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.
And to think that I saw it in Cappadocia
Today in History
More Desktop Wallpapers:
-
Let the holiday shopping commence
-
Valentines Day
-
Wallabies at sunrise, Australia
-
Big wheels on a big mountain
-
Rock River Falls, Upper Peninsula, Michigan
-
In praise of bogs, swamps, and marshes
-
Honoring the rangers on World Ranger Day
-
Kochelsee in Bavaria
-
Henningsvær Stadion, Norway
-
International Jazz Day
-
Glacial rivers in Iceland
-
An uncommonly cool critter
-
May the Fourth be with you…
-
Arches National Park, Utah
-
Hot and Spicy Food Day
-
A wheatear in Peak District National Park, England
-
Congratulations, 2019 Nobel Prize laureates!
-
Kagami-ike, Nagano, Japan
-
A special day for a special cat
-
The buzz about bees
-
A magnificent monolith
-
Gespensterwald, Nienhagen, Germany
-
Aerial view of Plaza Mayor, Madrid, Spain
-
A willowy welcome to spring
-
Old Fortress, Corfu, Greece
-
Winter solstice
-
World Turtle Day
-
Goats don t grow on trees
-
Celebrating World Wildlife Day
-
From garden to table?
Bing Wallpaper Gallery

