Armenia

Armenia is a  tiny  country  but  it  has  plenty  to  offer, people are friendly, and  hospitality is outstanding. Apart  from  the excellent  food,  among  the best  I  tasted,  there  is  plenty  to  see and Yerevan with  his  beautiful Paradjanov and Katchturian museums, and  the somber Genocide museum, and the fantastic  view  of  Mount  Ararat, is a  large city with charm and taste. If  you  have  never  been  to  the  Caucasus, start here and  continue  to  Georgia,  which  has  a similar, although distinct  flavor.

I was  surprised to see  that Armenia  is  like  Swiss cheese.  There are  holes in the territory where Azeri communities live which  belong to  Azerbaijan. I have  not  been  to  Azerbaijan  but I  guess  it  must be  the same  (I  am  thinking about  Nagorno Karabakh). I always  heard  the  term  melting  pot for  the Caucasus  but  I  had  never  realized  the  extent  to  which  people  of  different cultures,  religions  and  traditions were  mixed  up.  The  only comparable  place  I can  draw parallel is Sarajevo, a  place  a like very  much,  despite its  ominous   past.

As usual I rented a  car and started roaming  through the country. The main roads are ok,  except in the  north close to Georgia,  where a flood  had eaten good  chucks  of  asphalt in many places. There are  many churches, monasteries, and  sites  that  are  worthed  visit.  My favorite  are  Tatev  Monastery (in  the center  south) Noravank  Monastery  ( close  to  Yerevan) Orbelian Caravanserai (on top of a  mountain pass, close to lake Sevan) and Khor Virap ( south of Yerevan) where on clear days  you can see  the magnificent Mount Ararat, Varotnavank Church (half way between  Yerevan and  Goris) and Zorats  Karer,  the  Stonehenge of Armenia.

I have seen  a  movie  long time ago called Lemon Vodka and  there was  a  gas station  coming  up often  in  the  shots. I was incredibly happy when I  found  it  close  to Goris, over twenty years  later! The surroundings around  there  are  very special: there  is  a  scary swinging  bridge  and  breath taking views.

I would say that the  most exciting experience  was  to  drive  from  Tatev  to  the  border with  Iran. (Incidentally,  there was  some  guy  who  declared  independence of the area around  Tatev in 1920s and it took  over  six months  to  the  USSR to take  over  the  place  again!). Although  the road  is  bad, winding up and  down  the  mountains, its size  reduced, there are  trucks carrying  merchandises to  and  from  Iran which  go  at 15-20 an  hour  max  and  prevent  you in any way from  passing,  I had  a  wonderful time. I felt  an immense  sense  of freedom. I was  so happy  that I started screaming  out  of  the  car window  while  the  trucks  were  roaming and coughing  up  the  hills.

One final suggestion,  if you never tasted you should  try  eggplants  with  walnuts puree and pomegranates. It is definitively close  to what they eat up there in paradise!