Caves in Ayazini village, the 'heart of Phrygia', attract tourists

İhsaniye District Governor Doğanoğlu said, "We can call Ayazini village a 'cave paradise' with its historical artifacts. We are working hard to bring the caves in the village to tourism."

Over 300 caves of different sizes, including rock settlements, carved rock tombs and chapels in Ayazini village, located within the borders of the historical Phrygian Valley, attract tourists.

Within the scope of the "Street Sanitization Project" of the Governorship of Afyonkarahisar, the caves in the region are being cleaned one by one in order to bring them to tourism with the works carried out in the countryside and settlement of Ayazini village, which is also described as the "heart of Phrygia" in İhsaniye district of Afyonkarahisar.

Some historical finds are also unearthed in many caves that are still in use with the structures built by the villagers.

Officials from the Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism and faculty members from the Department of Archaeology at Afyon Kocatepe University (AKU) are also working in the newly discovered caves.

İhsaniye District Governor Semih Doğanoğlu said that there are rock settlements, carved rock tombs, chapels and important artifacts of Byzantine and Roman periods dating back to the Phrygian civilization in Ayazini village.

Pointing out that there are 300 caves, large and small, and historical artifacts such as 35 churches and chapels in the village as determined by archaeologists, Doğanoğlu said, "We can call our Ayazini village a 'cave paradise' with its historical artifacts. We are working hard to bring the caves in the village to tourism. These historical places are cleaned in the best way. We are carrying out lighting works in terms of tourism and visualization. In addition, we are working on some destroyed and damaged structures."

Pointing out that the tourism potential of the region is increasing every year, Doğanoğlu said: "Our visitors experience 3 thousand years of history and culture in Phrygia. They also like the works in Ayazini village. They even express to us that they expect more historical artifacts to be unearthed. There are all kinds of architectural structures from the Phrygian, Roman, Byzantine and Seljuk periods in the village. This place offers a great opportunity for those who love history and culture. The appreciation of the work in the village also gives us strength."

"Historic buildings are much older and more visual"

Aysun Akbay, one of the visitors, thanked those who contributed to the work in Ayazini village.

Reminding that he believes that the village will become an important destination of Phrygia in the coming days, Akbay said, "I have visited Ürgüp/Göreme and Cappadocia. I saw that Ayazini is as perfect as those places and even the historical buildings here are much older and more visual. There is an incredible atmosphere here. Everyone should inhale this place."

Zuhal Atak, who came to Ayazini from Ankara, stated that the investments made to bring the historical village, which smells like Cappadocia, to tourism are appropriate and that she enjoyed being here.

İsmail Bozoklu also stated that the caves in the village are a natural wonder and that he admired their visuality.

This news article was published on the website of Hürriyet Newspaper on March 08, 2021. Source: https://www.hurriyet.com.tr/kelebek/keyif/frigyanin-kalbi-ayazini-koyundeki-magaralar-turistleri-cezbediyor-41757899