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In the Shadow of Ararat: Armenia

This one continues the last entry, “The Churches of Georgia,” which I posted a few days ago. After leaving Georgia in the southern direction, the scenery changes quite suddenly. Georgia consists mainly of fertile lowlands and highlands rich in vegetation. Armenia, in contrast, is situated at a higher altitude, lying within a geologically high plateau, which is much older and much rocky than the hills in Georgia. These rocks shine red in many places, giving the landscape an astonishing look (see pictures three and six). Even the capital, Yerevan, seems to fit perfectly into the landscape, built primarily out of reddish stone gathered from the surrounding areas (pictures one and two). There is no denying Armenia is a beautiful place. But the most breathtaking feature is the view of something actually situated outside the country’s borders. The mountain of Ararat lies like a guardian upon the land, and the view of the snow-covered giant (5.137 m or 16,854 ft) is one of the most beautiful things you can see in your life (picture five). As the supposed landing sight of Noah’s ark, it is a spiritual place deeply embedded within the national soul of the Armenians. Today, the Ararat is situated in Turkey, making it an always visible reminder of the painful and complicated history of the western neighbor.

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Portugal V (last part)

Some weeks have passed since I visited Portugal in mid-February, and I started sharing my impressions with you in a series of posts. This one will be the last one for now. But I will be back in April with new pictures of a new city (hopefully :))! Enjoy.

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What is truly remarkable about Lisboa and Porto, and what I didn’t mention before, is the excellent choice of hostels here. Portuguese hostels win competitions on Hostelworld and Hostelbookers almost yearly, and they deserve the prices! A Lisboan hostel I can recommend from my own experience the Good Morning Hostel on the Praca dos Restauradores in the city center. The people there were lovely and very helpful. We cooked together and had a great time. If you go to Lisboa, check it out.

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I can’t remember the church’s name, but it was undoubtedly in Porto. The city has many magnificent churches, some made of pure gold. They are reminiscent of a colonial era in which Porto became one of the wealthiest cities on the Iberian peninsula thanks to trade and the importance of the local harbor. + I miss the blue sky terribly.

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Number 28 is again seen on a rainy day in Alfama. My favorite part of the old town. The surroundings of the Castello are stunning and very charming. It is a lovely part of the town for a walk, but you shouldn’t mind steep hights 😉 In case there is always a tram to bring you up & back.

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A panorama picture of Porto. One day was definitively not enough for Porto. Although there are not many traditional “tourist sights” here, the city doesn’t need them. It is the maritime flair, the port wine, and last but not least the architecture and the small streets which are selling Porto and making it so attractive (especially for Britons, we were told, because there is a cheap connection from London introduced recently).

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There had to be a cat picture at some point 😉 I get her anger, but I probably wouldn’t enjoy it if someone pointed a camera at me 10 cm in front of my face. So I was a bit of a cat paparazzi here. Guilty as charged. Still cute 🙂

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The end of the world. Almost. The back of the European continent at Capo da Roca is 3000 km from home. It is a unique, almost spiritual place. Unfortunately, we had terrible luck with the weather; the wind was awful and cold as ice, so we had to return relatively quickly. Our hope to see the sunset stayed unfulfilled, too. It was beautiful nonetheless.