Day 21 Friday 10th October

The start of the sprint for home. I had organised return transport yesterday with Margarita, "Our woman in Yerevan". She gave me a choice of bus or taxi. 6000 Drams for the former and 8000 for the latter. In GBP that is about 8.50 or 11.50 each for the 6 hour journey. It goes without saying that I ask her to book 2 for the taxi. We also arrange a local taxi to pick us up at the flat and take us to the bus station/international taxi departure ( about £1.50). We subsequently learn that Margaria's English is not in fact that good and what she means by taxi is what we would call a slightly smarter minibus that might complete the journey with a spare part or two and a bit of luck. Guess what, we have the smallest back seats again. Most importantly it leaves on time at 10.30am.

This shows the minibus being refuelled with LPG very near the militarily closed border with Azerbaijan. Note all the passengers have to leave the vehicle and stand well back, meanwhile there's two guys immediately to the left of the blue car who are welding with no protection and sparks are flying everywhere. 

It is a more interesting run than the route in, with some great scenery and all the evidence of that unfinished war including the in situ graveyards, and a deal of military presence. 

We make Tbilisi at 4.30 and reunite with Tina and our other suitcase by 5pm. We now just have to kill some time before Mr T runs us to the airport at midnight for our 4.45 am departure for Istanbul. Time to eat, so we try Pur Pur. This is the LP top choice and features live jazz, excellent food and a very convivial ambience. It was all of these.

All you need in a great restaurant, entertainment, good food and an interesting toilet.

After another good Atlas Air flight we landed at Istanbul about 7.00am and taxi to hotel who (glory be) let us straight into our upgraded to deluxe room. Frankly anywhere to lay our heads counted as deluxe to us by this time. Of course you can't go to Istanbul without going to the Grand Bazaar and haggling for a leather jacket and when you are trying to buy two it's twice the fun. Now rather smartly dressed we go out for a distinctly Turkish dining experience where we were taught how to eat like a local. Bed again for a short sleep before the last flight to Luton. 

Mission completed in all respects, but I can't finish this without a few words. Firstly thanks, Helen especially to you for having the courage to come, the faith to trust me and the perseverance to survive. You were a great travelling companion, proofreader, technical consultant and most definitely made the whole trip for me. Thank you readers, especially those who gave us some feedback. Without you there would not be much point in this. I must acknowledge the Lonely Planet Guides for, well guidance and some textual assistance. 

By the time I publish this page our statistics read; total page views 1175, in 4 continents, 10 counties, 766 views in UK, 152 in USA (who is reading us there? CIA ??). Not exactly viral, but pleasing nonetheless. 

,

Day 20 Thursday 9th October

A whole day to devote to Yerevan. This is a treat I shall savour. The two of us haven't yet walked around the city in daylight together so turn right out of the flat and about 2 minutes walk takes us into Rebublic Square. The Post Office is here so the cards can go. There is a music festival planned for this weekend so they are busy erecting staging etc, in readiness.

The door to the main (only) Post Office. Look very closely and you will see the old hammer and sickle motif in ironic contrast to the modern ATMs.

Look at the detailed stone carving in the traditional Armenian style. 

This is Northern Avenue which is full of expensive designer labels. It is being resurfaced and pedestrianised with thousands of Laris worth of trees and shrubs going in. It looks up to the Opera House and then on to the Cascade with the monument celebrating 50 years of communist rule above it all. How this monument survives beats me but (unlike the Georgians) they like to keep on good terms with the Russians. Note how the Soviet style of imperial grandeur is being maintained to keep the city homogenuity.

This is the Cascade. The photo does it no justice, it is a staircase on a giant scale with water running down through a series of complex pipes. Construction on the project ceased in 1991 when funds dried up. In 2001 diaspora philanthropist Gerald Cafesjian took over the project. He is an art collector who not only installed the vast collection sculptures but also repaired the escalators, built the galleries and planted the flower beds. Although still unfinished at the top, the whole thing is very impressive. You really feel art matters here. Look at some sculptures. 

The bronze of the Roman soldier with the unimpressive protuberance is by the Columbian artist Fernando Botero. The balancing hares are by the North Walian "hareman" Barry Flanagan. He was born in Prestatyn in1941 and died sadly of MND in 2009. He was represented by several other works.

 We walked back down to the Opera Square for an early evening drink and to plan where we are to have our last meal in Yerevan before the long journey home. We decided on Dolmamas. This is the poshest place in town. Amongst others it's guests have been Vladimir Putin, Prince Charles, Jaques Chirac, and many other Heads of State. It was affordable with mains costing £15-20. Unfortunately it was shut or full as the door was locked. 

Instead we walked on to a little cellar place very near our flat. Serendipity or what we had an unforgettable evening. There was a live folk band playing with a singer who had a voice of operatic quality, so did one of the guests. They proceeded to have a singing competition, each trying to out sing the other. We got friendly with the big family group who were next to us. The floor singer was part of this family. They sent huge portions of birthday cake to us and by the end of the night we were all kissing each other and giving huge bear hugs. Indeed we ended up shaking hands with all the staff and the rest of the guests. 

The huge chef, one of two brothers who run the place.

What a city!

Day 19 Wednesday 8th October

Our second organised trip today. This time it's a temple and the WHS listed Geghard monastery. This won't be such a long trip and we expect to be back by 3-00 pm.

Both of these sites are in the Geghama mountain range which gets up to 3600m. For the geographers, we have Mt. Ararat at 5165m and Mt. Aragats 4090m.  Ararat is a sacred mountain for the locals who were, and are still very unhappy that it was placed in Turkey when the boundaries were redrawn after the First World War. Mind you that's just a small part of the problems they have with Turkey.

The Garni Temple built to the Hellenic god Mitra (sun) in the 1st century by local King Trdat 1.  It became a summer house for Armenian royalty after the Christian conversion. The setting is really quite dramatic. 

As the local guide pointed out to us. The temple was destroyed by an earthquake in 14th century. The restoration is a little heavy handed, rebuild might be nearer the mark. There is also a Roman style bathhouse complete with hypocaust and mosaic. 

After this we moved on to Geghard monastery. The Lonely Planet Guide for Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan highlights 8 top experiences for the region. This is one of them. It is also a UNESCO world heritage site. Described as half cathedral half cave. Geghard means lance and refers to the fact that the spear that pierced Jesus when he was crucified was brought here at a later date and certainly helped in all sorts of ways both practically and spiritually. It's sort of God meets Indiana Jones. It is a spooky, dimly lit sanctuary, where voices bounce off walls, sunbeams stream through the narrow windows and droplets of water ooze through the walls. Pictures can't really do it justice, but I'll have a try.

I was keen to join the order but they said I was temperamentaly unsuitable. What does that mean? Remember the couple who nearly caused us to be late yesterday? They were on this trip again today. We had quite a chat. She was local and he from the Armenian diaspora living in Canada. They recommended a jazz club cum restaurant in town called Poplavok Jazz Café. Since the LP guide also recommended it and the ex President is a frequent customer we thought we would give it a go.

We took a taxi (no, the taxi didn't take us) the driver hadn't a clue so I took him with the aid of a street plan and hand directions. He seemed very grateful and charged me 80p so I tipped him 20p, honours even.

Still remember that couple? Well they were in there and by now we greeted each other like long lost friends, and had a parting full of kisses and handshakes when they left. The ex President? Well I'm pretty sure he was in there, this distinguished looking old guy on his own.....

Unfortunately the ex President is just out of camera shot to the left. Honest. 

Day 18 Tuesday 7th October

We have booked a trip with the local travel company Hyur Services. I suspect they have taken over from the old Intourist Services. They are efficient, good value with very knowledgeable guides. Today we get lake, lunch and three monasteries.

Before I describe today's activities, let me tell you about our Wi Fi that comes free with the flat. It's a small device about the size of the smallest mobile phone. You charge the battery once a day and then you can walk around with your own mobile hot spot. Apparently they cost about $100 and there is no contract. It's wonderful, you can use your tablet were ever you are. I want one.

Anyway back on the bus we are heading for Lake Sevan and the Sevanavank (unlike English vank means monastery in Armenian).

This is another 360° photo. You need to expand it to get the full effect. The next 3 pictures are monastery inside and out. 

Lake Sevan is described as the pearl of Armenia. The Soviets used it for HEP production and the water level dropped by 20 meters. This revealed forts, houses and artifacts going back 2000 years. Now the ecologists want more water in the lake and the archeologists want less. The Soviet plan was to reduce the lake to one sixth of it's original size. Thankfully that has now been scotched. 

Next we go through the 2km long Sevan tunnel. At the other end the landscape has completely changed. We have gone from desert arid to Alpine sylvan. 

Now off to the next monastery, Goshavank which you can see below. Then it's off to lunch. 

This bronze is of the saintly founder of the monastery. He was called Mihkitar Gost. He lived in the late 12th century and developed a huge library containing at least 15000 volumes. It was burnt by Timur's army in the 13th century. Such is life. 

The Haghartsin monastery, founded in the 12th century by two brothers who were Princes. The name means dance of the eagles and it's hidden away in a lovely forest valley by some massive nut trees. 

We have tickets for the opera tonight which starts at 7-00pm but we look like being late because of one couple on the trip who were 20 minutes late back to the coach at the first stop. They were last back at every subsequent stop and were, unfortunately sitting next to us. In an English kind of way we sat and fumed. 

After a sprint to get changed and another frantic taxi ride, we made it in just before the curtain rose. The opera was, for one night only, the Armenian classic Anush. From the eponymous poem by Tumanyan and composed by A.Tigranian it is full of Armenian folk music and dancing. We could not have chosen a better opera to watch. It was perfect. 

Just to prove that we really were there. You get a good idea of the auditorium from the pictures, the chandelier is a massive one hung centrally. The locals in the interval "bar" were keen to discuss the merits of the performance with us. We met up again with some people who were also on the trip with us today. Small city syndrome. 

Day17 Monday 6th October

Now, I thought that my Geography was pretty good, but before planning this trip I had never heard of Yerevan. Had we not come here what a treat we would have missed.

I can say without qualification that this is one of the finest cities I have ever visited. Let me tell you why.

Yerevan has a checkered history.  The city was founded in 782 BC by King Argishti 1.  Since then it has been continually invaded, held and lost many times. Amongst others the Greeks, Romans, Seljuks, Persians, Moguls, Byzantines, Ottermans and finally the Russians. These latter were here both as part of the Tsarist Empire and then the Soviet regime.

The Soviets were responsible for building what is undoubtedly the finest example of a planned city centre in the classic Soviet style. It is grand and imperial on a Vienna scale. It reflects the local stone carving skills with the stone facing on the palatial concrete buildings. Indeed they are still building in this style today.  Alexander Tamanyan developed the current grid plan in the 1920s with the idea that main avenues should point in the direction of Mt Ararat. It has hansom squares and is ringed with parks (cf. Kartner Ring).

That's just the architecture. The people are it's real strength. They are almost universally friendly and helpful. I have seen no examples of bad street behaviour. No loudness, drunkenness or even impoliteness. We have only encountered one beggar so far.

It's a cultural feast. The National Gallery holds the third-biggest collection of European masters in the former USSR. We have tickets for the opera in the State Opera House. It has a dozen or so museums plus several other galleries and churches, all located in the city centre and easily reached on foot.

The population is about a million (one third of the population of the country). The outer areas maintain an air of Soviet sprawl but these are limited by steep hills and gorges.

On top of all that it makes the best brandy in the world.

Time to look at some pictures.

Republic Square about midnight. We will show you some more in daylight

National Museum and Art Gallery

Northern Avenue, some bold rebuild in a fashionable shopping street, now being pedestrianised

National Opera and Ballet House

Helen enjoying a latte in Opera House Square. 

Day 16 Sunday 5th October

Another day,another country. In order to lighten the load we have left the largest case with Tina, to be collected on our return. That wonderful man, Tina's husband whose name we never did learn, took us to the bus station in his big Mercedes staff car. We arrived at 11 o'clock in good time for the 11-40 marshrutky. As we were the only passengers so far we got in and picked the best seats.

You can see clearly from the sign on the front that it's headed for Yerevan. One of the problems with information in this part of the world is that you have to contend with four different alphabets. Roman, Cyrillic, Georgian and Armenian. 

At 11-30 I bought a couple of cups of coffee before departure, l thought. At 12 noon we are still sitting in the bus. A little later we are invited to get in a different minibus. Nobody tells us anything, but then nobody speaks English except for a guy who is married to a Greek woman and has a smattering. Another passenger arrives, she introduces herself as Zophina but with no shared languages we can't really chat but we talk away in our respective tongues without any understanding. It is now past 1-00 and three other rather swanky women appear with men in tow who leave with much kissing. We are told to move seats to the back whilst the dames are put in the best ( our) seats. Zophina loudly and at considerable length argues the toss, to no avail. Still we sit around. Another guy shows up. We now have a full compliment of 8 passengers. Half an hour later we leave for Armenia.

This is a 6 hours journey so a 3 hours wait wasn't the start we were looking for. It was going to be at least 8 in the evening before we would arrive, then we don't really know where we are going or how to get a key. However I have a phone number, if only I can get the phone to work.

The journey was a bit tedious but with some good views of dramatic gorges and sylvan, verdant hills and valleys. The border crossing went smoothly and we drove on through Armenia.

There are plenty of examples of deserted Soviet industrial plants. Huge ruins lie roofless and with broken windows. In many cases they must have been the major employers in the town. God knows what they do for a living now.  I suppose they could employ people to tidy the place up, but that would only be state aid again. 

When we eventually arrived in Yerevan, we saw a huge urban sprawl. However would we find our apartment in this lot. We left the marshrutky and, as usual were immediately approached by taxi drivers. This is the point that most tourists worry that they are being ripped off. In fact this is rarely the case. Our driver couldn't have been more helpful. He phoned the number I had and took us to Sakharov Square, where after a short wait the owner arrived and let us in.

I expected to be a bit disappointed in the place, but it turned out to be really great. A split new refurbished flat with excellent facilities. Have a look at the photos. They don't do it justice. 

We are in a superb location, all our worries are dissolved. I think I am going to enjoy this place.