TOURMAG / Sonbahar 2021

Cappadocia the Region of Tourism
Underground city in central Turkey
dazzles visitors with its ancient tombs
The ancient underground city of St. Mercurius
in central Turkey, impresses visitors
with its church and tombs. The underground
city, located in the central Aksaray
province’s Saratli town, is home to a total
of 35 ancient tombs and a human skull
which was found to belong to the wife of
St. Mercurius.
St. Mercurius, who was born in the Cappadocia
region during the Roman Empire,
was a commander who lived in A.D. 225-
250. After declaring he was a Christian,
Mercurius was banished to Cappadocia by
Roman Emperor Decius and was sheltered
in the underground city of St. Mercurius.
The emperor then sent his men to the city
to have him and his family executed by
decapitation and later buried them in a
church in the region. Meanwhile, the skull
of Mercurius was taken to Cairo, the capital
of Egypt.
After the time of St. Mercurius, the
underground city served as a shelter
for early Christians, who were running
away from the prosecutions of the
Romans in the Cappadocia region.
The excavations started in the city in
2011, lasting till 2016. Three floors of the
seven-story underground settlement
have been cleaned during this work and
opened to tourism.
Indian Embassy celebrates International Day
of Yoga in world-famous Turkish region
The Indian Embassy in Ankara held an
event to celebrate the International Day of
Yoga. Turkish and Indian guests exercised
for 45 minutes under the direction of a
yoga instructor in the world-famous Cappadocia
region.
Guests began exercises at the Zemi Valley in
the Goreme region, where yoga mats were
prepared on a platform. Indian Ambassador
Sanjay Panda said the final program of the
event was held in Cappadocia and doing
yoga in the unique scenery of the region
was a different experience. “The videos and
photos we take here will be shared all over
the world. With this program, we aim to develop
and announce tourism in Cappadocia
and the region", he said.
Goreme Mayor Omer Eren also joined the
program and said it was his first time doing
yoga, but that he enjoyed it very much. Eren
added that he would also like to host the
event next year.
Ekim / Kasım / Aralık | 2021
October / November / December
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