South Caucasus - Day 4 🇦🇲

The plan for today was to drive back to Tbilisi and see Lake Sevan and Sevanavank on the way. We picked up some breakfast from one of the kiosks below our building. As the day grew brighter, the view of Mt. Ararat became a bit blurry. We packed up, left our Airbnb, and drove north out of Yerevan a little after 10:30 AM.

The drive north was comfortable, and we reached Sevanavank around noon. We parked at one of the paid spots and then started the climb toward the monastery.

Sevanavank is a 9th-century monastery situated on a steep hill, offering beautiful views of Lake Sevan surrounding it.

We considered getting something to eat there but didn’t find a place that caught our eye. We decided to drive further and stopped at the Tsovagyugh Food Court for lunch, which turned out to be a great choice.

There were plenty of options, including local dishes and a grill for fresh orders. There was also a wonderful selection of desserts.

We continued north through the rolling green hills of Dilijan—a very enjoyable drive—and moved toward the Bagratashen-Sadakhlo border crossing.

Just like on the way in, I crossed the border in the van with my passport and vehicle papers while the rest of the group used the pedestrian crossing. After completing the exit formalities, we spent our remaining Armenian Dram at the duty-free shop before crossing back into Georgia.

After finishing my entry formalities into Georgia, I waited for the others. I reversed into a line of parked cars but forgot to shift the van into ‘park’. Another van pulled up and stopped perpendicularly right in front of the line. While I was distracted by my phone, our van inched forward on the slope. Luckily, it didn’t touch the other vehicle. I really thanked my stars for this near-miss; even though a bump would have been minor, the hassle of dealing with the repercussions would have drained everyone’s time and energy. It was a close call!

The rest of the drive back to Tbilisi was uneventful, except for an encounter with shepherds and their flocks, which brought all traffic to a standstill until they passed through.

By the time we reached Tbilisi and arrived near our Airbnb, it was dark. Street parking was difficult to find, but we eventually secured a spot, parked, and walked to the apartment.