July 15. We headed to Cappadocia by air today, but not until 5:00 pm. That gave us time to do the e-bike tour that we had seen advertised. The owner picked us up at 9:20 (in his Mercedes!) and we were off to get our fancy reflective vests, helmets, and e-bikes. If only I could use one of those things for the upcoming Victoria fondo! It was a pricey tour and fun, but I didn’t think it was great value. We started at Konyaalti beach at the western end of the city and went all the way to Lara beach at the eastern end (20km) with a break in the old town for excellent homemade lemonade and Dutch pannekoeks. The group was varied – a Dutch family of five, a couple in their sixties from Denmark who have a summer place in Turkey, and us. All in all, a good mix. The Danish guy came decked out in his red cycling shorts – I saw the telltale “m dot” (Ironman tattoo) on his calf. He’s recently done a couple of half-ironman races following the footsteps of his son, and told Mark that it’s not too late to start!

Back to the hotel just in time to catch a shuttle from the hotel guy and head to the airport. Sadly, no time to shower, but such is life. Smooth check-in and flight to Nevsehir, about 40 minutes from where we’re staying in Goreme. The Kelebek hotel arranged for airport pick up and we found our driver immediately upon exiting the airport. Very unlike our normal DIY mode of travel, but was smooth and painless and I might just get used to that!

Wow. Our room in the fairy chimney was tiny – only room for the bed. And we shared a separate bathroom with the other fairy chimney. But it was cozy and very cool. How many people can say they’ve slept in a fairy chimney? The hotel is a maze of hallways, and Ali Jr. showed us around. I can see why they do – it’s a bit of a rabbit warren. He also explained all of the great things there are to do in the area of course, where the open air museum is, balloon rides, places for dinner, their spa….it went on a bit long for me.

We showered, and on our way out for a bite we decided to check to see if there were any balloon cancellations for the following morning. It was a long shot, but it doesn’t hurt to try. As it happened, a Japanese woman was trying to cancel as we walked in. The guy behind the desk explained that you can’t cancel at 8:00 pm the night before the balloon ride because they can’t sell the seat. Bonus!! We let him know we would take her spot! She was happy, we were happy, and I think the hotel guy was happy because she was being a little obstinate. Hooray! Well sorta. I am afraid of heights after all.

Quick dinner and early to bed as we had to be in the lobby at 4:35 a.m. Ugh!