We entered Armania through hills and clouds to discover our next country, starting with a monastery at Haghbat. Apparently 500 people lived there in the 11th century. Now I guess all that remains are the main stone parts.
Monasteries were the centres for learning for centuries and this was no exception. I did note the wells in the floor and wondered if this was where the wine for the community was made.
As it was a birthday for two of our group we explored the more modern cultural heritage for our first evening. In the Beatles bar!
Armenia like Georgia has had continually shifting borders over the centuries. At one stage it reached across to the Mediterranean and up towards the Caspian Sea. Armania is now one tenth of its largest extent.
Armenia is proud to be counted as the first Christian nation in the world. Traditionally, Bartholemew and Thaddeus introduced Christianity to Armenia, and King Tiridates the Great adopted Christianity after being baptised by Gregory the Illustrator in 301 AD. At Khor Virap monastery we saw the hole where he was imprisoned for 13 years before this.
Christianity is seen as one unifying factor in the identity of Armenia. Another was the introduction of the alphabet. This was 86 years later when Armenia was split between two empires, with incentives for people to adopt thr language Mesrop Mashtots created this alphabet.
The history of Armenia is a continual battle for their land. The current size of Armenia is one tenth of what it was at its greatest. The culture and alphabet have helped unify however the strategic location has meant a continual battle for the land. This is evident to the Mother of Armenia statue. This has a sword only it her hands. This is to signify that the women of Armenia stand and fight with their men
We did a tour around the capital Yerevan and saw the cascades centre (if only the fountains were working and the rose sandstone that gives it the name the pink city.
Armenia is dominated by Mount Ararat and although this is now in Turkey it is very much a symbol of Armenia with Ararat Bamk and Ararat brandy as just two examples.
We had a day out to see the sites around the area- the symphony of stones, the temple of Garni and the church built along side we also saw traditional bread making
We finally left Armenia by way of the cable car (the longest reversible cable csr in the world) and snowy mountain passes
Finally a bush camp below the snow line, a lovely warm evening but the temperature soon dropped and we had a frosty night. Another couple of days and we’ll br complaining about the heat🤣🤣
