Garni, Armenia

The pagan temple of Garni is supposed to be built in 77 AD. It is located in Kotayk region of Armenia at the left bank of Azat River. The temple was dedicated to God Mihr, the Armenian pagan god of light and the Sun. 

According to a Greek inscription, it was founded by Tiridates I of Armenia. In 305 when Armenian King Tiridates III adopted Christianity as a state religion, all the pagan places of worship were destroyed. The Temple of Garni is the only pagan Hellenistic and Greco-Roman structure to have survived. Probably it survived because of its widely recognised status of "masterpiece of art".

The temple is constructed of grey basalt. It is supported by a total of twenty-four 6.54-metre high columns of the Ionic order: six in the front and back and eight on the sides. The 24 columns symbolize the 24 hours.

The staircase of the temple has nine 30-centimetres high steps. There are square pedestals on both sides of the staircase on which the sculpture of Atlas, a titan from Greek mythology, is carved as if he holds the entire temple on its shoulders.

The complex was strategically built upon a promontory above high cliffs and surrounded by walls, making it a powerful fortress. The complex included a Roman bath, a royal summer palace and a 7th-century church. The Roman bath contains a mosaic crafted from fifteen different colours of natural stone that bears the inscription. “We worked but received nothing”.

An earthquake in 1679 completely destroyed the temple and strew the ruins across the site and into the gorge. It took the archaeologists more than 20 years to put the pieces together. The reconstruction was completed by 1975, almost 300 years after it was destroyed in an earthquake. The temple was entirely rebuilt using original stones. The missing pieces were replaced by blank stones to make them easily recognizable.

The Cascade Complex, Armenia

“The Cascade,” the complex was originally conceived by the architect Alexander Tamanyan (1878–1936). Tamanyan desired to connect the northern and central parts of the city—the historic residential and cultural centers of the city—with a vast green area of waterfalls and gardens, cascading down one of the city’s highest promontories. Unfortunately, the plan remained largely forgotten until the late 1970s, when it was revived by Yerevan’s Chief Architect, Jim Torosyan. Torosyan’s conception of the Cascade included Tamanyan’s original plan but incorporated new ideas that included a monumental exterior stairway, a long indoor shaft containing a series of escalators, and an intricate network of halls, courtyards, and outdoor gardens embellished with numerous works of sculpture bearing references to Armenia’s rich history and cultural heritage.

Construction of Torosyan’s design of the Cascade was launched by the Soviets in the 1980s but abandoned after the Armenian earthquake of 1988 and the break-up of the Soviet Union in 1991. With independent rule and the transition to democracy, Armenia entered a period of severe economic hardship, and the Cascade remained a neglected relic of the Soviet era for more than a decade. Gerard L. Cafesjian, working with the City of Yerevan and the government of the Republic of Armenia, initiated its recent revitalization in 2002. Over the next seven years, virtually every aspect of the monument was renovated, and much of it completely reconstituted into a Center for the Arts bearing the name of its principal benefactor.

Armenian Alphabet Monument, Armenia

In 2005, the Armenian alphabet celebrated its 1600th birthday. In commemoration, it was given a gift of 39 giant, carved Armenian letters, strategically placed near the final resting place of the man who created the alphabet, Mesrop Mashtots.

To honor his work, Armenian architect J. Torosyan created the stone carvings of every letter near Mashtots’ final resting place in 2005. Set against the backdrop of Armenia’s Mt. Aragats, the letters and a statue of Mashtots pay tribute to the complex and unique language, a national point of pride of Armenia.

Wings of Tatev and Tatev Monastry, Armenia

The magnificent Tatev monastic complex is located on a large plateau near the Tatev village in Syunik Province. The monastery was built in 895 and has been a major educational and cultural centre of Armenia for centuries.  Now Tatev is one of the must-see places in the country. In 1995 the monastery was included in the tentative list of the World Heritage Sites of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

Tatev monastery is one of the oldest and the most famous complexes in Armenian. The main church of the monastery was built in 895 by Bishop Hovhannes with the support of Syunik princes Grigor Supan and Dzagik. In 930 the inside walls of the church were carved with beautiful frescoes.

In 2010 a cableway named “Wings of Tatev” was constructed here which takes people to the Tatev Monastery from the village on the opposite hill. This aerial tramway holds the record for the longest non-stop double track cable car (5.7 km). The “flight” over the gorge lasts 12 minutes during which the audio-guide tells the passengers the history of the monastery.

Amberd Fortress, Armenia

My favourite place in Armenia is the fortress of Ambers. It is founded on the southern slopes of the Mount Aragats, away from the hectic cities. It stands on the rocky cliff on the height of 2100 meters protected from two sides with deep gorges at the junction of rivers Amberd and Arkashen. This unique sight is located 50km from Yerevan. There is only one serpentine road leading to it that passes through mountains. That is why it is impossible to get there in winter when everything is covered in snow. The history of Amberd goes back to the 7th century when Armenian princes Kamsarakan started there construction of the fortress. With the time, a small outpost turned into a well-protected fortress. However, the Kamsarakans had to pass this strategic point to another Armenian noble family Pahlavuni, who made it their residence. The great commander Vagram Pahlavuni, who lived in the 11th century, ordered to fortify the complex of Amberd and build there a church later named in his honor – Vagramashen.

Noravank, Armenia

Though its status rests in its medieval achievements, Noravank also shows signs of having been a place of worship from a much earlier time. A cloistered monastery was built at the site in the early Christian era, the basis of its transition into one of the preeminent communities of prayer, learning and politics in the 13th-14th cc. Noravank is also where some of Armenia's most famous medieval artists lived, worked and are buried.

Amasya, Turkey

Amasya is the city which is the center of Amasya province in the Black Sea Region.  Production in 2014 has a total population of 321,913.  The central district has a population of 135,950.  It is located in the Middle Black Sea Department.  One of the oldest settlements in Anatolia.  Starting from the Hittites, it became the center of various civilizations. 

Cappadocia, Turkey

Cappadocia is one of the beautiful places in Turkey.
This rocky wonderland was shaped by millions of years of natural phenomena. 

Dzoraget, Armenia

The Dzoraget is a river in the Debeda hydrological region in the Lori region in Northern Armenia. It originates in the Bazum Mountains and flows west to east through spectacular gorges around Stepanavan. It finally feeds into the Debed river near Dzoragyugh, which ultimately drains to the Kura river.

Kiev, Ukraine

Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper River. Its population in July 2015 was 2,887,974 (though higher estimated numbers have been cited in the press), making Kiev the sixth-most populous city in Europe.

Kiev is an important industrial, scientific, educational and cultural center of Eastern Europe. It is home to many high-tech industries, higher education institutions, and historical landmarks.

Sighișoara Fortress, Romania

Sighișoara Fortress is the old historical center of Sighișoara municipality, Mures county, Romania. Built in the 12th century by Saxon colonists and kept almost unchanged to this day, it is still inhabited today. In 1999 the citadel was listed on the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage List. The fortress is surrounded by a wall of 930 m whose initial height was about 4 m. Later, the height of the wall was increased in some places up to 14 m. The wall was built between the 14th and 17th centuries as protection against Turkish attacks. The wall had 14 towers, of which 9 remain to this day. The towers functioned as the headquarters of the various craft guilds.

Sumela monastry, Turkey

Sumela is a monastic complex built into the rock cliffs of the Altmdere Valley. It is construction began in 385 AD; and continued until the 19 th century. Barnabas, a monk from Athens and his nephew Sophronios built the section which comprised the first two rooms of the monastry in rocks. The Byzantine Emperor Justinian (AD 527-568) ordered the enlagement of the monastery. The monastery was looted and burnt by the Byzantines in AD 650. However the Comnenids restored and enlarged the monastey. The monastery with its 72 rooms and a rich library, lived its most flourishing time during the period of Alexios III 8 Michael I.

Peles Castle Sinaia, Romania

Peleș Castle is a Neo-Renaissance castle in the Carpathian Mountains, near Sinaia, in Prahova County, Romania, on an existing medieval route linking Transylvania and Wallachia, built between 1873 and 1914. Its inauguration was held in 1883. It was constructed for King Carol I.

By form and function, Peleş is a palace, but it is consistently called a castle. Its architectural style is a romantically inspired blend Neo-Renaissance and Gothic Revival similar to Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria. A Saxon influence can be observed in the interior courtyard facades, which have allegorical hand-painted murals and ornate fachwerk similar to that seen in northern European alpine architecture. Interior decoration is mostly Baroque influenced, with heavy carved woods and exquisite fabrics.

Bolu-Gölcük, Turkey

Khor Virap, Armenia

Khor Virap is an Armenian monastery located in the Ararat plain in Armenia, near the closed border with Turkey, about 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) south of Artashat, Ararat Province, within the territory of ancient Artaxata. The monastery was host to a theological seminary and was the residence of Armenian Catholicos.

Khor Virap's notability as a monastery and pilgrimage site is attributed to the fact that Gregory the Illuminator was initially imprisoned here for about 14 years by King Tiridates III of Armenia. Saint Gregory subsequently became the king's religious mentor, and they led the proselytizing activity in the country. In the year 301, Armenia was the first country in the world to be declared a Christian nation.