Lying in the shadow of Mt. Aergius, Kayseri was once the principal city of ancient Cappadocia. Today, this city of 450,000 is noted for its many carpet merchants. If you're going to shop for carpets, prepare yourself for a hard sell--take your time and don't allow yourself to be pressured. The small archaeological museum has interesting artifacts from Kanesh. Unusual buildings include the Huant Hatun Mosque and the Sahibiye Medresesi (with an especially fine portal); there are also several nice Islamic buildings in town. An excursion may be made to see the site of Kanesh (4,000-year-old silver mines--now just holes in the ground) on the way to Sultan Han, a restored 13th-century caravanserai (the latter is well worth seeing). A visit to Karatay Han (an Assyrian burial complex) could be made on the same excursion. 165 mi/265 km southeast of Ankara.