Tag: Armenia
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Caucasian Vacation 15 (Armenia): Yerevan
With our abbreviated time in Armenia and the loaded daily itineraries — not to mention the rain the last few days — there’s not much time left for a proper tour of Yerevan. So on our last morning in the country, I wake up really early just before sunrise and take a stroll in the…
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Caucasian Vacation 14 (Armenia): Sevanavank
A further hour’s drive east of the Geghard Monastery is Lake Sevan. With the elevation rising, the temperature drops to 10 degrees below 0. Snow covers the foliage along the highway, and the lakeside breeze exacerbates the already frigid air. Lake Sevan is the largest body of freshwater in the Caucasus, and its significant fish…
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Caucasian Vacation 13 (Armenia): Geghard
Near Garni (11 kilometers up the Azat River) is the UNESCO-listed Geghard Monastery, another medieval structure in a country that’s surely not wanting for any, though this one has more direct ties to the religious conversion of Armenia. Tradition holds that Saint Gregory the Illuminator, who Christianized the Armenian king in 301, built a small…
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Caucasian Vacation 12 (Armenia): Garni
In the evening we reach Yerevan where we will be spending the next couple of days. We also use the capital as base to a couple of day-trip destinations, the first of which is the Temple of Garni. The temple, located in the village of Garni (about a 45-minute drive east of Yerevan), is the…
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Caucasian Vacation 11 (Armenia): Noravank
From Tatev, we backtrack to Areni in the afternoon and make a detour to one of Armenia’s most popular and most beautiful monasteries. The Noravank Monastery near the town of Yeghegnadzor is perched on a hill and backdropped by a pretty valley. The surrounding cliffs takes on a strikingly orange hue at sunset. It’s one…
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Caucasian Vacation 10 (Armenia): Tatev
After lunch, we continue our drive further east, getting closer to the border with the disputed territory of Artsakh. Our destination is actually the Tatev Monastery in its namesake village, but the unexpectedly long drive (almost three hours, plus we really took our sweet time at lunch) results in us getting around the area almost…
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Caucasian Vacation 9 (Armenia): Areni
Heading east, we drive for about 90 minutes until we reach Areni, a village popular for the production of wine. While legend says that Noah and his sons founded the village and planted the first grapes here, archaeological evidence places the first cultivation of grapes to at least the 8th century BC. Excavations in the…
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Caucasian Vacation 8 (Armenia): Khor Virap
We spend the next morning doing some last-minute souvenir-shopping in Tbilisi before heading south to the border with Armenia. The whole process of visa application (visa on arrival for Philippine passport holders) and getting a permit for the van, which is registered in Georgia, takes us almost half a day, and with the additional four-hour…
The Tourist Gaze 