Cappadocia & Carvanserais

===============

+++++++++++++++++++

--=-=-=-=-=--

+++++

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

<><><><><><><><><><><><>

<><><><><>

- = - = - = - = -

Cappadocia which is unique in the world and is a miraculous nature wonder is the common name of the field covered by the provinces of Aksaray, Nevsehir, Nigde, Kayseri and Kirsehir in the Central Anatolian region.

In the upper Myosen period in the Cappadocia region as a result of the vulcanic eruptions occurred in Erciyes, Hasandag and Gulludag, in the region was formed a large tableland from the vulcanic tufas and together with the erosion of the Kizilirmak river and wind over ten thausands of years there appeared the chimney rocks which are a wonder of the nature. In the old Bronze Age the Cappadocia which was the population zone of the Assyrian civilization later has hosted the Hittite, Frig, Pers, Byzantine, Seljuk and Ottoman civilizations. The first Christians escaped from the persecution of the Roman Empire in the 2nd century B.C. came to the Cappadocia over the Antakya and Kayseri and they have settled here. The first Christians finding the underground cities from Cappadocia have been hidden in these underground cities which gates were made in such way in which they couldn't be easily observed and they have escaped from the persecution of the Roman soldiers. Due that they had live in the underground cities for long duration without being able to go out they have developed these underground cities by making provisions rooms, ventilation chimneys, wine production places, churches, abbeys, water wells, toilets and meeting rooms.

In these cities made in form of rooms connected to each others some of the rooms were connected to each other only with the tunnels tight and permitting passing of just a person. At the access gates of these tunnels there were huge stone rollers used for closing the tunnels for security reasons.

Caravanserais:
The caravanserais (also called “Han” in Turkish) are an architectural design developed in Central Asia by the Karakhanids and Ghaznavids tribes and passed into Anatolian Turkish architecture. The institution of caravanserais has its most variations in Seljuk Anatolia, using the forms of Anatolian stone architecture. These buildings would offer travelers in rough terrains all the comforts needed and effectively provided a social foundation at a time when Anatolia was still subject to much migration and at the center of trade routes. The organization of a caravanserai offers many clues about the typical characteristics of Turkish society at the time. They were havens in which caravans and individual travelers could take shelter and reflect the needs of a culture that finds its origins in the nomadic lifestyles of the Turkish tribes of Central Asia.