Taking it Underground

We traveled to Kaymakli today, where an extensive underground city was once the refuge of Christians in the days of Roman persecution, and then again against the waves of Arabs in the 700's and Turks even later.











The place winds on forever--and isn't yet fully opened . . .




This was the local variation of a castle--when an invading army came in, the inhabitants would retreat inside, taking in all the food from the vicinity. A series of large stones could be rolled into the tunnels, blocking access, where the city could outlast an outside force.





















This was one of the larger passageways.







Only a month after returning from China, I was once again in the underground church . . .



























The altar is against the back wall.




Far from the sunshine, we confirmed again that Christians find the cool places to hang out--

On our way back, we stopped by another small monastery.









The entrance to the small chapel.





The same entrance, now from inside:





























One last view before coming back into town: