Thought you had seen enough Armenian monasteries here on the blog, did ya? Nope nope nope: here's yet another. One different from the rest, located in a gorge with tall red cliffs. On the road to Noravank - and past the mysterious Nakchivan In this [...]
A few years back, I was in Yerevan, looking to visit a land that must not be named. An email and a few phone calls, and I was offered a lift with pilgrims, a whole bus full: from Beirut, from Syria, from Quebec, from Iran, [...]
Along the Georgian Military HighwayIf you're following this blog - and reading this, chances are you're interested in the world's slightly more obscure places. You might for example have visited Georgia, or perhaps you're considering it for your next Euro/Asian jaunt. (Is the Caucasus in [...]
You’ve heard about Yerevan, about the road to get there, about Soviet Armenia, about some of the many monasteries here in the world’s first Christian country. Now let me take you to one that balances on the brink of a canyon. To get there, we’ll [...]
As I’m finalising this post, Yerevan has become a happening place. The prime minister just resigned a few hours ago, after several days of protests. According to my blogger friend Megan, who is there just now, the whole city is a party. The police, military, and [...]
Looks innocent enough, doesn't he, young Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili? What could this rather dashing 20-something possibly have on his conscience? At the time of this portrait, probably not much else than the odd bank robbery. Give him a few years, however... Earlier, I mentioned visiting the [...]
My initial impression of the Azerbaijani capital is that of a giant modernisation project, one where the old and the hyper contemporary vie for attention. The city actually feels a bit... undecided. Baku is a crossroads in every sense: between Europe and Asia, between conventional [...]
