26th and 27th of June, 2022.
Hitchhiking in Armenia
A group of friends in a small van stop. They are from Russia and Armenia. And they are going to Tatev.
Only some of them speak a bit of English, a very young couple, so we don’t talk much. But they are all very enthusiastic and happy people. We stop at a purple flowers field for some photos. It is very pretty!
They stop by their accommodation, a kind of Eco hotel, some kilometers before Tatev. That’s because they will take the cable car tomorrow. Yeah, there is this huge cable car which you can take to go all the way to Tatev Monastery.
A car with three young boys stops. They are probably teenagers. I don’t think they are dangerous but for sure they are irresponsible, telling by the way they drive. So, when they stop by a parking lot, where I can see quite a few tourists, I tell them I can stay here. Just later I realize that here it is the Devil’s Bridge. I plan to do some hiking from Tatev to here tomorrow.
I am standing by the road wondering where I should hold my sign, when a truck stops, and the driver tells an elderly man to call me and tell me I can come with him to Tatev. That was unexpected.
Not so unexpected as the truck breaking down a few minutes later. Laugh. And the road to Tatev is all the way uphill, through the mountains. I tell the driver I will try to catch another lift and he of course understands.
A small tour van stop. They men inside are not that nice, but they are OK. They are going right to the entrance of the monastery, so they drop me off there.
I drop off my backpack with some ladies at the souvenir shops and then start to explore Tatev Monastery.
Tatev Monastery is incredible! There is so much to see! Because it used to be a university, it has lots of rooms, and they all seem very mystical and full of energy. It is almost as you can feel the students around here and the classes still going on. I loved it! Plus, it also seems as you are in a James Bond movie. And as in almost all universities, it seems like a bit of a maze too. Many of the rooms have an incredible view to the mountains! I would have loved to study here! Everywhere I look it worth to take a shot!
I get a bit upset with the way how people can be so disconnected with these wonderful places, though. They come all the way here, and then remain standing in front of these wonderful building staring at their phones. Two things are wrong: 1) they are missing something extraordinary, which they cannot see every day at the touch of their hands, just like their phones; 2) they are blocking my view of it and the chance of a great photo.
After I visit the whole place and try to take some good photos (not possible), I decide to take a walk to a viewpoint, about 15 minutes walking from the monastery. I ask the ladies at the shop if I can leave my backpack there for a bit longer and they say it is fine.
The roads in Armenia are so bad, but so bad, that they probably shouldn’t be called roads anymore. Seriously, the situation of their roads it is ridiculous!
The view is not that great from there either. I don’t know why. Perhaps the light? Dust? Lei?
I walk towards the village hoping to find a place where I can make my camp for the night. On Google Maps it shows two spots marked as “camping area” but they are simply abandoned fields with very long grass.
I sit at a fountain and wash some socks and one t-shirt. I remain there for a while, deciding what to do about my camping. I see a guest house just across the street and I am considering going there and ask to camp in their garden.
When an elderly woman passes by, I ask her about a place for my camping. She suggests I come with her to the guest house so we can ask them.
I talk with the owner of the place, Vagho, and oh my Loki! He is such a nice guy! He immediately says I can camp in their garden. The guest house and the garden are amazing! Super well looked after, clean and pretty! They have beautiful flowers and a lovely vegetable garden. Vagho tells me I can just pick a place and pitch up my tent and if I want, I can take a shower after. He shows me the facilities of the place and then he must go to do something else.
After I finish preparing my things, I take a shower and I feel much better. After a while, Vagho comes back, and we chat for a while. He takes care of the place mostly by himself, only with the help of his mother, a lovely lady who I also meet. The guest house is called Old Tatev and if you ever come to Tatev, I totally recommend you stay with them.
We have tea and when Vagho must do some business talk with another man, I check directions and the trail I want to do tomorrow. Later, they invite me for dinner. How amazing! We have some delicious food prepared by Vagho’s mum, and even a glass of homemade wine!
Vagho is totally fine with me leaving my stuff at the guest house so I can freely go to do the hiking. He gives me some tips about directions and then we say good night.
In the morning, after my tent and everything else is dry, I go to the trail. I leave before I can see Vagho.
The trail is quite abandoned at the beginning. I don’t think there is any kind of maintenance at this point. It is true that the marks are OK, visible. Although I think that at some point it could be a bit more of them. Luckily Vagho told me about two points where there are secondary trails, which can get you out of track. One of them leads to a waterfall. It is a quite nice one, I could see at some distance. Perhaps if you have a phone, you can try get there.
This trail in particular passes by an old monastery, in the middle of the forest, and it ends at the Devil’s Bridge. Now, the whole trail takes a bit over one hour, and in this short period of time, I saw nothing more, nothing less than five snakes! Five! All the same, a yellow, middle size type. They all ran away without hesitating, so I don’t think you should worry about them, just be aware and be careful when you are near bigger rocks, that’s where they like to be.
The ruins of the monastery are super cool! I just wish I could have visited a bit more and had a slightly different experience. Well, you see, there is a monk leaving there by himself. When I arrived, he greets me and then ask me to follow him to the church. I think he will just show me around, but he starts to pray instead, like he is running a service. Only for me? I think it will be just a simple and short pray, but he keeps going and going. I don’t know how long I was there in total, but something about 20 minutes perhaps? I thought it would be rude to leave, but at some point, I could simply not stay there anymore. I just wish he either had asked if I wanted the “ceremony” to be performed, or at least had kept short and simple.
Anyway, when I left the church, I was feeling a bit guilty (I shouldn’t, right? I know…) so I didn’t hang around much, just quickly took some photographs and run away.
Not far from the monastery I find a lost cow. She was calling out loud for help.
I also see another monk going to the monastery with some provisions.
After the monastery, the trail becomes much better. There is a really nice river passing by some super colorful dragonflies and it is really pleasant to be around here. But it is also a very short distance to the road and the Devil’s Bridge.
Now, the Devil’s Bridge is ridiculous! Well, not the place itself but the way to it. Looking on Google it actually looks nice: a cave with a small pound on it. But it is quite dangerous to get in there. You climb down on a vertical rock wall, only using a robe and a metal cable. There were some young boys helping some tourists to go down, including the Russian people who gave me a lift yesterday. But I think it is nuts!
Hitchhiking back to Tatev does not take long. Garic, a very nice man in a tour van, is actually going to the next town, after Tatev, and he drops me two blocks from the guest house.
Vagho left me a note in my backpack, saying he went to the mountains to collect some tea, and he does not know when he will be back. I use the same paper to write him a note, saying thank you again for his hospitality and kindness, plus I add my email, blog and Instagram. And then I leave.
10 Years Around the World 