One of the tour offerings from the Kelebek was the “organic farm breakfast tour”. Right up our alley, and it was complimentary! The tour was led by Ali (the owner of the hotel) and about 17 of us set off in a large open wagon pulled by a tractor. We wound up the steep twisty streets and out across the hilltop plateau until we reached the top of some stairs carved into the hillside that led down to the fertile valley bottom.

Ali was a very good guide. He grew up in Goreme, and turned his family home into one of the first cave hotels. The farm that we were going to was his family farm. Along the way he told us stories of his childhood – how his older brothers used to have to haul the fruit from the farm by donkey to sell in the market town, and how he used to clean out the cliff-side pigeon houses that dot the area so that the farm could use the droppings as fertilizer. 

Once at the farm we were greeting by a table groaning with food. There was the usual: cheese, cucumbers, tomatoes, olives, honey, and jam. And fresh bread. And preserved baby eggplants that were soaked in a sweet cinnamon syrup.  Who knew eggplants can be sweet! There was of course tea, and wonderful scrambled eggs. All of this was prepared by a trio of the cutest little old Turkish babas ever!