We were very much looking forward to reach to Kars, because our host Önder was organizing a environmental festival there and also invited us to participate.
(our host Önder)
First of all - NE Turkey is one of the places that every person visiting Turkey should see. It has a very special atmosphere. It kind of reminds Mongolia, with its peacefulness, spacious step land and horses together with other domestic animals enjoying the freedom from dawn till dust near little villages.
Our base during the festival was a small Kuyucuk village, with a beautiful lake nearby and snow-peaked Armenian mountains on the backround. It is a home for thousands of water birds. Kars and Igdir region is actually very important place for ornithologists, because of being one of the main bird migration paths. Thus, several bird watching and ringing stations have been set up there.
(a house in Kuyucuk village)
(bird ringing station)
The festival consisted of day-trips to most beautiful places and interesting sightseeings in Kars-Igdir region and spending great time with jolly turkish people and Xavier - a french traveler with whom we joined our road for a while later on.
First day of the festival was a lake day - opening at the Kuyucuk lake...
...and enjoying the evening sunshine at the Cildir lake.
(Önder and his merry men and women)
At evening we went for another visit to the bird watching station near the Kuyucuk lake and spent there an hour or two in a more unofficial atmosphere. Kars region with the altitude of (+/-) 1750m has very cold nights at this time of the year, but at least they always have a full moon which makes the walk over the fields in the night more comfortable.
When arriving back to the base, we found somebody there waiting for us. He was confused, tired and hungry and thus not very happy that he had to wait for us such a long time outside in the cold, but eventually after having one of the best and most expensive turkish cheese for dinner, calmed him down and sweet dreams were quickly to come. It was a small Caucasian shepard puppy that somehow had found the way to us. We named him KOER ("dog" in estonian language). Afterwards, as we got to know from Önder, Koer was adopted by a rich Istanbul family and still carries the same name :-)
Second day took us to Igdir region.
First, nice morning walk in the place which reminded a mixture of moonland and paradise garden, inhabited with lots of different birds.
Having lunch near vulture restaurant.
On the picture there is something that probably used to be a wolf....
Vulture restaurant is a large semi-desert area, where local environmentalists bring animals, that have found their end on the roads or other ways, to make it easier for vultures to continue the natural food chain. Nothing is to be wasted.
The most intensive moments were under Mount Ararat. It was a big baggage of mixed emotions such as excitement, amazement and distraction, when sun was setting, full moon was rising, road full of sheep on their way home, mother donkey reuniting with her little one and bus driver giving constant signal of being impatient to leave.
Evening went quickly by with turkish live pop-rock music and dancing.
It was a great cultural evening for us....too bad that the tiredness got victory over us, before the evening ended.
Third and the last day gave us chance to visit Ani ruins, just on the border with Armenia.
Ani was one of the ancient capitals of Armenia from 961 to 1045. The city of Ani was considered an impregnable fortress due to its natural protective cliffs on three sides and strong massive walls on the fourth side. It was a thriving community and acquired fame as being a Christian metropolis in Asia abounding with prestigious monuments.
(canyon separating present Turkey and Armenia)
(remains of one of the church and walls on the backround)
The relationships between Turkey and Armenia have not been very friendly due to some historical events and so far there was no crossing border between those countries. However, a week of two after our visit to the Ani ruins and to the crack between the countries, we heard from news that peace negotiations between Turkey and Armenia were finally successful and further cooperation can be expected.
That evening was especially enjoyable for merry men, as they went to Hamam - turkish bath. Turkish bath is not like estonian sauna, so Kadri had to stay home.
Saying good bye is always sad, but new road brings new adventures and new friends to share those adventures with. We joined our road with Xavier for a while and headed towards Iran together.
Big Thanks to Önder for this beautiful time in Kars !
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