We reached Tsakhadzor by early afternoon and as we would be spending the night there we headed the hotel so as to leave the luggage and check into our rooms.
Being Armenia's principal ski resort the hotel we were lodged at did reflect it by having all sorts of facilities, which many of us decided not to take advantage of, once we opted to go into town.
The town was "empty" and to be honest there wasn't much to see except the Kecharis Monastery, just a few metres away from the hotel.
Founded by a Pahlavuni Prince in the 11th century the Monastery's construction is said to have continued through to the 13th century, having then been turned into a major religious centre and a place of higher education.
The Mongol invasions in the late 1230s saw Kecharis badly damaged though it was restored by 1248.
It was severely damaged again in an earthquake in 1927 and its recent reconstruction was finally resumed in 1998 thanks to the donation of an Armenian benefector residing in Vienna.
The main group of the complex consists of three churches, two chapels and a gavit. Many tombstones could be seen around it.
The main temple, the Church of Saint Grigor was quite impressive in terms of its decoration being a mixture of old and new.
Marie France, her husband Yves and I decided to further explore the town despite having been to its centre just minutes before and though not luckier than the first time around we still managed to come across a little park, some statues of well known town citizens, of both the present and the past.
Dinner was as always a copious and tasty meal we all appreciated, particularly the desserts.
Being a solo traveller, despite there being another solo traveller as well (though he very rarely spoke) I tried to mingle with the various couples and family groups travelling with me and must say I got along well with everyone, especially the Leissers, whom I always sat at table and explored the villages with whenever we were given some free time.
The Barrancos and Castille's grandmother (left). The Leissers (right).
Castille and her mother (left). The Rousseaus (right)
The mother and daughter from Bordeaux
Note: Fabrice is missing.
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