Georgia & Armenia 2024 Day Day 4: Yerevan To Dilijan

Wednesday, November 27, 2024

Georgia & Armenia 2024 Day Day 4: Yerevan To Dilijan

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AhPek Biker - Riding Adventures

Georgia-Armenia 2024 Day 3: Armenia-Symphony of Stones

Georgia-Armenia 2024 Day 4 : 20th September (Friday)

Group (Non-cycling) Tour of Georgia & Armenia:
Day 4 - Yerevan to Dilijan:

Yerevan (Bloom Hotel)>Armenian Market>Khor Virap>Areni-1>Orbelian Caravanserai>Sevanavank Monastery>Dilijan (Casanova Inn).

This is page 4 of a 14-page blog, Click Here To Go To Title Page.

< D3: Yerevan 02 | Go to Other Days | D5: Tbilisi 02 >

?Route recommendations, here're some tips on travelling in and around Tbilisi (Georgia):

1. Traffic Directions!

Driving in Georgia is left-hand drive, with a speed limit of 60 km/h in cities and towns, and 80 km/h in other areas unless indicated otherwise. Armenia is also left-hand drive, so in both Georgia and Armenia drive/cycle on the right.

2. Immigration & Customs Requirements

For Armenia, visas have to be applied by Malaysians, which cost 7€ (21 days validity). Click here for Armenia visa application policy, and click here for the E-visa application portal. Keep a soft copy in your phone to show to immigration, and a hard copy just in case.

For both countries, after clearing immigration, one will have to go through customs. We had to carry our luggage personally through. They are green lanes for those with nothing to declare; for duty-free good exemption, click here for Georgia's regulations, and here for Armenia's. Our vans had to go through the vehicles' lanes.

3. Getting to and around Georgia & Armenia.

Major airlines serve both Georgia & Armenia. We flew from KLIA Terminal 1 into and out of Shota Rustaveli Tbilisi International Airport via Qatar Airways, with transit at Doha. It would have been time-saving into Armenia via Yerevan's Zvartnots International Airport; but we naively erred on the side of caution. Our airfares were bought during the MATA Travel Fair via promotions by the RHB Debit Card, the return fare cost us between MYR 2,800 to 3,200.
We got around both countries by using a local long-chassis Mercedes Sprinter Van with an extended rear luggage section for the 16 of us, and a Mercedes V-Class 7-seater van for another four of us who enlisted later. The rides were generally comfortable as most were on tarred roads with some stretches of gravel roads.
For harsher rides we used smaller local vans with drivers familiar to the rougher, steeper roads - this was to the Gergeti Trinity Church, Ushguli Village, Koruldi Lakes and Chalaadi Glacier.

There were a couple of free days to explore Tbilisi by ourselves, but it is possible to use the Uber Georgia app to get further around. Other ride-hailing alternatives are Bolt, Yandex and Taxi Maxim.

4. Places & Things of Interest

Enroute were several places of interest, some of which we visited and others we did not for lack of time (Note: click on GPS coordinates for a directional map to respective places):
a. Mother Armenia Statue (Մայր Հայաստան Հուշարձան) (GPS: 40.19518, 44.52473).
b. Republic Square Yerevan (Հանրապետության հրապարակ) (GPS: 40.17768, 44.51264)..
c. Symphony of Stones (Քարերի սիմֆոնիա) (GPS: 40.11583, 44.74141)..
d. Armenian GUM Market (Հայկական Շուկա) (GPS: 40.16722, 44.51505).
e. Khor Virap Monastery (Խոր Վիրապ) (GPS: 39.87843, 44.57612).
f. Areni-1 Cave (Արենիի քարանձավ) (GPS: 39.73140, 45.20315).
g. Mxey Dzor (Մխեյ Ձոր ) (GPS: 40.05768, 45.25556).
h. Orbelian Caravanserai (Օրբելյանների քարավանատուն) (GPS: 39.94957, 45.23588).
i. Sevanavank Monastery (Սևանավանք) (GPS: 40.56386, 45.01104).
j. Lake Sevan (Սևանա լիճ) (GPS: 40.34499, 45.33519).

5. Food

a. Breakfast:

Inclusive Western/Armenian Fare at Nuryan Hotel (GPS: 40.17001, 44.52426).
b. Morning Tea: Zhingyalov Hats (Bread stuffed with cilantro & spring onions) at Mulberry House (GPS: 39.88263, 44.58445) near the Khor Virap Monastery.

b. Lunch:

Armenia Roast Pork with salad at ArpaParnas Wine & Rest Valley (GPS: 39.73191, 45.20468).
c. Dinner:
Pork Ribs Stew, Grilled Fish, Stir Fried Vegetables at Tsovagyugh Supermarket Food Court (GPS: 40.61803, 44.95222).

6. Accommodations

At Dilijan, we stayed at the Casanova Inn (GPS: 40.75250, 44.89655). The alternate hotel for the smaller group was the Artsiv Guesthouse (GPS: 40.75238, 44.88418). This cost was included in the overall ground arrangements.

7. Tour Costs & Arrangements

Return air tickets bought during the MATA Travel Fair/RHB Debit Card promotions were between MYR 2,800 to 3,200.

The ground arrangements tour package included a 10-passenger van to take us around, starting from & returning to Tbilisi. It also included 3-star hotels/homestays. The charge per pax for this ground arrangement was at MYR7,400. This excluded meals (other than hotel breakfasts & 3 dinners at Mestia), airport transfers, most entry tickets and tips. This allows for individuals to have meals according to their own liking & budget. Allow per meal should be adequate.

On average, the overall tour cost worked out to be around RM950 to RM1,000 per day. For those interested in this tour, contact Eddie at +6012-6122600 for more details and updated costs.

For out-of-pocket spending, we exchange some Georgian Lari (GEL) and Armenian Dram (AMD) in the respective countries. Some brought along their Wise debit cards to use; one can pre-load the card with the local currency. Or let it auto-deduct the currencies existing in the card. We found that it deducted other currencies first before deducting Malaysian Ringgit.

8. Communicating with Each Other

When travelling in a group it's important to be able to communicate with each other, especially if one gets lost from the rest. Georgia pre-paid sim cards are easily available and cost 5 GEL to 20 GEL, depending on the provider and the included benefits. While Armenian pre-paid SIM cards range from AMD 1000 to AMD 3000. Those in our tour group pre-ordered their SIM cards through our Georgian guide.

Those who use Maxis as their telco, can purchase the Maxis Roaming Pass. The RM89 15-day Multi-country Roaming Pass covers many countries including Georgia, Armenia and Qatar.
The Pass can be bought before the trip with a designated starting time/date, BUT DO TURN OFF your data roaming just before the Roaming Pass expires OTHERWISE any subsequent usage will automatically trigger off the 1-Day Roaming Pass costing between RM29 to RM38 per day!

9. Communicating with Locals

At favourite tourist destinations, locals may speak fairly good English. At the smaller towns, locals speak some rudimentary English, and our local guide was most helpful in translating for us.

10. Weather

Average day and night temperatures in both Yerevan and Dilijan were 22°C and 13°C.

Useful weather forecast sites for Georgia & Armenia is AccuWeather. For more detailed weather, including cloud cover and wind speed, use Weatherspark and Ventusky.

11. Navigation

I used MapMyRide to track our routes and stops. Geo-tagging of places of interest was via FaceBook or Google Maps.

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PRELUDE

A day earlier, we had travelled to the outskirts to visit a temple and also some of Mother Nature's handiwork. On returning to Yerevan, we took a walk around the city and visited several tourist spots.

Today we leave Yerevan and head north for Dilijan, en route will be visits to a GUM Market - No, they don't sell gums, READ on to find out!
Further along will be a couple of monasteries, one with a scenic view of a lake.

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DAY 4: YEREVAN-DILIJAN

Guided Group (Non-cycling) Tour of Georgia & Armenia:

Day 4 - Yerevan to Dilijan.

Yerevan (Bloom Hotel)>Armenian Market>Khor Virap>Areni-1>Orbelian Caravanserai>Sevanavank Monastery>Dilijan (Casanova Inn).

(Click here for the Georgia-Armenia Day 4:Yerevan to Dilijan Route Map)

After a hearty breakfast at Nuryan Hotel , we are ready and eager to leave Yerevan for our next destination in Armenia, i.e. Dilijan.

But we are not ready to leave Yerevan just yet, wending through the local streets, we headed for the GUM. Gum what's gum? No, it's not bubble gum.....

GUM is a Russian acronym for "Gosudarstvennyj Universinyj Magazin", which translates to “State Department Store.”
So here we are at the local Armenian GUM Market; it was a clean dry market even at the meat & fish section. But we were more keen on the fruits & preserves section with its colourful display. Here some of us got the dried preserved fruits for which the country is renowned.

The market has many stalls selling a range of produce. Many of these stalls are operated by ladies; they seem to be attracted to this "Ah Pek" old man. Seems like I still have the moves..... just joking 😂.

Jokes aside, the market is really a colourful place, especially the display of their "chir" (preserved dried fruits) and pastries, like those seen above.

Finally, we are leaving Yerevan and on the way will visit the Khor Virap Monastery.

We pass by several vineyards, but they are rather bare, and those with vines were not fruiting yet..

Stopped by the vineyards near Mulberry House for a short break. It's a double bonus here, as vineyards are growing well, and in the background can be seen the Khor Virap Monastery. From here too, on a clear day, can be seen a scenic view of Mount Ararat and it's twin.

We're told not to pluck the grapes, in case we "hurt" them; but our driver, being a familiar hand, plucked a bunch for us to share.

It's actually a triple bonus here!
Mulberry House also sells "chir" (preserved dried fruits), AND on top of that, a homely lady can be seen freshly making Zhingyalov Hats flatbread. We watched as she slowly rolled the pastry, added chopped cilantro & spring onions, and then frying them on a flat pan.

The Hats are very good, and we ordered several rounds!

11:30 am - At the Khor Virap Monastery; its notability as a monastery and pilgrimage site is attributed to the fact that Gregory the Illuminator was initially imprisoned here for 13 years by King Tiridates III of Armenia. In a turn of events, Saint Gregory subsequently became the king's religious mentor, and they led the proselytizing of the country to Christianity. In the year 301, Armenia was the first country in the world to be declared a Christian nation.

The monastery consists of several buildings, the main on being the Nerses Chapel, built in the 7th century. This church, known as the Church of the Holy Mother of God, has a twelve-sided tholobate and dome, and is dedicated to St. Astvatsatsin.

The monastery lies just about 100 metres away from the closed Turkish-Armenian border. The border is sealed by a fence, and further away can be seen the minaret of a mosque.

Beyond the fence, on the Turkish side, a tall green guard post can be seen. On the Armenian side, the border has been protected by guards of the Russian Federal Security Service since 1992.

We left politics behind and, at one of the chapels said prayers for family and friends.

Caught view of some cheery teenagers, visiting on a school trip; they sure added some jovial atmosphere to brighten up the sober ones.

And to another side were pigeons calmly cooing away.

2:00 pm - We arrived at Areni, while our lunch was being prepared, we made a quick visit the Areni-1 Cave. It's not a very big or deep cave, but it's an important archaeological site. Many ancient things were uncovered in the cave, such as the earliest known shoe, the earliest known winery in the world, and also the oldest humanoid brain. A straw skirt dating to 3,900 years BCE was also found.
Areni village is home to two wine factories that produce the renowned "Areni Wine".

Our lunch at the adjacent ArpaParnas Wine & Rest Valley was grilled pork with roast potatoes and salad. Armenian grilled pork is renowned, and the ones were well seasoned and nicely grilled, bringing out the tasty and succulent flavours. All in a very enjoyable lunch with the Arpa River running next to us, providing a rustic, cool ambience.

With tummy filled, we headed north and passed by the Mxey Dzor. With its cone shape, it does look like a volcano, and it is probably an extinct one. There are indeed active volcanoes in Armenia!

Our next stop was the Orbelian Caravanserai, located up at the Vardenyats Mountain Pass. Caravanserai were the ancient inns of traders travelling along the caravan routes of the old Silk Road. They provided lodgings for the weary traders and often there was a marketplace to carry out trading. The Orbelian's Caravanserai is so named because it was built by Armenian Prince Chesar Orbelian and his brothers. The Orbelians were an influential feudal family in Georgia. They settled in Armenia after being exiled from Georgia in the 12th century.

Map of a portion of the Silk Road from "Into Far Lands: Passage Through the Highlands" shows it passing through the Orbelian Caravanserai. There are many ruins of cars dotting the Silk Road; click this National Geographic Caravanserai link for locations of the many Caravanserai along the road.

7:00pm - Climb up to the Sevanavank Monastery, after the long bus ride most of us needed to us a rest room but most of the shops at the bottom of the hill were closed and so were those at the monastery.

Nevertheless, the panoramic view of Lake Sevan was worth holding it in 😏.

It was getting late, so we just popped by to the nearby Tsovagyugh Supermarket, it's a food galore there, and we were spoilt for choices!

A baker was seen making fresh Lavash Bread in a Armenian Tonir clay oven similar to a Indian tandoor but with electric heaters instead of charcoal.

Our dinner at Tsovagyugh Supermarket Food Court:
Pork Ribs Stew (very good), Grilled Fish (ok only), Stir Fried Vegetables (uniquely stir-fried).

"Հիանալի օր էր!"

(That's "Hianali or er!" - "It's been a great day!" in Armenian)

(For more photos of Day 4, Click Here)

This is page 4 of a 14-page blog, Click Here To Go To Title Page.

< D3: Yerevan 02 | Go to Other Days | D5: Tbilisi 02 >

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