Armenian travel guide

Armenia is an eastern European country with rich historical and cultural connotations. It is also the latest European country to sign a visa-free agreement with China. Armenia's tourist attractions include natural landscapes and a large number of cultural and historical buildings, which will make your journey more colorful.

On June 5438+1October 19, 2008, the visa-free agreement between China and Armenia came into effect, and Armenia will become the15th country to completely exempt China from visas. For many people, this country in Transcaucasia is very mysterious. So what kind of country is Armenia? Is it fun? How to play? The following words will be revealed for you.

Overlooking Mount Ararat from the capital Yerevan.

An ancient transcaucasian country with a long history of civilization.

Caucasus is the corridor and crossroads of Eurasia. The area north of the Great Caucasus Mountains has always been a part of the Eurasian steppe, and nomadic people are in turn the protagonists here. South of the Great Caucasus Mountains, or Transcaucasia, its history is basically written by Armenia and Georgia. For more than 3,000 years, the Caucasus, which guards the boundary between Asia and Europe and blocks the southern passage of Eurasian grassland like a big cork, has been a historical stage of invasion and resistance: Assyrians, Greeks, Romans, Persians, Byzantines, Arabs, Mongols, Ottoman Turks and Russians have come in droves.

Religiously, the Christian belief in Transcaucasia is almost submerged in neighboring countries that believe in Islam: the North Caucasus, Azerbaijan, Turkey and Iran are all Islam. But Armenia, like Georgia, was the first country in the world to establish Christianity as the state religion, several years before Rome. Armenian writing also has a long history. Until modern times, Armenia has been using Armenian characters created by Mesrop Marchetto in the 5th century.

In the 5th century, Armenia was annexed by Sassanbos, and then gained autonomy. Since then, Byzantium and Seljuk Turkey have successively become the suzerain of Armenia. 123, Mongolian generals Su Taide and Zhe Bie invaded and conquered the Caucasus from Arabia, then climbed the Caucasus and invaded the Chincha grassland. On the yuan dynasty history, the Caucasus Mountains have a very China name: "Taihe Ridge". Sultan Zalandin, who won many battles with Genghis Khan, also invaded Armenia several times. After the Ottoman Turks captured Constantinople in 453, Armenia completely disappeared as a country until the end of World War I nearly 500 years later.

From Cultural Sites to Natural Scenery

Anyone who flies to Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, will see postcard-like scenery outside the porthole. -A snow-capped mountain, Mount Ararat, covered with snow all year round. It is one of the most famous mountains in the world and undoubtedly one of the highest religious mountains. Although the followers of Abraham's three major religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam) have differences on many things, they all believe the description in Genesis of the Old Testament, that is, when God caused the world to flood, the last place Noah's Ark docked was Mount Ararat.

Although Mount Ararat is actually located in Turkey, it adds a lot of color to the beautiful scenery in Yerevan. Armenia is full of surprises because of the majestic Caucasus Mountain and the historical sites brought by thousands of years of civilization.

Ebony castle

This is where Yerevan was founded by Stiti I of algie in 782 BC. Now people can visit its ruins and walk in the remaining stones and walls. St. Salsi's Cathedral was rebuilt from 1835 to 1842. It is the seat of Jalas, the Armenian church, as the parish of the church.

The outer wall of ebony castle

Chi mi he Jin church

EkimiHejin Church is the oldest cathedral in the world, located 20 kilometers west of downtown Yerevan. In 30 1 A.D., the prophet Santigregori saw a scene in which Christ fell from the sky and smashed a piece of land with a golden axe, telling him where the first Armenian cathedral should be built. Chimi A Jin Church, meaning "the only son born on earth", was built here and has been the main church of Armenian Apostolic Church ever since. The church complex and the affiliated archaeological site of ZWalteno also vividly demonstrated the development of Armenian churches in the form of central dome crosses and corridors, which had a far-reaching impact on the development of architecture and art in this area. In 2000, they were listed as world cultural heritage.

Chi mi he Jin church

Gard monastery

It is also one of the world cultural heritages, which was originally established by Gregory relying on the natural spring water near the cave where he often prayed. The monastery we see now was built in the13rd century, and most of the buildings are carved from rocks, which is its greatest feature and represents the peak of Armenian medieval architecture. The church is inlaid with many ancient cross stones and engraved with a large number of reliefs, which is beautiful.

Gerhard monastery next to the rock.

At the same time, it is also famous for its collection of sacred objects, the most famous of which is the spear stabbed by Jesus when he was on the cross. It is said that every Armenian should make a pilgrimage to Gegard monastery at least once in his life. Today, the behavior of pilgrims still embodies the ancient tradition: before setting foot here, throw a pebble on the cliff to ensure that your wish can be realized. Among the shrubs and trees in the monastery, you can also see small broken ribbons tied to branches. Every small broken ribbon is left by believers, representing a kind of prayer.

Garde Abbey and Upper Azat Valley

Hall Virab Monastery

In order to stick to his beliefs, Gregory was tortured by water and hot cinders. Then he was thrown into a dungeon, and then into a deep pit full of mud and poisonous snakes. In that deep pit, Gregory stubbornly persisted for 14 years. It is said that a widow was ordered by God in her dream to throw a loaf of bread into a deep pit every day for Gregory to eat.

Hall Virab Monastery with the majestic Mount Ararat as the background.

To commemorate Gregory's painful experience and his unshakable faith, believers built a monastery above the deep well. This monastery facing Mount Ararat was named Hall Virab Monastery. Now, pilgrims still come here to pray for Gregory. They can climb into this 5-meter-diameter circular pit along a ladder with 25 steps and experience Gregory's feelings in those days.

Ganisi

This is a Greek and Roman building, originally dedicated to Mitra, the sun god of Zoroastrianism. When Alexander the Great led his army through here and went to Central Asia and beyond, there may be many such temples in this area.

The Gani Temple was severely damaged in the Armenian earthquake, but fortunately, the ruins remained intact until archaeologists rediscovered them in 1909. The renovation project was completed on 1975.

The restored Greek temple

Hagpat Monastery and Sanashin Monastery

From 10 century to 13 century, these two monasteries were both important local universities, especially Sanahin Monastery, which is famous for its annotation and calligraphy schools. Hagupat Monastery was built from 967 to 99 1 year by the wife of the then Abbas dynasty, Queen KoSlovaNushosrovnosch, and her two sons Guriegel and Subat, and it has been continuously expanded in the following three centuries, becoming a model of Armenian religious art, with magnificent churches and elegant arcades. Sanahin Monastery is located on a wooded hillside near Sanahin village in Armenia. It consists of several buildings built in different periods: the larger Amanakitz church and the smaller Astvasadin church adjacent to it, Gregorian circular church, college, bell tower and library. During the period of 1235, due to the invasion of Mongols, monasteries gradually declined and many buildings were destroyed. Today, these two monasteries are world cultural heritages.

Hagpat Monastery and Sanashin Monastery

Sevan L.

The ancient town of Dilleland, where Saifan Lake is located, is also known as Little Switzerland, where there are alpine scenery and forests. And this beautiful scenery is only 60 kilometers away from Yerevan.

Lake Sevan is one of the largest freshwater lakes in the world and the largest freshwater lake in the Caucasus. Twenty-eight rivers and streams feed this lake, surrounded by snow-capped peaks, and the white sand beach around the lake constitutes a perfect postcard landscape. On the lake stands Sevanawank Monastery, which means "Black Monastery" and was built in the 9th century. It is worth mentioning that the Soviet-era water diversion project in the last century caused the surface of Lake Sevan to dry up. The picturesque Saifan Lake we see now is the result of the policy revision and ecological restoration of the local government.

Overlooking the lake from Sevanawank Monastery

Stay away from the noisy ski resort.

In addition, thanks to the perfect and primitive natural climate conditions in the Transcaucasian Mountains, Armenia is also a skiing country. Valley of flowers (also known as Zor Town, Saked) has a vast snowfield with a total length of 27 kilometers. The altitude of the ski resort can be increased from 1966 meters to 28 19 meters, and high-quality powder snow falls every year. The snow season can also last from 1 1 to next April. This place was originally built to train Soviet athletes to participate in the Winter Olympics (1988), with perfect facilities.

Armenia in winter is also worth visiting.

Sevan Snow Field is located in the only place where Sevan Lake passes. Although there are few snow trails, the view is quite broad. Its skiing season can be from the end of June to the beginning of June. Mount Alagh near Lake Sevan stands 40 kilometers northwest of Yerevan, with an average elevation of 4,000 meters, and its peak area accounts for almost 1/5 of Armenian territory. It is also a ski resort for local people.