“The Foot of the Rock”
If you are visiting the ruins of the dramatic castle at Şebinkarahisar you might also want to consider driving to the village of Kayadibi, 11 km to the east, where a monastery perches in a dramatic, picturesque and Sumelaesque location high up in a sheer rockface.
The original monastery was dedicated to Panagia Theotokos, the Virgin Mother of God (Meryemana). In the 19th century it seems to have been expanded and rededicated to St. Philip, although locals still call it Meryemana. It was abandoned at the end of the Turkish War of Independence (1919-23) when the Greeks were forced to leave the country. It was restored in the 2010s which presumably means that it is now more readily accessible.
Along the way to Kayadibi you will be able to admire some spectacular rock formations and rustic scenery.
On the drive back you will also get a superb view of Şebinkarahisar castle clinging to its rocky lookout post in all its glory. From this angle you might well agree with the 17th-century traveller Evliya Çelebi who described it as looking like “a galleon without masts”, or with the Byzantine scholars Anthony Bryer and David Winfield who described it as looking “like an ark alone in the midst of a sea of flowers”.
Transport info
There is no public transport to get you from Şebinkarahisar to Kayadibi so you will probably need to negotiate a return fare plus waiting time with a taxi driver.
