WHY ARMENIA?
- Discover a destination unknown yet radiant.
- Visiting Armenia means entering humanities’ purest traditional routes and discovering one of the most fascinating legendary enclaves of Europe.
- Armenia is a heaven for outdoor adventurers with challenging routes for trekkers.
- Armenia became the world's first Christian country more than 1,700 years ago in 301 AD and has a large Diaspora all over the world. A small country but a big nation
- Many of the monasteries are built in places of incredible natural beauty, making the sites of monasteries like Tatev, Noravank, Haghartsin, Haghpat and Geghard well worth a visit even without the impressive, millennium old monasteries found there.
- While this ancient land of Noah has evolved through the ages, it still stays true to its Christian origins.
- Yerevan is a city full of contradictions – top-of-the-range Mercedes sedans share the roads with Ladas so old they should be in museum collections; old-fashioned teahouses sit next to chic European-style wine bars; and street fashions range from hipster to babushka with many weird and wonderful variations in between.
- You can enjoy the world's longest Cable Car line in Armenia. On 23 October 2010 Guinness World Records longest cableway in Armenia, the 5.7km (3.5 miles) engineering feat spans a spectacular Vorotan River Gorge to the country's ancient Tatev monastery.
- An international team of archaeologists has discovered the world's oldest leather shoe. One thousand years older than the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt, the 5,500-year-old shoe was perfectly preserved by the cool, dry conditions in the sheep dung-lined cave in Armenia where it was found.
GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE COUNTRY
Armenia is located in the South Caucasus, bordered by Georgia from the north, Iran from the south, Azerbaijan from the north-east and the south-west and Turkey from the west.
Armenia has a dry tropical climate. Clear sunny days are mostly dominant in a year. The summers are hot here, the temperature fluctuates between +22C to +36C. The winters are mainly cold, the average temperature is between -15C to -1C.
The official language is Armenian, a separate branch of the Indo-European language family. The Armenian letters are different from the letters of other languages. Generally the state buildings and public places are also marked with Latin-letter signboards. Besides Armenian, Russian is also spoken, and many can communicate in English, too.
The traditional Armenian cuisine has a large variety of richly flavoured dishes. Fresh vegetables and meat are among the most favourite food products. Barbecue, kyufta, dolma or ghapama are the main actors of a rich dining table.
FACTS & FIGURES
Borders Azerbaijan-proper 566 km, Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave 221 km, Georgia 164 km, Iran 35 km, Turkey 268 km
Largest city Yerevan - 1,226,000
Capital city Yerevan - 1,226,000
Major language Armenian, Russian
Major religion Christianity
Monetary unit Dram
Population 2,957,935
GDP per capita $4,133
Armenia ranks highly for:
4th for Agriculture > Agricultural growth
12th for Economy > Currency > Least valued currency unit > Exchange rate to 1 US dollar
13th for Education > Adult literacy rate > Total
18th for Health > Physicians > Per 1,000 people