After the glorious weather of Independence Day, it rained overnight and the streets were just drying out as I took breakfast with new friends in the Cucina Restaurant before checking out of the Marriott. The 80 passengers starting the Golden Eagle tour were divided between three 'Higer' luxury touring coaches and a people carrier. I was in coach 1 and we set off to visit Geogard Monastery, a medieval Christian monastery in the mountains 37km about an hour's drive from the city. We stopped at a viewpoint looking towards Mount Ararat in Turkey but poor visibility meant the view was not good. We continued to the monastery where we had a fascinating visit but too much walking on cobbles and climbing for my current mobility.
Geogard Monastery, Armenia.
We got back to the bus just as a spectacular thunderstorm started and drove to the Garni Temple site used by the Romans and later as a summer palace by the then Armenian royal family. There's an article on its complex (and sometimes disputed history on Wikipedia here. I was amazed how many tourists were there and the narrow roads delayed our arrival and still necessitated a fair walk (I think I see a pattern emerging).
The Temple of Garni, Armenia.
We were shown the making of the local 'thin bread' and invited to try the local 'snacks' made from the bread with cheeses and herbs. I enjoyed it.
The Temple of Garni, Armenia: Making 'thin bread'.
There was a very lively singing and dancing demonstration from a group of men and women in traditional dress. I usually dismiss this sort of thing as 'touristy' but they performed with such gusto that I enjoyed it, even when I became one of the guests co-opted into a simple 'ring' dance.
The Temple of Garni, Armenia: Traditional singing at dancing.
We drove back to Yerevan, catching up with the storm again. In the city, the drains were not able to handle the water and there was some flooding on the roads. We stopped at 'Tavern Yerevan', a large restaurant for an Armenian-style lunch. The thin bread and cheeses I'd tried earlier were provided and I ate a lot more, plus I sampled some of the other foods and finished off a wonderful fish fillet, perfectly cooked.
Yerevan, Lunch at 'Tavern Yerevan'.
Our coaches then took us to Armenia's Memorial and Museum of Genocide, commemorating the 'ethnic cleansing' of many Armenian people by the Turks in the first World War. Armenia's claims are not accepted by all countries but the evidence very professionally presented in the displays and outlined by the museum's lady guide seemed compelling. I must find out more and regret that my British education failed to alert me to this suffering, which has resulted in an Armenian Diaspora with far more Armenians around the world (at least 7 millions) than in Armenia (estimated at perhaps 2 millions). It was a harrowing but instructive visit.
The Memorial and Eternal Flame, Museum of Genocide, Yerevan, Armenia:
The museum was located on one of the tall hills around the centre of Yerevan, giving wonderful views over this interesting city and rather better views of the omnipresent Mount Ararat than we'd obtained earlier.
Mount Ararat in Turkey as seen from Yerevan in Armenia
Our last visit was to the Cascade Giant Stairway, a curious landmark turned museum started by the Russians and continued by an Armenian donor after Independence as a museum of modern art but still incomplete through lack of funding. A very odd place which fascinated me, even with the various fountains not working but still offering different vistas of Yerevan at each level.
Cascade Giant Stairway
Finally, we drove through the darkening streets to Yerevan railway station where we joined our 17-coach train.
Boarding the 'Golden Eagle' at Yerevan Station, Armenia: The triumphal Soviet architectural style of Yerevan station.
Almost immediately, an excellent dinner was served on board. The programme called for our train to depart around 2.00 a.m. Sunday for the journey to Tsovagyugh in Armenia and, after breakfast on the train there, we were to spend the day exploring Lake Sevan and Dilijan by coach, returning to the train at 5.15 p.m.
Related posts on this website
This is one of a series of posts describing my 'Golden Eagle' Caspian Odyssey trip, starting with Travelling East.
Clicking on the 'Next report' link displays the post describing the next events. In this way, you may read about the trip in sequence.
Next report.
Alternately, clicking on the 'All my Caspian Odyssey reports' link displays all the posts on this trip in reverse date-of-posting order.
All my Caspian Odyssey reports.
My albums of pictures
Marriott Armenia, Yerevan.
Geogard Monastery, Armenia.
The Temple of Garni, Armenia.
Yerevan, Armenia.
Museum of Genocide, Yerevan, Armenia.
Cascade Giant Stairway, Yerevan, Armenia.
The 'Golden Eagle' Train from Yerevan.
All my pictures in Armenia can be found in the collection of albums Armenia.
[Minor changes, picture and picture links added: 3-Oct-2018]
