Armenia Mania - Embracing Winter & Crashing a Wedding at Abovyan (Day 2)

So I was lucky to be welcomed into Armenian hospitality by these two "brothers" that I met at Geghard. We roam the monastery up to the prayer caves and tied our wishes to the trees and of course photo session took place. 

may all my wishes comes true!!!!

my newfound friends

 "To this day, near many ancient churchyards and small roadside chapels, you can see a tree that is festooned with rags. Armenians go to tie a piece of cloth on these “wishing trees”; each rag represents a wish or a prayer that the supplicant hopes will be granted by God".





4th Stop: Back to Garni Temple

We decided to do a quick stop back to Garni Temple on our way to Lake Sevan since the guys haven't cover that area yet. We chanced upon a group of tourist from Europe (Russia or Denmark??? not so sure) who are very friendly. Well, I kinda feel like a celebrity when they wanted to take pictures with me.(I strongly suspect its the first time they encounter an Asian...)

moi and my fans...just kidding...(other tourist at Garni Teple)

5th Stop: St. Hovhannes Mkrtich Church in Kotayk Diocese

Weather is chilly even if the afternoon sun is peeking on us. Since we are passing the city of Abvoyan, another quick stop is a must to see the newly built St. Hovhannes Mkrtich church. 

I say, it was a very intricately constructed church and the locals said that the cross on top of the church was made of pure gold... so that's a wow!

Weddings are being held when we get there, and it was fascinating to watch the wedding entourage. They do remind me of Barbie dolls, so my friend George asked the bride if I can have a photo opportunity with them. It was quite amazing how one of the guest also joined us...(yeah, of course I am the only Asian face among them... its like a Martian in the midst of eathlings...) 

to Abovyan we gooooo

can i say wow????

can you see the gold cross???

more prayers for a safe trip

ceiling of St. Hovannes

ongoing wedding...lucky me!!!

wedding crash on the side? check!

the wedding crasher in me!!!!

My Driver/Tour Guide Gagik and my newfound Syrian friends

lost in Aboyvan ???? No... quick stop at St. Hovannes

moi @ St. Hovannes

intricate ..wow!

Armenia Mania - First Snow Experience (Day 2)

Day 2: Exploring the Caucasus Mountains

My Day 2 Itinerary is to explore the century-old monasteries in the Caucasus mountains (Garni & Geghard) so the best option was to request a local driver from the ever-helpful staff of the Hrazdan Hotel.

always travel on full stomach :)

Travel Tip No. 1: Unfamiliar roads? Better get a driver.

His name was Gagik (for my fellow Filipinos, I really had to swallow a lungful of air every time to stop myself from smirking...and to those who are wondering why I have to this lungful exercise..."gagi" is a Tagalog expletive.) Thus throwing caution to the winds, I decided to call him Mr.Gagik so it wont feel like I'm verbally abusing him every time I pronounce his name. This trip will cost me around AMD50,000 (roughly AED400 only!)

Armed with a few words in English and million hand gestures and facial expressions, we managed to understand each other through finger pointing system. ( 1. take out your map;  2. point the place you want to go;  3. sit back and enjoy the ride and scenery) 

1st stop : Charents Arch & 1st encounter with snowfall!!!  This is more like a welcoming entrance to the Armenian countryside and conveniently located along the road to Garni and Geghard Monastery. and has a 360 degree breathtaking view of Mt. Ararat and her valley (although I didn't see it because of the cloudy winter weather).

Charents (Ararat) Arch 

my first snow encounter ...brrrr

oh look....snow on my hands!!!! time to make "halo-halo"

snow lined path...isnt it adorable?

Behold! The Valley of Armenia

Engraved Poem

Charents' engraved poem on the arch says:

For My Sweet Armenia

Travel the world: you will never find

a crest as pure as Ararat's,

As an impassible road to glory,

I love my Masis Mountain.

-Yeghisheh Charents (1897-1937)

Quick Architectural Facts: 
Monument Architect: Raphael Israyelian
Erected on: 1957



2nd Stop : The Temple of Garni

And then, as I walked the path leading to the 77 AD temple dedicated to Mitra, the God of Sun; the calming sound of the duduk instrument softly playing from the hidden speakers along the pebbled pathway, I was literally transported to the ancient times. The sun rays slowly rising from behind the temple creating a majestic silhouette that survived for centuries depicting the Hellenistic era. It was surreal knowing that my feet is treading the same road where the Roman emperors and ancient kings have walked.

path to the Garni Temple

architectural pedestal/stylobate details

ancient foundation of a church

symphony of the past and the present

A view to the Garni Gorge

Temple Interior with Oculus??

The Majestic Garni Temple

3rd Stop : Monastery Complex of Geghard - Kotayk Region

The legend of the St. Geghard Monastery will always fascinate me for it was said that a legend dugged this medieval monastery complex in a huge cliff. Legend says:

To legend a sister and a brother from a noble family decided to built a temple in the gorge. For a long time they couldn’t decide where to built the temple, so they asked God to help them. One morning they saw their hoe stuck on the top of the mountain. Soon after with the help of a saint virgin they built a splendid temple in the rock. And till the end of their lives they lived with faith, served the temple and died there.

another oculus

I met two wonderful guys who are in their late 20's that are of Syrian-Armenian origin (George and his bestfriend...sorry i forgot his bff's name) who took pity on me when they saw me taking selfies awkwardly...so they offered to take my pictures and vice-versa (I don't have a selfie stick at that time...so I rely on stranger's pity). It was blessing in disguise to made my acquaintance with them because they turned out to be my newfound friends. Since I have a hired driver and the guys rely on public transport, we made an arrangement to extend our tour to the mountain resorts near the Sevan Lake. It turned out to be mutually rewarding for all of us because we shared the driver's fee and we also had a great time sharing our experiences. So on to the next adventure! !!!

picture credit to George

St. Geghard 

more snow!!!!

my first ever miniature snowman!!!!

Stream behind the monastery

find me!!!!

monastery courtyard with an ancient birdb

my first GATA bread...uber delicious!!!!

Travel Tip No. 2: Always buy a GATA bread!!!! 

It is a must to buy the "GATA" bread. This large, sweet, round bread is to-die-for and I must say you have never been to Armenia unless you get to eat the gata. It was a mistake I didn't bought more, for they are freshly made with love from these Armenian women.


Armenian women are encouraged to put the love and warmth that they feel towards their family members into it, so that peace and success are present at their home the whole year.