Monday, September 16, 2019

Goshavank Monastery, Ijevan Winery, Molokan Family, Dilijan, Armenia (September 2019)

Our first stop of the day was at Goshavank Monastery, a 12th or 13th century Armenian monastery located in the village of Gosh in the Ravush Province of Armenia. Today, the monastery is not a functioning religious complex, although it remains a popular tourist destination.








As always, there are merchants selling many stuffs of the national and regional orgins.






We had to change a plan due to the rain from visiting a monastery to a visit to a winery. The Ijevan Winery is apparently one of the largest in Armenia. It started in 1951 and has several wine production facilities in Armenia. Armenia produces not only wine but also brandy and cognac.








 

Our lunch stop was at a Molokan family. Molokan people are the largest minority in Armenia, exiled from Russia during the 19th century.  They live like Amish people in the U.S., pursuing a minimal life, not watching TV and using as many home-grown products as possible.








We made a stop over at the old town of Dilijan where we visited many artisans who are still making Armenian traditional artifacts.













Dilijan is called Armenian Switzerland. Its moutaineous terrain and green forestry at a high altitude of 1,500 meter attracts a lot of Armenian tourists to Dilijan. Its autumn view seems to be astonishing.


We skipped the included dinner again because Kristin's stomach problem persisted and I had a conference call. - Jeffrey

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