"We shouldn't wait for the chickens to disappear again to explore the 200 underground cities."

The mystery of Cappadocia, which resembles the surface of the Moon, has increased even more after this great discovery and has attracted a flood of tourists. In fact, there are over 200 small underground cities in the region that have been discovered but not revealed through excavation work. These cities connect to the Derinkuyu tunnels, creating a massive underground network, meaning millions of new tourists come to Cappadocia and the surrounding provinces year-round. Many underground cities were built during the Sasanian invasions starting in the 6th century, followed by the Arab invasions in the 7th and 8th centuries, and the arrival of the Seljuks in Anatolia. The underground cities were excavated to protect against persecution. Thus, there are many underground cities established to avoid the looting movements and great wars that lasted from the 6th century to the 11th century in Anatolia. The local Christian population of Anatolia used these underground cities as shelters for approximately 500 years, from the 6th century to the 11th century. Therefore, the number of people living underground was certainly not limited to 20,000. There is no reason not to add hundreds more to the Derinkuyu underground city, which gained UNESCO World Heritage Status in 1985. It is incomprehensible why no excavations have been conducted in the past 62 years. Excavation work should begin to discover the 200 underground cities without waiting for the mysterious disappearance of chickens again. Bringing the underground cities in the 445 square kilometer area to the surface will bring millions of dollars to the country's economy and Cappadocia. Today, nearly 4 million domestic and foreign tourists visit Cappadocia each year. Almost all tourists do not leave without seeing the Derinkuyu underground city.