuch inside the church. The church with Buckle, located on the road to Göreme, consists of four sites namely: The Old Church, The New Great Church, The adjoining chapel and the church underneath.

The Old Church, forms the entrance of the New Church today, and it is decorated with the descriptions which are dated to the 10^th century and concern Christ's life. The New Church which has a rectangular plan, is decorated with the descriptive scenes from Christ's childhood adolescence and showing the sorrows of his life. This church is dated to the end of the 10^th century. The annexed chapel and the church underneath, belong to the following period. At a distance of 300 m from the zone of the museum, there is the Church of Virgin Mary; and the Church of El Nazar, belonging to the 10^th century and the Hidden Church are situated at the left hand side on the way to the township of Göreme.

The missile-shaped fairy Chimneys within the Zemi Deresi near these churches, create very interesting scenery. There are many churches in the township of Göreme, such as Yusuf Koç, Durmus Kadir. While traveling in Göreme, the fortresses of Uçhisar and Ortahisar suddenly appear in front of you as a magnificent sight. Here, the Valley of Güvercinlik is so beautiful that one doesn't get tired of watching it.

Aktepe and the Valleys of Uçhisar, Kiliçlar, Uzundere are places which display very interesting sights. The Pink Valley, placed between Avanos and Ürgüp arouses interest by reason of its natural scenery. The Church of Çavusin, situated on the road of Avanos at a distance of 2 km to Göreme, is decorated with frescos belonging to the 11^th century. One can walk from Çavusin to the Valleys of Güllüdere and Kizilçukur. The 12 churches in this region can also be visited during this walk that will be a pleasant thing for you to remember. We come across interesting scenery in Bagli Deresi which extends towards Killik or Kaya Harmani in the north of Avanos-Göreme road and towards Uçhisar in the south of it. The locality called Cinnes on the road to Zelve past Çavusin and the locality named Pasabagi or Kesisler Vadisi (Valley of Monks) are also worth seeing.

Zelve is a region which extends towards the interiors of a hill called Aktepe where there are about 15 churches. There are many underground cities in Cappadocia too. Within these soft rocks carved out as a means of defense against the enemy, interesting underground cities were formed, and all kinds of needs could be met in them. The most important ones among them are the cities of Kaymakli, Derinkuyu and Özkonak and there are underground cities in many other places too. In addition to the Valley of Göreme, there are churches of importance in the Valley of Soganli too. Churches such as Karabas, Yilanli, Kubbeli and Gök Kilise are situated in this valley which are at a distance of 30 km (18 miles) to Ürgüp.

In the Valley of Ihlara which is arrived at by diverging from the Aksaray-Nevsehir road, there are 36 churches each one of which is more interesting than the other. When one descends the steps and reaches the valley at the end of the road, the Churches of Agaçalti, Sümbüllü, Kokar and Yilanli can be seen in the Open Air Museum of Ihlara. The other churches of importance such as those of Egritas, Pürenliseki, Karagedik, Kirkdamalti, Bahattin Samanligi and Ala Kilise are also situated in this valley.The Church of Gümüsler belonging to the 11^th century and are located at a distance of 7 km (4.3 miles) to Nigde, is a church of interesting appearance. The Churches called Yüksek Kilise and Kizil Kilise which are located in Güzelyurt, are made of stone.