Before we finally set off on the last stages to the border with Iran, I would like to write a few words about our journey in this country and and how Armenia went from being a Stranger to being “Familiar”.
First of all the conclusion: we felt really comfortable!
Maybe comfortable is sometimes not the right word. After 7 days on the road without a shower, the burning sun, the salt on our skin and the dust of the roads, then the cold nights or the days with thunderstorms. Maybe comfortable is not the right word.
But of course, this is exactly what makes our way of traveling. We are very close to nature, landscapes, people and… unfortunately also the cars and trucks.
We met curious and smiling people. They gave us gifts, showed us the way and shook our hands. They waved to us and brought us food. All along the way. We felt welcome and this might be one reason why this country turns so familiar.
Some more days to go before we enter Iran!
We are in Kapan, a small town in Armenia on the way to the border to Iran. The border to Azerbaijan in direct neighborhood. The sun has disappeared behind the clouds. Actually optimal for cycling. However, we still have to climb a pass and it is in the clouds. These roads in the fog are too dangerous and…. we use the last opportunity for the time being to wash everything again, to straighten the bikes and to recover our tired muscles.
Only a good 70km lie ahead of us, but we reach a pass after only 35 km and until then we have to overcome 1,900 meters of altitude. Ouch.
On the last 300 km from Yerevan we have overcome more than 5,000 meters of altitude. However, also with a little help in the first section.
A van driver stopped, packed us and our bikes, drove us to the first altitude. As if he had guessed, I wasn’t feeling well that day and wasn’t sure I would make it.
But traveling like this, you miss the most beautiful landscapes. The next few days, however, were full of it.
We past orchards, vineyards, through valleys with bizarre rock formations and romantic streams and rivers, through forests, across alpine meadows and desert-like plateaus.
The colors of these landscapes change from bright green to blue and yellow to an almost deep black in the narrow valleys.
It is fantastic.
Of course, we don’t find any more startups or coworking spaces here in these rather lonely mountain regions, nor do we find any hip coffee shops or wine bars. We left that behind in Yerevan.
Towns are getting rarer and smaller and also our supplies, and there especially the water supply must be planned even better.
The Republic of Armenia!
The Republic of Armenia, the country in the Caucasus, is only 28 years old, but the Armenian nation is already ancient. Both can be experienced when traveling through the country. My recommendation for all those who want to discover a country on tourist paths not yet trodden: go and see Armenia.
And I’m sure this country will also turn from a “Stranger” to something “Familiar” for you.
