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More Cappadocia

 I am not giving much narrative here. This set is from Goreme, including a Kebap restaurant with a fun tradition of baking the meat in the clay jars with bread on the top and breaking them for the patron. You can take away the clay pot, and I have one. 








These are from old Christian settlements in the area. The inhabitants dug caves in the soft rock and generations lived there. 


Below is a communal table for Lord's supper.






The underground city, which goes 200 feet down. I couldn't do this trip. Got panicky in the tiny tunnels with hundreds of other people.  



Church built by an Ottoman to make peace with Orthodox community in middle ages. Beautiful but not open. 


Rock formations and a monastery later turned caravan lodging place (during Muslim rule) at the Selime Cathedral. 








These photos are from Ilhara, a canyon where Christians lived in seclusion. It is a beautiful spot because there is a river at the bottom of the canyon that allowed for growth and agriculture. There are also very neat cave paintings and churches on them. 

The Daniel Pantossa church has pastel angels! And three wise men playing instruments, as well as the standard Christ Pantocrator (a title of Christ represented as the ruler of the universe, especially in Byzantine church decoration, via Oxford Languages). 











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