Zvartnots and Mt Ararat

Left at 9 with guide and 9 others for Zvartnots, the site of 7th century ruins of St Gregory Church. An earthquake in 930 caused the collapse of the building but there has been reconstruction and some original pillars remain. It has a Hellenistic feel, and has a magnificent backdrop of Mt Ararat, now in Turkey. Some wonderful singers appeared. Magical.

We then visited Armenia’s holy city of Echmiadzin, the former capital. The Cathedral, set in a huge complex of church buildings, is under renovation so we couldn’t go inside. However we did have time to pop into another church where a service was being conducted. It reminded me of Greek Orthodox but is Apostolic, the ancient religion based on teachings of the 2 apostles Bartholomew and Thaddeus.

After lunch in a shopping complex for speed, we continued to the Genocide Memorial. Even now only 26 countries recognise that the massacre of Armenian civilians by the Turks from 1914-1923 was Genocide. The Turks had been trying to eliminate the Armenians from the previous century and even the Armenians serving under Turkey in WW1 were not spared. Photos had been donated. It was a harrowing experience, as all genocide memorials are.

We moved to the Cascade complex, a Soviet period structure that resembles a giant stairway and houses a modern art museum, before stopping for a welcome beer in one of the many bustling cafes,

A quick shower then out to a theatre for the Armenian State Ensemble of Song and Dance. It was terrific. Khachaturyan featured of course.

My luggage has yet to appear. Apparently a group of 36 French arrived also via Moscow the night after us, and none got luggage.