Let me just say this, traveling with children means always knowing where the closest bathroom is at all times, coming to grips with the fact that ice cream bribery works better than interesting historical facts for preventing a meltdown, and that children will always remember the strangest things about your epically experienced family trips.
(“Mom” Brenn said recently, “remember that one really funny ceiling fan at that rental house at the beach? No? Huh. Because it was SO WEIRD.”)
Beyond these truths, traveling with children is usually about managing expectations. As the parent, I paint a very (often overly) rosy picture of what the day will hold and then I try my hardest to match up moments with predictions.
“See,” when walking up to an observation deck, “Didn’t I say that we’d be amazed by the sprawling scenery??”
It’s tough when kids don’t play along.
“Mom, it just looks like all the other scenery we’ve driven past already.”
Nevertheless, I persist. I keep looking up interesting facts about the places we’ll visit. I keep packing healthy snacks. I keep my eyes out for bathrooms and ice cream stands. I keep encouraging wonder and awe.
(It’s not hard to do that last one because I genuinely feel lots of awe and wonder myself :)
Cappadocia was a pretty amazing part of Turkey. After a short flight from Izmir to Kayseri followed by a 40 min drive, we reached the heart of the area. Our tour guide claimed that the only other places in the world similar to Cappadocia are Bryce Canyon in Utah and the Badlands of South Dakota. I’m not sure if that’s true, but the scenery is certainly dramatic, otherworldly even. Settled by the Hittites, invaded by the Romans, and fled too by the early Christians, it has always remaining a landscape of beauty and uniqueness. There is a reason that so many world travelers opt to visit this section of Turkey.
I sincerely hope that we’ll return there again before leaving Turkey. I want to continue to create opportunities for my family to observe and absorb. And little by little, my children will hopefully remember more about the awesome adventures that they have (yes, yes, along with all the “weird” objects in the random hotels we use.)
Please enjoy our video about Cappadocia as well as a short (lively, Meg-led) tour of our cave hotel! I included links to informative websites in the description of my video for anymore interested in more specific history!
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