Why Armenia might be Europe's best-kept secret
Views like these will have you wondering why more tourists aren't flocking to ArmeniaCREDIT: ALAMY
Frank Gardner
10 NOVEMBER 2016 • 1:36PM It’s mid afternoon in a mountain village close to the Azerbaijan border and the air is thick with the smoke of a dozen chargrill barbecues. Men are turning giant skewers of chicken and lamb on the coals while their obedient sons fan the flames, dressed in traditional Armenian costume. High above the gorge the sun is pouring down from a cloudless sky and beyond the river bridge there’s dancing: troupes of young men and women, linking arms, kicking their legs and singing in unison as wild music blares out from speakers beneath the chestnut trees. Armenia is a tranquil land of epic vistas, crumbling monasteries and rolling vineyardsCREDIT: AP/FOTOLIA
On the trestle tables there are baskets overflowing with freshly picked fruit and bottles stacked up high, filled with a dark red liquid. It’s semi-sweet wine from the areni grape because today, October 1, is the annual Areni wine festival. You know you’re in wine country the moment you arrive at Yerevan airport. You can’t really miss it as there’s a 20ft high inflatable wine bottle parked outside the terminal.............