Easter Trip to Armenia

Just got back from 4 days in Armenia, my third Caucasus country after Georgia and Azerbaijan.

As a third world passport holder, I had a rough experience in Georgia (I felt like I was treated like a criminal while my husband who has EU passport breezed through in 5 minutes). Armenia was much more welcoming. We went to separate lines and cleared immigration in roughly the same time. Both of us got asked about our previous Azerbaijan visit and whether we “have a friend there.” Nothing came of it though, we both got through fine.

Yerevan first impressions: Chaotic in the best way. Traffic is genuinely insane, and there’s always some guy in a car making noise or blasting music at full volume. Still, it’s a walkable city once you’re on foot. There’s a Soviet-style boulevard that feels grand and organized, and then everything around it is just urban sprawl.

I climbed the Cascade Complex, with funny arte (like the fat sculptures of Botero, which reminds me of my past visit to Colombia) and got incredibly lucky with the weather. Mount Ararat and Little Ararat were fully visible against completely clear skies. Worth remembering that Ararat sits inside Turkey now.

On Sunday, I went on a minimalist tour where you basically just pay for transport. No overpriced lunch packages. Highly recommend this format if you’re on a budget.

Khor Virap is a major pilgrimage site with a stunning view of Mount Ararat. According to legend, St. Gregory the Illuminator was thrown into a pit here and imprisoned for 13 years. He survived, eventually cured the king from madness, and that king converted Armenia to Christianity in 301 AD, making it the first Christian nation. I did not go down into the pit because there were many pilgrims during Easter Sunday.

On the way we passed the Azat Reservoir, which looked stunning against Mount Ararat.

Geghard Monastery is partially carved directly into a cliff face, which already makes it unlike most churches I’ve visited. It’s a UNESCO site and the rock-cut chambers inside feel ancient in a way that’s hard to describe.

During the tour’s lunch stop there were two ladies making lavash, the Armenian flatbread, from scratch. It comes out paper-thin and incredibly crunchy. I didn’t pay for the tour lunch as it was way overpriced, and we packed our own lunch beforehand to save money.

Symphony of Stones completely caught me off guard. It looks like the Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland but on a much larger scale, with these massive vertical basalt columns lining the gorge. I had no idea this region had volcanic geology like that.

Garni Temple is a reconstructed Hellenistic temple dedicated to Mithra. It looks almost out of place in the Armenian landscape, as it was built in Greco-Roman style.

Armenian Christianity developed completely independently from Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy. The rituals feel distinct. We were there during Easter. I watched people bringing bundles of grass to the church to be blessed. People were touching the church walls with their hands and foreheads.

The thing that stuck with me most was the khachkar, the Armenian cross-stones. I saw one depicting Jesus flanked by two lions, which reflects Zoroastrian influence, similar to the lion symbolism you see surrounding Imam Reza in Iran. Both Armenia and Iran were once Zoroastrian countries. The layers of religious history in this country are genuinely fascinating.

We stayed at Ibis Yerevan. We booked in advance and paid 60 euros per night total (30 per person). Saved a lot on food by buying lavash from the supermarket and eating it with salami, cheese, and aubergine caviar. Simple, cheap, and honestly very good.

Armenia was wonderful. The landscape, the history, they really rubbed my travel itch and made me feel like I discovered something totally unique.