Tour of Southern Armenia

On Monday, we took a tour with Hyur Services.  They did a great job and we saw beautiful countryside and fascinating monasteries.  The wine tasting was a nice way to end the day.  Here are some photos:

First stop:  Khor Virap.  A beautiful and historically significant monastery and also close to the Turkish border.  It is the closest you can get to Mt. Ararat in Armenia.  Sadly, clouds covered the top of the mountain.

The main chapel at Khor Virap.  I prayed there.  That I wouldn't have a heart attack after climbing all the steps to get there.

The cell where St. Gregory was imprisoned for 13 years.

Wild flowers at the Noravank monastery.  Set in among skyscraping red rocks.

Thousands of stone carvings depicting symbols of Christianity were placed in Armenia.  They are both gravestones and messages of salvation.

Noravank

In addition to red wines, Areni Valley specializes in cherry, apricot, pomegranate and peach wines.  I liked apricot the best.  It was tough having to taste them all but I felt it was my duty. 

We expected a tour of the winery to see how the wines were made but just got the tasting.   We drank one of the reds we bought with dinner this evening.