BOOK REVIEW: New Armenia Travel Guide

By Neil C Scott
Yerevan Times
9-24-04

Armenia has become increasingly visited over the last decade so that
this Guide, which is beautifully illustrated by the authors’ own
photographs, is particularly welcome.

It is authoritative and highly informative, and written by authors who
have explored the country thoroughly with intelligent and observant
eyes. Their coverage of environmental issues adds significantly to the
value of the book.

The Guide starts with three introductory chapters covering the history
of Armenia, the basics of getting to the country and travelling around
it, and its ecology and environment.

Useful historical summaries by Robert Suny set the political scene,
while two other excellent contributions by Jason Kauffeld and Daniel
Klem on the forests and birds of Armenia respectively, emphasise the
fragile state of the country’s ecology and the measures that are being
taken to try to protect it. As in other parts of the book, useful
links are provided to stakeholders and other interested organisations.

A further seven chapters describe Yerevan, the regions, and Nagorno
Karabagh. The chapter on Yerevan provides an excellent summary of
where to stay and what to see, including those intriguing parts that
nobody else knows about – such as the city’s oldest religious centre,
the Katoghikeh Chapel, tucked away behind the Linguistics Institute in
Abovian Street. This chapel is so small that many worshipers have to
stand outside it during services!

The authors also draw attention to the development challenges that
Yerevan is facing and commendably highlight the absence of planning
controls that have allowed unwelcome incursion into the city’s
fast-diminishing greenbelt, as in the area adjacent to the monumental
Opera House.

The bulk of the Guide is devoted to the country’s regions, with
emphasis on sites of historical interest. As might be expected, these
focus on monasteries and other religious artefacts but the authors set
these in the context of contemporary social and political life,
thereby making their coverage relevant to Armenia today. For instance,
the problem of emigration and the legacy of the 1988 earthquake are
discussed, and attention drawn to the strange, isolated Russian
Molokan communities in the Dilijan area, where Armenian is not spoken
or understood.

More attention could have been paid to the changing industrial scene
and of the country’s Soviet and contemporary architecture. This could
be included in the enlarged Guide that the authors are planning for
the future, which will provide a more complete coverage of historical
Armenian sites in Eastern Anatolia. These are discussed in Appendix in
this Guide.

The chapter on Karabagh is particularly welcome since this Armenian
enclave in Azerbaijan has only recently been accessible to tourists
from Armenia. Throughout the book, detailed information is provided
on how to get to places of interest and where to stay, based on
Matthew Karanian and Robert Kurkjian’s own meticulous on-the-ground
research in their trusty Niva jeep.

Useful maps and plans of the principal cities as well as many
exquisite photographs support the lucid text, while the book’s layout
is clear and easy to follow. The Guide is priced at less than $25,
making it exceptionally good value. It will undoubtedly become the
standard reference volume for travellers to Armenia for many years to
come.

At a Glance:
Stone Garden Guide to Armenia and Karabagh
Matthew Karanian and Robert Kurkjian (304 pages)
Publisher: Stone Garden Productions
ISBN 0-9672120-8-1 $24.95

[Printed on p. 8 of The Yerevan Times; Photographs: Book Jacket,
Karabagh Shepherd]