Armenia Sunday 26th June

Feedback Tree - Church – Dilijan - More Police – Church – Lake

And rain, rain, rain.

I was going to write that today had been uneventful, but that can never be true when you are touring. We left our very nice hotel after breakfast, but not before I had written a short note for the “Feedback Tree” standing in the reception. As the receptionist then insisted on taking a photo of me and my note, I asked her to take one for me too.

It rained all night and it would rain on and off all through the day. The rain for Spain falls mainly on Armenian heads! (For all my students, this is nearly an expression to learn pronunciation and it should read The Rain in Spain Falls Mainly on the Plain!) In 3 days they have had the months usual amount of rain.

 We walked across the road to the first church(es) of the day: somehow, there always seem to be several churches on one complex, and here we had a small monastery with 4 mini churches. The Georgian churches are orthodox and have the illustrated wooden screen with doors between people and priest, similar to the original catholic church. The door is opened during services. Their “boss” is the Patriarch for the country.

The Armenian churches are Apostolic and the altar is open, with no screen, but with a curtain which is drawn and then opened to symbolise the ripping of the curtain in Jerusalem at the moment that Christ died. Their “boss” is the Catholicus. All the churches we have seen so far have been relatively simple affairs. But, whereas in Georgia we both had to wear scarves - Renate on her head, me to hide my (knobbly) knees – that is not required here although most women cover their heads.

The ornamentation of Armenian churches would delight any Goth or fan of Celtic designs and additionally, many walls are covered in calligraphy.

Some kilometres away we stopped in Dilijan, the main town of the area and had a coffee stop. Once on the road we met our friendly police again and Mher got a speeding ticket – driving 32 and not 30 Kmh. 

Arriving at Lake Sevan the skies, which had been threatening all morning, decided we needed a bath. Stopping for a photo-shoot at a typical tourist site on the edge of the lake was enough. No walk today. Then on to the next (set of) church(es) on a little peninsula. In soviet times it was on an island, but the communists wanted to drain the lake for corn fields. They began their project but it never materialised. Another small church, and this time a service: priest in all his finery, the assistants and a small choir in church robes. The singing was delightful and even the recital of verses was melodic and poetic. 

Arrival at our next hotel: (The Teahouse!) a small tourist complex of buildings, with our three rooms on the shores of the lake itself. Simple, rather rustic, but somehow delightful. I did not want to venture out for a walk in case the rain began again (we had had thunder and lightning) and while we were drinking beer and wine, looking out on the lake, we had three downpours. Even a duck would have felt wet in that!

And then! Towards six p.m., waiting for the restaurant / blue skies (in one direction). Hard question: do I show rain-soaked lake or sun-flooded lake??

Sun has gone down. Meal eaten - fresh fish from the lake with a kind of taco made of local bread. raw herbs such as basil, dill, parsley with cheese (feta style) and radish. Lovely! Now I face the lake and 10 meters from my window is a patch of reed, 10m², inhabited by 10 000 randy frogs! Good night! (I hope!)