Day 5

In the morning we took another walk through Jermuk and admired the gorgeous fall colors. We also found out the the abandoned building next to our hotel used to be a cultural center in Soviet times. We walked around it and found a way to get in. It still had signs of former splendor even though it was completely dilapidated. The same thing happened to a lot of sanatoriums from that era. They sit empty and abandoned, places that must have been quite luxurious and lovely. Some of them are in fantastic locations with amazing views. We were told that during Soviet time, Jermuk was twice the size it is now. Before leaving, we went to see a waterfall at the bottom of the gorge. It’s called mermaid’s hair and it looks like it. Then we drove to Tatav. The picturesque road winds through mountains and canyons. We are beginning to think that there are no straight roads in Armenia. The aerial tramway is stated to be the longest in the world 6 km. It was built in 2010, and before the only way to get to the monastery was via a very steep and very winding and dangerous road. Tatev monastery is the most visited site in Armenia and it is very impressive. Built between the 6th and 8th century, it was one of the largest and richest monasteries in the country. In the middle ages it also housed a university with about 500 students and owned many villages. Like all religious sites, it was closed and damaged during soviet times, but now it’s being renovated. We were lucky because it wasn’t crowded when we got there and there was also a baptism in the main church, which was quite interesting. From Tatev we drove to Goris, our place for the night. It’s a very picturesque town surrounded by mountains and streams. It has an amazing history dating back to the stone age. Its old town still has cave dwellings that were used until the 19th century. This place could be a jewel, but unfortunately it’s quite run down, with a lot of soviet abandoned and dilapidated buildings, and even the historical sites are not well taken care of. With its natural beauty and fantastic location on two main routes --- to Iran and to Nagorno Karabakh, and close to Tatev, it really has a potential to be a main tourist center. The owner of our hotel (Mirhav) definitely recognizes it, but it looks like he’s in a small minority.