Caucasus 2009

An overland trip to the Caucasus and back

2009-11-25T13:38:00.000-08:00

START

10. Tabriz - Istanbul - Wien

2009-10-22T13:29:00.000-07:00

16.10.2009

Tabriz train station:

Dining car on the train Tehran - Tabriz - Van - Tatvan - Ankara - Istanbul:

Iranian-Turkish border:

Changing to the ferry to cross the Van lake (between Van and Tatvan, the ferry trip takes ~5 hours).

17.10.2009

Early morning on the ferry:

Arriving at Tatvan:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U94PcS3a8P4

Changing again to the train:

Iranians make party on the train:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AMGFDuMfozc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEbqD73vQ0w
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ua_NbGW-g6U

18.10.2009

Train engineer:

Praying passenger during the 20-minute-stop at Ankara:

High speed line Ankara - Eskisehir (our train used the old line):

Family from Iran on the way to Istanbul:

Arrival at Istanbul with 4 hrs delay:

19.10.2008

Istanbul Sirkeci station:

Some more sightseeing in Istanbul:

Train to Bucuresti/Sofia/Belgrade:

20.10.2009

Turkish border station Kapikule - everyone has to get off to get the passport stamped...

In Bulgaria:

Veliko Tarnovo:

Danube river bridge between Bulgaria and Romania:

Bucuresti:

Train Bucuresti - Budapest:

21.10.2009

Early morning at Lököshaza (at the Romanian-Hungarian border)

Finally - 8 minutes delay at Vienna (Wien Meidling station)

9. Astara - Tabriz

2009-10-15T13:28:00.000-07:00

13.10.2009

Lenkeran station:

Caspian Sea between Lenkeran and Astara:

Platskartnyj waggon:

From Astara train station by taxi to the border point in downtown Astara. Then on foot crossing into Iran, the border procedure was a little bit chaotic, but without any problems. People were very friendly.

Already on the other side of the border - Iranian Astara:

Taxi trip Astara - Tabriz (350 km by taxi, for 20 USD per person):

14.10.2009

Our quite un-basic accomodation in Tabriz:

Tabriz:

Excursion to the Orumieh salt lake and to Kendovan village.

Orumieh salt lake:

Kendovan village:

Back to Tabriz

15.10.2009

Blue Mosque:

Having tea with some friendly Iranians:

The bazar:

Euro-adapter for the toilet:

A Christian church in Tabriz:

CONTINUE

8. Baku - Qobustan

2009-10-12T13:27:00.000-07:00

11.10.2009

Oil-industry devastated landscape near Baku:

Baku is nice, clean and quite modern:

Old town of Baku:

12.10.2009

Excursion to Qobustan (south of Baku):

~12000 years old petroglyphs (stone engravings) at the Qobustan Petroglyph Reserve:

Caspian sea in the background:

Qobustan mud volcanoes:

Videos of the spectacle:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FG_8iDlgo5U
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bvolVgKF40

Back to Baku:

Baku train station:

Then: Overnight trip to Astara by train for just ~2-3 Euro (platskartnyj waggon)

CONTINUE

7. Sevan Dilijan Vanadzor Tbilisi

2009-10-10T13:25:00.000-07:00

8.10.2010

By marshrutka from Yerevan to Sevan, then by taxi to the monastery Sevanavank, then to Dilijan.

Short stop at Sevan train station:

Discussion with our Armenian colleague:

Sevanavank and the Sevan lake:

Trip Sevan - Dilijan:

Our B&B at Dilijan:

The run-down avtovokzal:

Monument to the 50th anniversary of Soviet Armenia...

9.10.2009

Haghartsin monastery (built in the 12th century, now under renovation):

Goshavank monastery (founded in 1188):

"Watzinger" bus:

Hiking trail from Goshavank to the Parz Lich lake:

Parz Lich lake:

Taxi trip Parz Lich lake - Dilijan - Vanadzor:

Vanadzor:

10.10.2009

6 hour marshrutka trip from Vanadzor to Tbilisi:

Armenian-Georgian border:

3 hours at Tbilisi - enough for buying train tickets to Baku:

En-route to Baku:

CONTINUE

6. Yerevan Echmiadzin Garni

2009-10-07T13:19:00.000-07:00

6.10.2009

Early morning arrival at Yerevan train station:

Street market:

Protests against the agreement with long-time enemy Turkey about the start of diplomatic relations:

New pedestrian street in downtown Yerevan:

Armenian letters....

A cup of hot chocolate...

Christmas lights already in october?

Malkhas Jazz Club:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgJQvEUqKWs

7.10.2009

Excursion to Holy Echmiadzin (the Vatican of the Armenian Apostolic Church)

Main cathedral Mayr Tachar:

Typical bus:

Another excursion to the Garni temple:

Back to Yerevan by taxi:

View towards Ararat mountain:

CONTINUE

5. Tbilisi

2009-10-05T13:19:00.000-07:00

4.10.2009

Relaxing at our hostel (Dodo's Homestay, quite basic, but nice people):

Tbilisi walking tour, Marjanishvilis street near our hostel.

Everything can be bought just on the street:

Czech beer...

Opera:

City hall at Tavisuplebis moedani:

Old houses in the Betlemi quarter, which is being revitalized since a few years as part of an urban project (see http://www.icomos.org.ge/betlemi/betlemi3/index.htm)

Dadianis street:

View from Mtatsminda hill (near Mamadaviti church)

Tsminda Sameba cathedral:

5.10.2009

Tsminda Sameba cathedral:

Train from Tbilisi to Yerevan:

Landscape south of Tbilisi:

CONTINUE

4. Stepantsminda

2009-10-03T13:17:00.000-07:00

2.10.2009

Arriving at Tbilisi

Tbilisi train station:

Georgian letters in the metro:

Trip to Stepantsminda by a "private taxi" (the 3hr trip cost totally 40 Lari (~20 Euro, ~7 per person))

Ananuri fortress (~70 km north of Tbilisi):

Sheeps crossing...

BTW, the mountain ridge on the left marks the "border" t0 South Ossetia.

Gudauri ski-resort, see http://www.gudauri.ge/:

A strange Soviet-style monument:

Our driver :

Cows on the road:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dXJ0PYcSQhE

At Stepantsminda:

The local restaurant...

Gas fountain from a pipeline...

3.10.2009

Short hiking trip to the Tsminda Sameba church:

Trip back to Tbilisi by marshrutka:

Arrival at Tbilisi Difube bus station (according to Lonelyplanet 'Didube bus station is a sprawling chaos outside Didube metro station')

CONTINUE

3. Hopa - Batumi

2009-10-01T13:15:00.000-07:00

30.9.2009

Hopa:

Turkish minibus from Hopa to the border:

Turkish-Georgian border:

Batumi:

Our small private hotel:

Black Sea and Caucasus mountains:

Kitschy dancing fountain:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awyfXLzg8tM

1.10.2009

Batumi port:

Roman castle south of Batumi (at Gonio):

While waiting for the bus back to Batumi we were invited by a man to drink some coffee at his house together with his family:

Batumi train station:

From here we left with the overnight train to Tbilisi (8 hrs, 23 Lari (~11 Euro)).

CONTINUE

2. Eskisehir - Erzurum - Hopa

2009-09-29T13:09:00.000-07:00

28.9.2009

Early morning trip with the new highspeed train from Eskisehir to Ankara:

Turkish landscape at 250 km/h:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3mRw2X_LHI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MEmuQJiJ02g

Ankara train station:

Some hours at Ankara:

The trip continued in the early afternoon - train from Ankara to Kars:

29.9.2009

Euphrates river:

High mountains at Erzincan:

Breakfast in the dining car:

Arrival at Erzurum at lunch time:

Train departure from Erzurum:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jb4Sv_bVjnM

Erzurum - 1900m above sea level, it was quite cold here....:

Scythes "made in Austria" at a shop:

5 hour bus-ride from Erzurum to Hopa (already near the Georgian border):

CONTINUE

1. Vienna - Istanbul - Eskisehir

2009-09-27T12:54:00.000-07:00

25.9.2009

Leaving Vienna at ~14h for Budapest.

My travel buddies Florian and Marcus at Budapest Keleti station:

From Budapest at ~19h with the overnight train to Bucharest.

26.9.2009

Train across Romania:

Very slow ride on desolate tracks...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BAykp7PT1BI

New tracks and higher speed:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m15zUmwi9yk

Arrival at Bucharest with ~2 hours delay at around 12h.

Short sightseeing walk at downtown Bucharest:

From Bucharest by bus to Istanbul (the train didn't run at that time, as floods destroyed the railway line near Istanbul). Departure was at 16h.

Bulgarian-Turkish border in the middle of the night:

Huge duty-free shop on the Turkish side of the border:

27.9.2009

Arrival at Istanbul at 4 in the morning...

Some sightseeing in Istanbul....

...Hagia Sophia:

By ship from Europe to Asia - crossing the Bosporus:

Istanbul Haydarpasa station on the Asian side of the Bosporus:

Train to Eskisehir at ~18h:

Eskisehir station by night:

CONTINUE