October 12, 2019 - 11:50 AMT
Forbes: Transcaucasian Trail helps immerse yourself in Armenian culture

It’s not every day that Time magazine names a hiking trail to their annual World’s 100 Greatest Places list. In fact, this is a first, says Forbes in an article about the new Transcaucasian Trail, which is "a beautiful way to immerse yourself in Armenian culture."

"From the moment you start this hike, with Sevan Lake to your back as you ascend into the clouds that you really start to realize the beauty – and diversity in landscapes – that Armenia has to offer," the article says.

"In the following days, hiking through cities like Kalavan, Gosh, and through the forests of Dilijan National Park – the Armenian Switzerland, as locals like to call it – it was the changing colors of the leaves, the mountaintop views, and unique rock formations that made the hike perfectly picturesque."

Throughout the tour, hikers visited architectural and cultural gems that Armenia is home to, were able to learn what life in the remote parts of the country is like.

Armenia has some of the best food in the world, the article says.

"With a plate of fresh herbs on every table next to the basket of the day’s baked lavash, homemade cheeses and pickles, a fresh summer salad of locally grown cucumbers and tomatoes, and homemade dolma – delicious grape leaves stuffed with rice and meat – to stuffed peppers and cabbage, baked eggplant, and manti – the delicious meat dumplings served with garlic yogurt on the side – it wasn’t just a day of hiking that made this food taste so delicious," says the publication.

"Between the fresh ingredients and the fact that each day’s meal was made from scratch just for us, there was nothing heavy about these meals and they were exactly what our bodies were craving after long days pushing our limits mentally and physically."