Yerevan

...line and ten stops the Yerevan underground is a dream. Trains are frequent and while it is not the cleanest in the world, there are certainly worse ways to travel.

It was a sunny June day and the trees were in full blossom; it was early and people were still making their way to work while waiters were putting tables out in front of cafes. The whole scene was quite Parisian. We wanted to stop but other matters were more pressing.
...of the famous artists from Yerevan and where we could see examples of their work around the city.

Yerevan is a very arty and stylish city; at its heart is the opera house and which is a good navigational landmark and a place where people of all ages stop to meet up with friends or simply take the weight off their feet. Next to the opera house is a park which is the evening meeting place - in actual fact it's a set of nose to nose pavement ... more

Armenia is a country I had wanted to visit for some years and I finally got the opportunity during my trip around the Black Sea; strictly speaking we shouldn't have gone at all since Armenia is not on the Black Sea but I did not see the opportunity presenting itself in the near future.

I had spent ages imagining Armenia as a country where sad old ladies wore black and kept up a vigil for sons lost in the war in Nagorno Karabakh or perhaps sent to fight for the Russians in Afghanistan. I supposed it to be a country where folk musicians played at on holidays and the whole village would join in the plaintive songs. What I found, at least in the capital Yerevan, was a different story altogether.

We arrived by ovenight sleeper from Tbilisi, the Georgian capital. We were tired and filthy and without accommodation. The trusty Lonely Planet had some suggestions, however, so we changed some money and took the underground to the centre. With only one line and ten stops the Yerevan underground is a dream. Trains are frequent and while it is not the cleanest in the world, there are certainly worse ways to travel.

It was a sunny June day and the trees were in full blossom; it was early and people were still making their way to work while waiters were putting tables out in front of cafes. The whole scene was quite Parisian. We wanted to stop but other matters were more pressing.

Yerevan does have lots of hotels but little for the budget traveler. All the main chains are represented and prices are on a par with any other capital city. Thankfully, some enterprising people rent rooms in their city centre apartments to tourists; these are mainly in excellent locations in the heart of the city but facilities vary. After a few tries we found a landladay with a vacancy. Annahit was a small lady, perhaps in her sixties; she looked slightly bookish with her round glasses and her navy blue beret which she wore at all times. Her apartment was wonderful; in each room were paintings done by her late father whose work was so noted in Armenia that many of his works are exhibited in the National Gallery.

For about fifteen pounds a night for two we got a double room and use of the bathroom and kitchen. We would have to pay extra for use of the washing machine and would need to ask Annahit if we wanted to use it. At first the arrangement looked to be a good one but it turned sour. We found Annahit overbearing and intrusive - she would wait until you sat on the toilet before she called you - and I would have looked for alternative accommodation had we been staying longer.

There was one good thing about Annahit. She had a good knowledge of the city and she had plenty of recommendations to make. If it was not for her we might not have ventured out to see some of the sighs just outside the city that we had previously thought we too far away. She also told us - in he bizarre mix of Russian, German and a little English - a little about some of the famous artists from Yerevan and where we could see examples of their work around the city.

Yerevan is a very arty and stylish city; at its heart is the opera house and which is a good navigational landmark and a place where people of all ages stop to meet up with friends or simply take the weight off their feet. Next to the opera house is a park which is the evening meeting place - in actual fact it's a set of nose to nose pavement cafes and it's the place to be seen. Armenian women take a particular pride in their appearance and get dressed up to the nines just to have a drink in the park. With my limited wardrobe and my comfortable walking sandals I often felt very out of place in Yerevan, getting the distinct impression that the Armenian women were looking disdainfully at my gear. I also had the impression that they were also looking suspiciously at my boyfriend, either because they couldn't understand what he was doing with someone who did not wear white high heels or because they thought he was mean for not buying them for me.

To be honest most independent tourists looking to explore would be disappointed if they saw only the centre of Yerevan although it does have a handful of interesting and attractive buildings. However, it is pretty soulless and could be anywhere in Europe with its international brands and fast food joints. It does have a couple of impressive squares with fountains and government offices but the really interesting things to see are towards the edge or completely out of town.

The Cascades is a new construction - not quite finished when we visited - and is a great way of climbing up to one of Yerevan's best known monuments. The Cascades is a series of escalators and staircases, one on each side with landscaped gardens in the middle - there are something like eight levels in all. Each level has a "landing" where you can walk out and get a terrific view of the city; each time the view changes a little as you climb. At the foot there are sculptures by Cafesijan - one of Armenia's mot famous contemporary artists. He moved to the USA but has been a prolific sponsor of the arts in Armenia and his mark can be found all over the city.

Reaching the summit there is a short walk to Mother Armenia - a giant statue that watches over the city. Sadly, it is virtually impossible to get Armenia's matriarch into a single frame such is her height and the size of the plaza she sits on. Underneath her pedestal is a small exhibition dedicated to the war in Nagorno Karabakh, the breakaway region of southern Armenia where there was terrible bloodshed in the eighties and nineties. It is almost entirely captioned in Armenian or Russian but it is still moving and the photographs manage to convey much.

Another monument which tourists really ought to see is Tsitemakaberd which is the memorial to the Armenian Genocide. The fate of the Armenians in the early twentieth century is overshadowed by the fate of Jewish people at the hands of the Nazis but it is no less tragic. For centuries Armenians and Ottomans lived side by side in relative harmony when the region passed frequently back and forth between the Persian and the ottoman empires. Even so, Armenians were second class citizens with fewer rights. In 1908 there was a coup by the Young Turks that saw the end of rule by the sultans; most Armenians were in favour of this but the expected reforms did not materialize. In April 1915 the government of the Young Turks lured hundreds of Armenian leaders to Istanbul where they were murdered. The wholesale massacre of ordinary Armenians followed.

The monument consists of a striking set of basalt pillars in the middle of which burns an eternal flame. The background of snow-capped Mount Ararat seems fitting giving that Armenians have always considered it their symbol and that it lies today within Turkey. To this day Turkey and Armenia do not have active diplomatic relations and the border between them remains firmly shut. A museum under the monument is one the best I have ever visited and I recommend a visit for anyone in this region.

History buffs will find a wealth of sights in and around Yerevan; I shall only outline them here. While I would not recommend hiring a car, I would suggest finding a taxi driver who will negotiate a price to take you around several sights in one day. You may also be approached by students who wish to earn some extra money by guiding tourists. This may be better because they will probably speak good English and have a good knowledge of the sights.

Erebuni is a Urartian fortress which dates from around 780 BC; it was built to defend the city against attacks from the north Caucasus. Erebuni is on the edge of the centre.

Echmiadzin is the centre of the Armenian church; the cathedral was built in around 480 AD. It is an attractive building set in walled gardens and is also home to a training college for priests. It is a delight to see the young priests moving through the grounds in their robes. Echmiadzin is perhaps the most accessible of the sites; it is a working church and is particularly ornate. A small museum - the "Manouzian" contains some stunning items of silverware and some incredible richly coloured icons. The ruins of Zvartnots Catherdral are another popular draw and are best visited en route to Echmiadzin.

Garni has two interesting sights; the church and a small Parthenon-like edifice erected in the first century AD by the Armenian king Tiridates using money given by Emperor Nero. Geghard is an ancient monastery and is partly carved out of a mountain.

Back in the centre of town one can spend hours in little galleries which highlight the work of contemporary artists and maybe pick up some interesting handmade items; the jewellery is particulary attractive. There are several "shukas" which are covered markets halls selling mainly fresh produce. All the stall holders wanted us to taste their produce and so we did. Delicious strawberries, salty cheese and wonderfully gooey dried fruits! We were not in town over the weekend but several people recommend the "vernissage" - the tourist bazaar where you can pick up all kind of Soviet relics at bargain prices.

Yerevan, like most capital cities, has a host of international restaurants - Chinese, Lebanese, Italian and an absolutely wonderful sushi restaurant where Russian businessmen flaunt their wealth by ordering the most expensive sashimi and washing it down with copious amounts of vodka.
We struggled to find anything authentic until we came across what is known as "Khorovadze Street". Khorovats is a traditional Armenian dish and is basically a big chunky kebab. Many Armenian houses have barbecues built into the exterior boundary wall of the property and on this street they all face onto the main road. Some people have converted part of the house into a dining area, some have built terraces that would never get planning permission in the UK. As with the British traditional of barbecuing, this is work for men and theses joints have name's like "Artoush's Place" - a woman is not trusted to cook khorovats! A good Armenian beer like Kotakya or Killikya goes down a treat with khorovats and you may well be offered some Ararat brandy, made in Yerevan. The factory can be toured but we found it impossible to find the correct information and it seems like organised groups might have more luck.

Yerevan is a cosmopolitan and modern city but it still has one or two quirky ways that are bound to please. My overall feeling was one of disappointment though this is most likely down to my own preconceptions than any faults that Yerevan may have. Certainly, I learned a lot and I saw many interesting things but I couldn't help feeling that the march towards full modernization is tearing the heart out of what is left of Yerevan. Over the course of its history, Armenia has only had brief spells of independence and after it was taken over by the Red Army in 1920 Yerevan lost many of its mosques, ancient baths and caravanserais in the rapid modernization of the city by Soviet architects. This is happening again today. This time locals are worried about the proposed demolition of perfectly serviceable apartment blocks to make way for modern designer properties. Jermaine Jackson is said to be planning to open a hotel and entertainment complex in the heart of the city, a project which has alarmed many.

In spite of the fact that Armenia is rapidly modernizing and attracting new investment (Lycos moved its headquarters from Paris to Yerevan!) it is still quite difficult to find people who speak or are willing to speak much English in Yerevan. It is likely that the people that, as tourists, you are most likely to meet (waitresses, taxi drivers, etc) do not speak English and those who do have managed to find such good jobs that they are not interested in speaking to tourists. We met one or two friendly Armenians (including a trio of young men who offered us a lift up a very steep hill in an old Lada) but on the whole we felt quite isolated there.

I would still recommend a visit to Yerevan but really only to history buffs. Yes, Yerevan has nice cafes and glitzy clothes shops but these are things you can find closer to home. Sadly, Yerevan has become a shadow of its former self and strictly one for the enthusiasts.

PRACTICALITIES

The currency is the Dram; there are plenty of ATMs in Yerevan.

The centre can be navigated on foot; taxis are cheap enough to use when needed; Yerevan has countless bus stations, do not take a bus unless a trusted local shows you which bus station to leave from. Conflicting information is the order of the day!

You MUST have a visa to enter Armenia. These can be bought on arrival at Zvartnots Airport or at train and road borders for $60 and are valid for three weeks.

Armenian script is like nothing you've seen before and is very hard to master, the average tourist will probably not be able to decipher much. However, tourist facilities, larger towns and things like hospitals are also signposted in Roman script and usually in English.

 

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