Mapwork by @Slalice_Draws
This week our virtual travels bring us to yet another underrated European destination, and, aside from the initial air travel, one of the more affordable on our list: Armenia! Since Armenia is not on many of the "must see" lists for European travel, I am excited to find all the hidden gems across the country. Let's go!
Travel and Fun Attractions
Travel from Berlin to Yerevan - the capital city of Armenia - will be pretty straightforward. Aside from the fact that there don't seem to be any direct flights, we are basically looking at a flight with one layover:
The trip to Yerevan will take approximately 6.5 hours with one stop, likely in Vienna. The flights currently range from 600-900 Euros, roundtrip. As the majority of our virtual itinerary will be concentrated in and around Yerevan, we will choose accommodations in the city, and arrange day trips to any attractions outside the city. Let's go!
Accomodations
We will be staying at the Best Western Plus Congress Hotel in Yerevan. The hotel features a spa, a swimming pool, a restaurant with a chef's table, and clean and comfortable rooms, all for less than 50 Euros/night. This hotel will be our home base for the week as we explore the exciting city and beautiful countryside of Armenia.
Attractions
Yerevan
Yerevan is the capital city of Armenia, and is both one of the most rapidly developing as well as one of the oldest cities in Europe. It is often referred to as the "City of Cafes" as well as the "Pink City" due to the gorgeous color of the ancient volcanic rock used to build many of the buildings downtown. There is a lot to do right in the city of Yerevan.
2. Matenadaran
This holds the distinction of being one of the planet's richest repositories of ancient books and manuscripts.
3. History Museum and the National Gallery of Armenia
There is so much art and history to take in throughout this gorgeous country, and these are just the places to get our bearings.
*Take a virtual tour of the History Museum here.
*Learn all about the National Gallery here.
Ararat Museum invites us to tour their historic brandy factory, and they invite us to understand that they represent so much more than just a delicious drink, but also the generosity, heart and resilience of a people and a beloved region.
Take a virtual tour here of the Cafesjian Center for the Arts, which is an organization committed to bringing the best of contemporary art into Armenia and the best of Armenia into the world.
6. Mother Armenia Statue
This is a towering, impressive monument to Armenia, herself, that can remind viewers of the importance of women in the history of Armenia, as well as the important status and value attributed to older female members of an Armenian family.
7. Vernissage Flea Market
Vernissage is a massive flea market and outdoor gallery that operates on the weekends. Let's take a look!
8. Levon's Divine Underground Cave Museum
In 1985, 44-year-old builder, Levon Arakelyan's wife, Tosya, asked him to build her a root celler where she could store potatoes. He started, and over the next 23 years until his death, using simple tools, by himself, built her an intricate series of impressive caves beneath their home. This has become one of the most fascinating tourist attractions in Armenia (maybe anywhere!), and is certainly worth a visit. In order to find it, we would need to take public transit to the closest town and then "get off and ask a local resident to point you in the direction of Levon's home." Here's a Youtube video of the experience:
9. Shikahogh State Reserve
This wild preserve is so remote and so safeguarded that there are large parts of it that reportedly remain unexplored to this day. Shikahogh is home to beautiful waterfalls, a wide variety of animals, and it is suspected hundreds to thousands of species of plants. Since our visit is virtual, we won't disturb it, but if we ever get a chance to visit in person, we will be sure to stick to the explored sections.
10. Lake Sevan
Since Armenia has no coastline, this large, beautiful lake plays an important role to the country. We can spend a beach day there (I understand windsurfing is a popular sport), and it is surrounded by many of Armenia's characteristic symbols - gorgeous, historically significant monasteries. Additionally, many seafood restaurants dot its shores. One thing we definitely don't want to miss are the unique and quirky "fish selling mannequins" along the roads leading to and from the lake!
We, of course, must visit the museum that boasts the smallest art works in the world!
For a taste of very traditional Armenian culture, we will visit this museum that was home to Luski Aguletsi until very recently. She was a resident of Yerevan who lived very traditionally, and this museum will share with us not only her clothing, but her treasures and lifestyle as well.
If we feel like skiing and participating in winter sports while we are in Armenia, a visit to the Tsaghkadzor area is a must. We will likely be tired, so we may want to stay overnight in this area, and in that case, we can stay at the Aurora Resort Tsaghkadzor where we can get a luxury room for under 100 Euros. This area offers the most affordable ski lifts in all of Europe, and is considered the 'entertainment capital' of Armenia, offering upscale accommodations in addition to casino resorts such as the Senator Royale Casino complex, and nightlife.
14. Jermuk
After all that fun and excitement, we will be ready to relax, and so we will head for Jermuk, a famous spa town featuring unique hot springs, thermal mineral water springs and geysers, which are used for drinking, healing and medicinal purposes. It's all located within a deep gorge, and is home to waterfalls, lakes, walking trails and fresh mountain air. While there, we will need to take advantage of the spa lifestyle (of course!) at the Jermuk Hot Springs Water Gallery.
15. "Tatevi Tever" ("Wings of Tatev")
Nearby, we will definitely take advantage of the world's longest aerial tramway! I imagine it is not for the faint of heart, but a grand and beautiful adventure for those of us willing to enjoy the ride! It will carry us to Tatev Monestary, one of the older and more beautiful in the country. Let's enjoy the ride:
16. "We are Our Mountains" Sculpture
Also referred to as 'Grandfather-Grandmother' and 'Tribute to Long-Lifers' by the locals, this sculpture is a fun example of Armenian public art.
17. Armenian Alphabet Monument
Another fun example of Armenian public art is the Armenian Alphabet Monument, which was constructed in 2005 on the occasion of the 1,600th birthday of the creation of the Armenian Alphabet!
If you like history, you will really enjoy our visit to the Areni-1 Cave Complex archaeology site. Researchers have unearthed the world's oldest shoe, winery and human brain at this location since 2008!
Finally, we return to Yerevan on a more somber note, to remember the up to 1.5 million people who were murdered by the Ottoman government as a part of the Armenian genocide in 1915 during World War I. I have been ashamed to find how little I have known and been exposed to about this horror over the course of my education and my lifetime, and I am working to catch up in my knowledge of these events of the past, and the more recent atrocities against the Armenian people that have been occurring to this day. I continue to have a lot to learn, and each new bit of knowledge breaks my heart.
Phew! Lots to see and do in Armenia during our virtual visit. What has piqued your interest the most?
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