And to think that I saw it in Cappadocia Mar 2, 2020

And to think that I saw it in Cappadocia

The fantastical "fairy chimneys" found in central Turkey"s historical Cappadocia region were formed by a collision of the natural and the man-made—and they form a scene that seems straight out of a Dr. Seuss illustration. The landforms were created when volcanoes deposited mounds of soft, porous rock called tuff, which was later covered with hard basalt. In the 10th century (though possibly starting up to 5,000 years ago) humans excavated the tuff to create caves and catacombs that could fit thousands of dwellers. Through not only the astonishing ruins but the many "cave hotels" hewn into rock in the city of Göreme, the memory of those ingenious city planners lives on.

© Ivan Kmit/Alamy

palette

Today in History

Mar 2, 2018Satellite image of sand and seaweed in the Bahamas
Mar 2, 2019You won’t see this on Mulberry Street
Mar 2, 2021Fall for Chile
Mar 2, 2022Mount Rainier National Park
Mar 2, 2023Negratín Reservoir, Granada, Spain
Mar 2, 2024Modica, Sicily, Italy
Mar 2, 2025Megalong Valley, Blue Mountains National Park, Australia
Mar 2, 2026Harbor and longtail boats at Ko Samui, Thailand

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Apr 3, 2026Armbrug bridge, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Nov 9, 2023Birch trees, Drammen, Norway
Jul 29, 2023International Tiger Day
Oct 7, 2025Fall colors below Mount Sneffels near Ridgway, Colorado
May 2, 2022Pamukkale, Turkey
Aug 3, 2025Blooming sunflowers
May 17, 2019Work out on your way to work
Apr 9, 2019The glowing waters of the Matsu Islands
Mar 13, 2026Church of Notre Dame de Bon-Port, Les Sables-dOlonne, France
Dec 3, 2018Computer science on the page
Dec 9, 2020It s Computer Science Education Week
Jun 30, 2019San Francisco’s City Hall illuminated by the iconic colors of Pride
Aug 11, 2018Lace up your hiking boots for Mountain Day
Dec 3, 2019It’s Giving Tuesday
Apr 7, 2020Once in a pink moon
Dec 5, 2021Salzburg, Austria
May 2, 2024Craters of the Moon centennial
Apr 21, 2019The Easter Bunny’s story
Apr 25, 2022World Penguin Day
Jan 27, 2024St. Paul Winter Carnival
Oct 23, 2022Mute swan
Oct 13, 2020Where can you find a red fox?
Oct 14, 2021Happy birthday, Saguaro National Park
Jul 28, 2019Road-trip worthy attraction in the heartland
Nov 5, 2020A medieval Moorish gem
May 5, 2022Cinco de Mayo
Oct 2, 2024Wild and Scenic Rivers Act
Jul 24, 2021Can you see the family resemblance?
Jan 28, 2020US Coast Guard: Protecting us for 105 years
Jul 3, 2022Dog days of summer