Postcards from abroad
We came to Kars to visit the UNESCO site of Ani, the old Armenian capital now divided from Armenia by a gorge and little else - the flag on the Armenian side making a clear statement: There’s little left of the hundred thousand strong city which was established in the fifth century on a major… Continue reading Ani and Kars
We thought we’d give you a break from our historical adventures (today a tenth century ruined city on the border of Armenia, a museum full of enchanting horse figure tombstones and another museum in a bastion dedicated to the fallen in a battle with Russia) and share some of the pleasures of this nineteenth century… Continue reading The pleasures of Kars (and a break from history lessons)
We left Lake Van yesterday morning and headed up into the mountains to reach Dogubayzit as close to the Iranian border as you can imagine: Mount Ararat suddenly appeared with its snowy cap and lava foothills, and stayed with us on and off until we drove towards the Armenian border on our way to Kars.… Continue reading Mount Ararat and Noah’s Ark
Van is a modern, chaotic city rebuilt after the 2011 earthquake which damaged much of it. Despite the charms of the lake, it’s three kilmetres inland. It has several attractions. First, the cats. Van cats - now very rare - are white and have one blue and one gold eye. On behalf of one of… Continue reading Lake Van: unique cats and Urartian treasures
We had a long drive from Batman to Van so broke it up a bit. Our first stop in the town of Bitlis (rather like a Northern England mill-town because of the dark stone, says our guidebook) looking for coffee proved futile, though we were given free tea in the only place that looked as… Continue reading A tale of two Armenian churches