Armenian Royal Palace Yerevan

... but they often say «Merci»<br><br> You're welcome &#8211; Khndrem<br><br> Can you help me? &#8211; Karogh ek indz ognel?<br><br> Where is...? &#8211; Vortegh e...?<br><br> Opera house &#8211; Opera (just the same) =)<br><br> Cinema &#8211; Kinotatron<br><br> Museum &#8211; Tangaran<br><br> Street &#8211; Poghoc<br><br> Avenue &#8211; Poghota<br><br> Good bye! &#8211; Tstesutyun!<br><br> Good night! &#8211; Bari gisher!<br><br>

... I was to find out that all the tickets to the nearest month are sold out! So it is better to book the tickets a month or ever 2 months before your visit!!! Here is their official website to book the tickets to Santa Maria della Grazie: http://www.cenacolovinciano.org/sito/ho me.html <br>With other museums there are no problems so far.

... us up just after nine, and a good hour S.E to a Roman Ruin at Garni, amazing , , then onto what can only be described as something from so, so ancient times, it is dated 330, but high on a mountain is a OLD Monastery called Geghard, in my wildest dreams I could never have imagined this, huge and mostly carved into the rock face, many crypts, little cells with alters, hauntingly ...

... of the window and told the girl to repeat what the problem was since I don't speak Armenian. "The driver's not here." Huh? He's outside! He just sent me in here to buy a ticket. "The driver's not here." I sat for a few minutes in the bus station, thinking the driver was supposed to come inside to register, then finally walked back outside to the marshrutka. "You have a ticket now?" No. The girl there wouldn't sell me a ticket. You're not here. "What?!" You're ...

I finally moved myself on from Tbilisi to Yerevan (though I still fly out of Tbilisi, on the 25th!). The ride to Yerevan was uneventful as far as marshrutka rides go. The border guards to Armenia were actually very pleasant and made the bureaucracy go easier. After Kazakhstan and Russia, I have a fear of all border guards (I've had not fun times in both countries). When I went up to the first window, the guard looked for my nonexistent visa in my passport, then ...

... like drawings of the dead people. Some even tell the whole stories, for example a grave of a family whose car fell down the cliff. It gets quite cloudy so let's move. On the way Sako proudly shows me a monument of MiG contructor and some high politburo politician and insists on taking photos;). Next stop is Hangpat Monastery situated on a hill with some views of the canyon. There are tourists, a thing unseen in Georgia. It is also very very very nice and I just keep admiring. Btw, in ...

... state of Galatia--part of the Roman Empire--existed next to Armenia. The apparent cross-pollination of cultures is potent in the Celtic-knot carved crosses of stone khatchkars found in the grounds of Echmiadzin and the many other Armenian churches I visited (though I am not sure who was influencing who). Armenian churches have their distinctive style, carved out of volcanic basalt, but overall, I felt that the ever-present khatchkars and their intricate knotwork ...

... figure in Armenia's early history. Khor Virap means "deep well / pit."<br><br><br><br>After Khor Virap, I went to Noravank monastery nicely sited in the Noravank gorge. Passing over the Selim pass and its caravanserai, I traveled on the West side of Lake Sevan as travel on the East side is highly discouraged as a result of its proximity to Nagoro-Karabagh and Azerbaijan.

... ad tala vid mig um USA thegar eg kom nidur en hlo bara thegar eg sagdi honum a hreinni islensku ad a Islandi vaeru engir storkar og med thad for eg aftur inn i rutuna. Vid okum yfir haedir og hola og gegnum ogrulegt gil thar sem sast bara beint upp i heidan himininn og inn i hellakaffi sem er greinilega vinsaelt af fuglaskodurum. Thar keyptum vid okkur te og sumir keyptu tebollana lika. Klaustrid sem vid skodudum svo er endurreist ...

... absolutely gorgeous!!! the stone building had such intricate carvings and it just blows my mind how beautiful and complex all these old churches are. next we traveled to the old capitol building of armenia. it was another intricate stone building 3 stories high. but unfortunately, the large earthquake that devestated armenia left this breath-taking structure in ruins. some of it has been reconstructed and a lot of the carved pillars still stand, but all the ruins are laid out ...