Planet Earth harbors as many secrets beneath the surface as above. Most point to subterranean civilizations that once lived on the surface of the planet and then - either through cataclysm or something as yet unexplained - inhabitants were forced to build underground dwellings to survive. These are in fact inserts in our simulation set in place as the quest for answers to age old questions continues ... who are we, why are we here, and where are we going. Many of you may have explored, or fantasized, being an archaeologist who discovers the answers sought throughout history. For today we move to Turkey and its ancient mysteries.
In my book Sarah and Alexander, Sarah, an American archaeologist and author, and her friend Amaan, a Turkish archaeologist and teacher, race against time to the place where the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers once met - their first step on a journey that brings them full circle. A UFO rises from the murky water projecting a beam of light onto a mountain nearby, which they then climb. Cutting through ancient shrubbery, aligned with the beam of light, they discover a stone door bearing a carved indentation matching the amulet given to Sarah by Alexander when first they met as children. As Sarah places the amulet into the indentation - a stone door pivots open to reveal clues about the origins of civilization and their place in it.
My second encounter with ancient Turkey was the 2009 Miniseries The Last Templar. FBI agent Sean Daley (Scott Foley) and archaeologist Tess Chaykin (Mira Sorvino) engage in a chase across three continents in search of the lost secret of the Knights Templar. Their adventure takes them to Turkey where they stumble upon an entrance to the lost ancient underground city of Derinkuyu. Today CNN Travel featured a story and video about Derinkuyu called Inside Turkey's incredible underground city. Check it out.
My next adventure linked to ancient Turkey introduced me to Gobekli Tepe a Neolithic archaeological site occasionally mentioned in the TV series Ancient Aliens - its massive megaliths another group of stone structures that one could believe were created by aliens who visited the planet in the past. At 12,000 years old, Gobekli Tepe predates humanity's oldest known civilizations. Its megalithic temples were cut from rock millennia before the 4,500-year-old pyramids in Egypt, 5,000-year-old Stonehenge in England, or 7,000-year-old Nabta Playa, the oldest known astronomical site.