Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Tuesday, October 14, 2008 - No comments

Land of the Fairy Chimneys

Cappadocia enchants me more every time I visit. Its otherworldly landscape always makes me feel like I am on another planet, and around every corner is a new cave church to marvel at, a new maze of fairy chimneys to explore, a new view that has yet to take my breath away.


This region is renowned for, among other things, its pottery and its carpets, and I had fun learning more about the making of both. We kept going back to drool over the works of art in this one pottery shop - I wanted to buy it all! I had to settle for a few cute clay lanterns for the balcony, but I'll definitely be back. :)










We spent a chunk of time watching a cute little teyze (old lady) weaving a carpet that she said would take her about 3 months to make. Talk about patience and dedication to your craft! She explained how up until recently (and still today in the poorer eastern half of the country), girls would begin weaving carpets at a young age so they would have something to bring into their marriage. These carpets added to their "value" when families negociated marriage contracts and gave the girls security since they didn't have education or skills to bring to the table. These carpets are absolute works of art, and each one tells its own story. (And watching the men toss them across the room and call them flying carpets is highly amusing!)

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