Author’s tour to Armenia along the Great Silk Road

Dvin City  it is one of the legendary capitals of ancient Armenia, a medieval center of trade and numerous crafts, an important transit point between the West and the East, one of the largest cities of the East of its time. A highway connecting China, Central Asia, Iran, Byzantium and some European countries passed through Dvin. By the way, one of the most classic and best Armenian cognacs is named after its ancient capital. We will begin our tour with a visit to the ruins of the city of Dvina. After Dvin, we will visit the Vayots Dzor region - the most wine-rich region of the country, where winemaking in Armenia originated. We will visit the Bird Cave, where during excavations the world's oldest and fully preserved leather shoes, 5,500 years old, and the world's oldest winery, about 6,100 years old, were found. At the cave we will have the opportunity to see how stone khachkars are made, and even try ourselves as stone carvers. After this, we will visit the Noravank Monastery (13-14 centuries), which is one of the pearls of Armenian architecture. The prosperity of the monastery is connected with the trade route passing nearby. The monastery itself owned shopping arcades and caravanserais on the road. After visiting the monastery, we will go to the village of Areni, a village of winemakers, where we will have lunch in the winemaker’s house and naturally taste the wines. By the way, near the village there are ruins of ancient bridges; there was a fortress guarding a section of the road. In the village we will also visit the Church of the Virgin Mary from the 14th century. on a hill with a very beautiful view of the surrounding area. Next we will go to the village of Yeghegis, which in the Middle Ages was the trade center of the entire region, the residence of local princes, a populous and multinational city, as evidenced by one of the oldest Jewish cemeteries in Europe from the 13th-14th centuries. with inscriptions in Hebrew and Aramaic. The village is rich in architectural monuments and is located in picturesque mountains. Before checking into the hotel, we will explore the monastery of the 7th-13th centuries. Arates. Check-in at the hotel and dinner.

​​​​​​​After breakfast, we will walk down to the medieval Jewish cemetery, which is located in a picturesque small gorge, then we will walk up to the Church of Zorats (Army) - the only church of its kind built for the baptism of fire of soldiers. The temple was built on a high cliff, the road runs through the village. The temple offers a beautiful view of the mountains and gorges. After visiting the monuments of Yeghegis, we will go to the village of Ors, where we will examine the ruins of the one-story palace of Prince Chesar Orbelyan, who built several caravanserais and owned the entire region. Next, having walked across the medieval bridge, we will go on foot to a small caravanserai of the 11th century, built at the beginning of a very dangerous pass, because in the old days the roads were dangerous! Then by car we will climb to the top of the Vardenyats pass 2410 m to the 14th century caravanserai of the same name. From the top of the pass there is a fantastic view of the entire region, the pass and mountain range separates the south of Armenia from the Lake Sevan basin at an altitude of 1900 m. Descent to Lake Sevan, lunch at a coastal restaurant, inspection of the Hayravank Monastery, which offers a beautiful view of the entire lake. Next we will go to the Lavash hotel on the shore of Lake Sevan for dinner.

After rest and breakfast we will go to the resort town of Dilijan. From here the road to the north of Armenia begins. Almost all the way to Gyumri, the region is covered with thick forests and mountains. Dilijan is known to many from the legendary film Mimino, we will stop at the monument to the heroes of the film Mimino, then we will walk along the streets of the old city, where the houses are decorated with carved balconies and beautiful stonework. There are workshops and many shops. After exploring the city, we will delve into the forests of the region and go to the Haghartsin Monastery (11-13 centuries), which was once a conservatory. Dinner. After lunch we will go to Gyumri, the road will pass through the villages of Russian-Molokans. Here you can go for a tea party. Next we will pass through the city of Vanadzor, the third largest city in Armenia, and through it we will head towards the city of Spitak, the epicenter of the terrible earthquake of 1988. From here our path through narrow mountains and passes lies in Gyumri - the northern capital of Armenia, the cultural capital of Armenia. Arrival in Gyumri, check-in at a hotel, dinner at a traditional restaurant, where we will try local cuisine.

After breakfast we will have a walking tour around the city of Gyumri. Gyumri is the center of numerous crafts, trade, the cultural capital of Armenia, the cinema capital of the country, the beer center of our country, the Armenian Odessa. Visit to the Frunzik Mkrtchyan Museum, beer tasting. Dinner. After lunch we will go to one of the oldest and first temples in Armenia - Yereruyk (4-5 centuries). On the way we will again see caravanserais, because we are traveling along the Silk Road. Yereruyk is a fusion of antiquity and Christianity, the place where Christianity took its first steps in Armenia. Return to Yerevan. Dinner

Leaving Gyumri, our road lies through the Shirak plateau - the wheat granary of Armenia. On the way, we will pass next to quarries where volcanic tuff, the main building material of Armenia, is mined. Most of the tuff deposits are located in the Shirak region. Visit to the city of Talin, inspection of the temple complexes of the 7th century, including one of the most majestic temples of our country with the remains of unique frescoes. Near the temple there is a large number of early medieval steles from the 4th to 7th centuries. With unique and rare images of saints and Christ. The temple was built by order of the ruler of Armenia. Not far from Talin there are the ruins of one of the largest harawan-serais in Armenia with shopping arcades. Inspection of the Dashtadem fortress (7-18 centuries) The fortress guarded the approaches to the capital of Armenia, the most important section of the caravan road. Lunch in one of the traditional villages of Armenia, master class on making a national dish. The last point on our way is the village of Aruch - the residence of the ruler of Armenia in the 7th century, a winter camp for Armenian troops, a trading city rich in gardens. In the center of the village we will examine the remains of a residence with a palace complex and the largest temple in Armenia from the 7th century with unique frescoes. Not far from the residence there are the ruins of a large fortress-station of the royal troops. Not far from the village we will see another caravanserai with a small bathhouse. By the way, all caravanserais were built at a distance of a day's travel from each other. Return to Yerevan.