Day 19 - Yerevan Escape

Well it was t with too much sadness that we departed Yerevan! Our 20,000 AMD taxi coming in was on,y a 2,000 AMD going back to the airport as was a Yerevan Uber and we were t getting ripped off !

Formalities completed we steered our hire car left, right, up, down and around just to get out of the car park ! Leaving the city introd us to the Armenian style of driving that was to plague us for the next few days. Fast, tailgating, overtaking anywhere .. add in really poor signage and it took a few attempts to escape into the countryside

Immediately the scenery picked up. Our first stop was at Khor Virap a stunningly situated Monastery perched on a hill facing the massive figure of the 5,000 + metre mountain of Mt Ararat once in Armenia but now just over the border into Turkey !

Some beautiful driving followed as we climbed over a Mtn pass with snow still evident. Our descent though revealed a few places at the bottom of various hills with massive potholes. So big in fact that cars and trucks would take their own chaotic routes to avoid.

Eventually we took a beautiful Gorge road to visit the amazing Noravank Monastery perched high surrounded by red sandstone hills. This Monastery was an important position for trade and wealth on one of the nearby silk roads.

Our last bit of the day was a ridiculous descent on shocking roads into a gorge just short of Tatev. This had Henley using every expletive in the book ! Almost unbelievably the ascent was on perfect winding bitumen !

Tatev was another story ! This small non descript village exists entirely on muddy narrow unsigned roads. We circled the town 3 times trying to find our accommodation always ending up back at the towns Cemetry !

After ages and speaking to persons with little undertanding of English we found our B&B and collapsed into our luxurious room absolutely stuffed after a long day on the road. We were way too tired to go out searching for food instead settling on an ice cream from a local shop ! What a day !
Sent from my iPad

"

Noravank Monastery

Khor Virap with Mt Ararat in the distance 

I’ve had enough says H !

Well it almost happened ! After days of being tormentaed by Armenian Potholes and crazy Armenian driving habits, Kev nearly parked the hire car to hail down a bus, any bus, that was remotely heading in the general direction of Australia !

It was a culmination of days of shared driving. Yesterday in visibility about the length of the drivers compartment, the day before driving on potholed sections to Tatev big enough to swallow a bus and the day before that driving in speed city traffic where Armenian drivers would tailgate you until they found a corner blind enough to overtake you and 3 other cars at once !

What made today special though was that in Dilijan a town in the hills outside of Lake Sevan, the above car driving issues happened to Kev at once ! We'd just emerged from a 4 km long Soviet style tunnel (dark and narrow) when the fun began ! We'd been looking for a road in Dilijan that supposedly lead to a ruined monastery ! Kev had negotiated the narrow Dilijan roads avoiding cars parked 3 deep and those reversing and Turing at will when he confronted a section of potholes that once were part of a road ! In this situation every car took its own line meaning that you could be faced with 6-7 cars coming at you all from different directions ! " I've had enough of this country said Kev ! " It might have great scenery but these roads and drivers are giving me the absolute shits " ! I could gather that I thought, as his normal obscenity laden daily quota was exhausted within 5 minutes of driving ! His solution .. drive like the. !

It was time to take matters in hand before Kev turned into a blithering mess ! I took over the wheel (my obscenity daily quota was lower) while trying to navigate and console Kev at the same time !

I really do fear for the residents of Diamond Creek on Kev's return if he intends applying any of his newly learnt Armenian driving habits ! 

 



Sent from my iPad

Henley’s Heroics !

What a contrast, from towering spectacular snow covered mountains of Norway with their skinny roads to the " thriving metropolis of beautiful downturn Yerevan " . The capital of Armenia may have been reasonably new when Stalin was in nappies but now was a run-down decaying old Soviet era town where every male appears to stand around street corners smoking.
Then there's the car drivers . Speed limits of 60kph are treated as suggested speeds only and despite wet conditions and crappy roads some still insist on topping the 100kph mark with no regard for pedestrians or other drivers. They have underpasses at some major intersections as there would be multiple deaths per day without them , the traffic lights only give you 20 seconds to cross about 60 metres , good luck with that if you're elderly.
A major attraction in Yerevan is the Genocide Memorial, a commemoration to the 1.5 million Armenians slaughtered by the Turks in 1920 .
Mike and I decided to visit it but with no signs as to its whereabouts we went looking. We spied a huge building high on a hill and thought that has to be it , 172 steps later we arrived there only to find it was the new rather grandiose football stadium, stuff it .
Still no signs to the Memorial we headed back down the big hill then up a bigger hill only to find the Memorial was only 150mts from the football stadium, big time bummer . What an incredibly moving experience to read about the Genocide, something I knew absolutely nothing about.
Then the fun started next day . Hired a car at the airport and headed into the countryside for a few days.
The craziness of the drivers rose to a new level, overtaking when an oncoming vehicle is 60mts away ,
on blind bends and any other suicidal practice you could think of , super scary . Wouldn't like to see their road death toll.
Australia has potholes, Armenia has sinkholes.
It was like rally cross driving dodging here and there to only hit 50% of them , even the semis were coming to a near halt when going over some of them , we had some good laughs.
Unlike the city the countryside is magic with huge deep gorges and towering mountains, spectacular. How they managed to build Monasteries and Churches high up on some of these mountains up to 1000 years ago is beyond me , rough roads , no machinery, all by hand
Today we took a ride on the World's longest cable car ,
5.7kms long and 320mts at its highest point , amazing views. Just to complete the day we got dumped on by a storm as we got off the cable car .
Off to Georgia in a coupla days , should be an eye opening trip with the promise of being taken off the train by border police at 3am for passport checks .
Yummy
Sent from my iPad

Day 18 Yerevan - A Sombre Reflection !

After yesterdays intro to Yerevan it was back on the Metro with its Soviet style metro stations to find a helpful female employee at the main Yerevan train station who us secured our ist class sleeper train tickets (only the best) from Yerevan to Tibilisi Georgia for this Friday night. All done despite Kev complaining about borders inspections at 3.45 a.m., we headed to the end of the Metro line with a view aiming to visit the Armenian Genocide memorial and Museum. I say aim as after 2 false starts (going the wrong way from the metro) 3 kms walking to Yerevan's 172 step Football stadium thinking it was the museum, another 3 km detour down and back up a hill only to find the Museum next to the Football stadium, we arrived with Thunder and lightning brewing in the air.
We made it just in time to the Memorial and its Eternal flame before a deluge of hailstones had us taking cover ! Once passed we skated across the now winter wonderland to the Museum which although fairly small punches way over its size in terms of emotional impact. Most of us have only vaguely heard of the events of the 1920s but this was man's inhumanity to man at its highest level. It was an attempt by the Ottoman Empire to wipe a race out based purely on religion and geo political reasons. Over a few years while being observed by the international community (including writers like Hemingway) one and half million Armenians perished being killed, starved or marched to death. Properties were confiscated and wealth stolen by many that make up modern day Turkey. The Brutality of the genocide was breathtaking and even caused Hitler to remark to his Generals in the 30's that no one cared about the Armenian Genocide - an obvious prelude to his thoughts on European Jews. Today the argument still goes on about whether or not the event should be classified a genocide but let's just say that the invention of the term in the 1940s was a direct result ofwhat happened in Armenia . Today over 7 million persons of Armenian extraction live around the world and only just under 3 million in Armenia itself .. actions speak louder than words ! 

 
Sent from my iPad

Hail 

The rains coming !

Memorial

Yerevan 

Day 17 Yerevan - Eat my dust !

Our less than amazing view from our Yerevan Hotel

No so well named Yerevan Hotel

Main Railway Stn

Needs a coat of paint 

Parliament Square 

It looked to be a theatrical performance by someone who'd had one too many but when I realised that he was holding a knife I knew that it was serious !
After our marathon journey from Paris and Warsaw we arrived at Yerevans "Smart Nuts" airport (it's actually called Zvartnots) at 4.40 a.m. absolutely stuffed from nearly 24 hours on the go !
Being so tired we weakened to the pressure of the local taxi touts one of which took our money but sent us to another driver before then demanding a tip ! At least the 2nd driver appeared honest enough, welcoming us to Armenia before taking us through the darkened back streets of Yerevan to what we thought would be our doom ! Thankfully though he must have thought we weren't worth kidnapping and dropped us off at our hotel where we were greeted by our hotel owner at 6a.m.
Henley who says he never sleeps during the day crashed as did I and it wasn't until 4 hours later that we awoke to see our first sight of Yerevan with its atypical older style Russian buildings. As usual though Kev's first priority was to fill his complaining stomach !
After breakfast we crashed again before finally going out mid afternoon to explore. This city is a real mix, clean but filled with austere buildings and heavy traffic and not so happy looking people. With a low average income though this place is really cheap. Our Hotel room with breakfast cost $50 a night, a meal taken on our 2nd night $10 for the two, a token for the ride on the Undergound 40 cents and most importantly a magnum style ice creams (our dinner for the first evening) only 0.25 cents each !
Walk we did, going to Yerevans main train station to try and book our sleeper to Tbilisi Georgia but I'd forgotten my passport ! A go on the metro with their plastic tokens , and a walk around President's Square (formerly Lenin Square) and its austere Parliamentary buildings added to our exercise.
It was here that the above mentioned drama unfolded before our eyes. An agitated person had been cornered by Police outside one of the Parliamentary buildings and it was obvious that the person was holding something against their chest, a knife ! Police were unsure of what to do until a bystander snuck up and disarmed the guy in military style. The still yelling person was then dragged off in a police car !
Stunned we continued our way home picking up dinner for the evening (a Magnum Ice cream) chewing through the amazing amount of rubberised dust that seems to circulate in Yerevans air. Time for another nights rest and some additional Temazapans to get Henley to sleep before midnight !

Sent from my iPad

Days 16/17 - Paris to Yerevan - Welcome to Armenia !

This was going to be a huge day ! We'd arrived late the previous night at Paris Airport scoring a free Air France dinner of leftover food (long story) and were at it again with a 10.00a.m. Flight to Yerevan Armenia by way of an 8 hour stop over in Warsaw ! As luck would have it today was Constitution day in Poland so we figured what better way to celebrate than to head into the Old Town and find ourselves a meal ! The Old town was painstakingly restored after WW2 when 85% of its buildings were destroyed during the Polish resistance uprising ! The beautiful squares and alleyways were packed with holidaying Poles.
It was too hot to keep walking so we ventured in to a local restaurant feeling brave enough to tackle a Polish dish of sausages and caramelised onions (god help the poor people on tonight's flight !)
Back to the airport we had to wait till nearly 11pm for our Warsaw - Yerevan connection arriving barely alive at 4.40 a.m. ! This was a tough gig and we weren't in the mood to fight off the airports stalking taxi touts with one taking us through the darkened back streets of Yerevan to our Hotel where we crashed for the monring. The fact that we'd been ripped off by a taxi charge of $75 and had to put up with a Taxi pimp that demanded a $35 tip was not a great intro to this former Soviet Republic of Armenia !
Sent from my iPad

 Warsaws beautiful old town !

Lunch Polish style !

Warsaws Old Town Square

Day 15 Beaune to Paris - “Henley packs his woes away” !

The white flag was put up early on day 3 of our planned cycling adventure in Beaune a) because most of us were stuffed and b) because the rain had well and truly set in. Our priorities were still pretty urgent though and with Kev's $7 suitcase having been given last rights we had to work out a way of getting a replacement. Thank god for the internet I thought as a search showed a potential option just outside the old town section 3kms away. With Kev not succeeding in getting a taxi we resorted to biking hoping that Kev could somehow carry the suitcase on his bike rack on the way back. We were soon lost though so decided instead to return our hire bikes first and then walk to the department store as at least on foot you could navigate better ! We didn't take into account the rain though and were pretty much soaked through before we finally found our store ! Suitcase bought (100 euros cheaper than in the old town) we squelched our way back to say goodbye to our friends Viv and Linton (thx guys) who were departing to Paris on an earlier train. Back at our hotel Kev tried unsuccessfully to describe to the receptionist that he needed a dumpster to dump his old suitcase ! She asked if he wanted a large one, Kev replied yes somewhat bemused … she then promptly bought out a large plastic bag ! This time armed with Google translate Kev tried again only getting a shrug of her shoulders until Kev realised that he'd selected Afrikaans instead of French! Finally all sorted. Bag dumped , new one packed and we were on our way. Within 100 metres from our hotel we walked past a shop with suitcases at roughly the same price that Kev had paid for after our 6km walk in the rain ! Henleyyyyyyyyyyyyyy !
Sent from my iPad

Saying goodbye to great friends Viv and Linton !

Kev with his proud new possession

Days 14-15 Cycling Beaune France

Wow this was our 5th time cycling in France and one again it soon became apparent why France is considered number 1 for tour cycling ! Ably guided by our Oz Friends Viv and Linton, Kev and I had the unusual joy of just taking in the fun ! Burgundy wine scenery without the hassle of getting lost ! What makes France so good is the abundance of quiet ant well surfaced back roads and well signposted cycle routes that wind their way through timeless villages !
Harro had beautifully targeted our first stop on day 1 to a pleasant town of with its amazingly still open Boulangerie ! Yummy banquettes and fabulous wobbly custard Flans. We were well satisfied thinking how cruzy this ride had been until the back half turned into long grinding climbs. Finally with Bums well and truly on fire we finished our 58km day with some 600 metres of climbing .
Day 2 took us through more beautiful villages, a magical Chteaux or two and a bloody long 10-15% long climb along an ancient pilgrim route ! This area was clearly signposted as a Camino route with shell stickers on various signs and polished brass shapes embedded into the road surface. Although 10km shorter today's ride in humid conditions covered 670 metres of climbing a fair effort particularly for our OZ friends who did famously well despite leaving yours truly behind 3kms from home !
We celebrate our rides reminisced over previous adventures and downed a sumptuous meal and beer on a French Bank holiday !When asked by the owner why we were leaving so early the answer was pretty straightforward we were all stuffed !
Sent from my iPad

The gang !

Viv wanting to trade her bike in !

Lunch time !

On the pilgrim trail !

Lovely Burgundy Scenery 

Glamour on the road !

Oh my the glamour of in transit travlleing has hit home again! Queue, wait, sweat. Queue, eat on the run queue, in and out of hotel shuttles, try to follow impossible airport direction (cmon Paris you're 2months out from the Olympics !) , endless security checks, limited sit down areas , over priced food (just like Melbourne} ..
It doesn't end there … a so called simple days flight to Yerevan Aremnai by way of Warsaw (stopover 9 hours) requires working out what terminals to go to, what's the temperature in Paris, Warsaw and Yerevan so yiu can somehow pack clothes suitable for the day, how to get from Warsaw and Yerevan airports to the city, if Taxi do they take credit card,(no as we found out today) - where can Henleystore his suitcase in Warsaw airport (he didnt book all the way through), how do we get into our accommodation in Yerevan at 5.30 a.m. … the list goes on and on. Why do we do keep doing it .. maybe because it's not about the Journey (smiling) but that bloody final destination. see you in Armenia ! 

Kev pleased with the replacemnet for his $7 suitcase ! 

Sent from my iPad

It’s a Jam Disaster !

I'd warned him, as we packed up our edible leftovers before leaving our Olsberg accommodation, don't bring the jam … and whatever you do don't pack it in your suitcase ! Like most peices of good travel advice that I've given Kev over the years this too was ignored ! The result was that when he opened his bag in Paris it looked like a mass murder had taken place inside suitcase !
We'd started off the day ok enough leaving our 1 star hotel in Olsberg and journeying the remaining 118 kms to Tromso ! The entry to Tromso the world's Northen Lights capital, was stunning. Tromos is

How do we shut the damned blinds !

Kev washing his jam covered book 

surrounded by mountains and water and offers the Northern Lights Hunter an unemcubered view from many surrounding locations.
Our flight by way of Oslo was uneventful. After 10 memorable days wed finally made our way back to Paris !
Journey to our average hotel with its microwave meals was pretty seamless but slightly problematic ! I say problematic because at the time of writing we still can't work out how to close our automatic rooms blinds !. We weren't worried about passer bys seeing us in our jocks but instead by them seeing the unfolding disaster as Kev cleaned his suitcase and the remains of the jam jar …- it really did look like murder !