Buzz
Despite warnings about solo female travel in Armenia due to security concerns, enticing articles on Lonely Planet convinced my friend from Tbilisi State University to enthusiastically invite me on a bus trip from Tbilisi (Georgia) to Yerevan.
A Day Trip to Armenia
After five hours on the road and 15 minutes at the border, we arrived in the beautiful capital. Yerevan today boasts modern planning, replacing Soviet-era structures with contemporary architecture. The city is peaceful, vibrant, filled with flower-adorned restaurants and cafes.
Garni – Armenia's Oldest Ancient Temple
On our first day, spoiled for choice with attractions, we pondered where to visit. Armenia's ancient history at the crossroads of empires makes it a fantastic place to explore ancient ruins. Medieval archaeological sites, Iron Age relics, Bronze Age artifacts, and even Stone Age relics are just hours away from the city by car. After researching various travel websites, we decided to take a taxi to the Azat Valley in Kotayk province, about 30km from Yerevan, to explore both Garni Temple and Geghard Monastery simultaneously.
The First Stop: Garni Temple – a Testament to Armenia's Heritage
Due to its favorable geographical location, the Garni fortress remained impregnable for over 1,000 years: rocky cliffs acted as natural barriers on three sides, while walls with 14 square towers protected the only entrance to the fortress. The fortress walls were built with gigantic greenish bazalt blocks, over 310m long and 2m thick. Many tourists and scientists express admiration for the ancient architects.
We had the opportunity to visit four bathing rooms with cold, warm, hot water, and the surviving water reservoirs heated in the basement. Broken gypsum wall pieces here and there have two layers: white and pink flowers and a mosaic floor with 15 colors telling the underwater story surrounded by sea gods, mermaids with distinctive Eastern faces, and shrimp. The names of the gods are written in Greek.
Not far away, in the gorge of the Azat River, a unique wonder of nature called the 'Stone Symphony' awaits. It is a mountain wall with bazalt columns formed naturally after a volcanic eruption. Surprisingly, the stones are very symmetrical and from a distance resemble a large organ. The guide advises tourists to admire from afar because occasionally some stones fall down. The natural scenery here is truly worth the adventurous trip.
Monastery on the Mountainside
Leaving Garni Temple, driving another 9km along the Arat River gorge to the east, we arrived at Geghard Monastery – meaning 'spear-shaped monastery'. Vehicles had to stop far outside and hike on a rugged stone path to the main gate. On both sides of the path are souvenir stalls and Armenian specialties such as gata bread, round and flat like a tray, and lavash – a type of flatbread made from dried fruits with a sweet and sour taste that anyone who comes here once wants to try. Near the entrance is a stone cavity rumored to be a sacred pit, if anyone throws a stone into it, their wish will come true. When we arrived, many people were throwing stones into the pit to test their luck.
According to historical records, the monastery originally named Ayrivank, meaning the cave monastery, was begun in the 4th century but was destroyed by the Arabs 500 years later and only restored in the 13th century. Following the standards of medieval Armenian architecture, the structure of the buildings in the monastery recreated the shape of peasant huts, with a central column supporting the roof with a wooden beam with a hole in the middle to let in light. The interior space of the monastery impresses with intricate carvings on the pillars, vaults, and stone walls. The oldest part of the monastery complex is the small St. Gregory chapel, located to the east, outside the main group, directly embedded into the rock of the mountainside.
Originating from unknown sources, there is a legend that says Jesus was crucified on the holy cross and brought to this monastery by the apostle Thaddeus. For many centuries, this seemingly mythical legend has made the monastery a pilgrimage site for many Christian believers in Armenia. Every day, this wonder attracts tourists from all over the world and has become a UNESCO World Heritage Site thanks to its unique construction structure dug deep into the basalt mountain.
We walked south towards the building to admire the stone carvings (khachkars) depicting the confrontation between a lion and a bull – the symbol of the Zakarian family who once owned Geghard Monastery after helping Armenia defeat the Seljuks. To the east of the monastery, stone prayer houses, climbing stairs high, also have prayer houses embedded in the rock crevices along with exquisite carved khachkars. In the prayer rooms, the faint sunlight filtering through the rocks adds to the mystical aura of the wall carvings. In the middle of a square room is the sacred spring outlet. To this day, pilgrims here still say that drinking water from this spring once will add strength and avoid all misfortunes and diseases.
Ascending another staircase, we heard echoes of singing somewhere and suddenly saw three women singing passionately before us. Their melodious voices were so captivating that everyone in the tourist group was mesmerized, forgetting to take pictures. Until the singing gradually faded away, awakening everyone, we realized it was time to return as the sky had darkened. On the way out, we only wished for more time to carefully observe the carvings here as well as to admire the majestic scenery of this complex. This is perhaps where we lingered the most every time we thought of Armenia, a small country with a rich, fascinating history.
By Hoang Thao/Entrepreneur Saigon
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Reference: Travel Guide from Mytour
MytourDecember 22, 2016
