Year 2010 for Tourism in Armenia

I am too very proud and thankful to be here, in Armenia. When a country has such long-established traditions and amazing geography it means that the Armenians have a very tolerant, generous, and rich nature.

September 4, 2010

Gerard Depardieu

While casting a look on 2010 with the lenses of tourism, probably two events may be considered remarkably outstanding: the launch of the world longest aerial tramway near Tatev Monastery and the discovery of the world oldest shoe in the Areni-1 cave. The impact of the first is expected to be witnessed in the nearest future, while the treasures of Areni-1 cave will have their say in slightly longer run.

See some more of media coverage below:

• Jakarta Globe - World's longest cable car line opens to Armenia
• Hurriet Daily News - Armenia opens aerial tramway aspiring to be named the world's longest
• Guinness World Records - Longest non-stop double track cable car
• Ancient shoe steps out of cave and into limelight - Science News
• World's Oldest Leather Shoe Found—Stunningly Preserved - National Geographic

World Oldest Shoe Found in Armenia

In the late 2008 and early 2009 the world became aware of discovery of the most ancient human brain in Armenia (see detailed report here). Now Armenia has another surprise - the most ancient shoe ever discovered has been kept in a cave in Southern Armenia for more than 5500 years.

 
You are welcome to read more about this here:

• Walking History: Scientists find “world’s oldest leather shoe” in Armenia - Psalm Tours
• Armenian cave yields what may be world's oldest leather shoe - CNN
• 'Oldest leather shoe' discovered - BBC

Armenia Leading the Top 10 List of Emerging Faith-based Destinations

Kevin J. Wright, president of the World Religious Travel Association, has just published an article with Leisure Group Travel on Top 10 Emerging Destinations in Faith-based Tourism:

1. Armenia
2. Colombia
3. Lebanon
4. Syria
5. India
6. Cyprus
7. Palestine
8. Ethiopia
9. Poland
10. Canada (Quebec)

 In his note about Armenia Kevin rights:

"Armenia, in the Caucasus region of Southwestern Asia, is the embodiment of what it means to be an emerging faith-based destination. The country is off the radar of the average North American traveler, yet it possesses some of the most enviable religious travel attributes of any place on earth".

"Armenia is featured in the first book of the Bible and it’s where you can view Mt. Ararat, the site where Noah’s Ark landed, according to Genesis 8:4. In addition, Armenia has the distinction of being the first country to adopt the Christian faith (301 A.D.) and being evangelized by two of Jesus’ apostles (Bartholomew and Thaddeus). Ancient monasteries are among its top attractions".

"Armenia serves not only as an ideal pilgrimage destination, but also offers a multitude of travel experiences for people of faith, including mission trips, volunteer vacations and cultural/ historic touring. Armenia has recently begun reaching out to the faith-based travel marketplace. As such, it’s only a matter of time until Armenia is properly catalogued as one of  the leading countries for religious travel" (Read the full article here).

Explore Biblical Armenia - The Land of Noah

The World Religious Travel Association (WRTA) published a video presentation of Armenia in its Youtube page.

As for the description of the video you can read the following:

"Come and discover Armenia...the Land of Noah and the First Christian Country. The president of the World Religious Travel Association, Kevin J. Wright, invites you on a scenic journey through this remarkable land of the Bible. You'll be inspired and ready to pack your bags for Armenia!"

So you are welcome to watch the video below:

Why Armenians Celebrate Christmas on January 6

"Armenian Christmas," as it is popularly called, is a culmination of celebrations of events related to Christ's Incarnation. Theophany or Epiphany (or Astvadz-a-haytnootyoon in Armenian) means "revelation of God," which is the central theme of the Christmas Season in the Armenian Church.

The major events that are celebrated during the Armenian Christmas season are the Nativity of Christ in Bethlehem and His Baptism in the River Jordan. The day of this major feast in the Armenian Church is January 6th. At the end of the solemn Christmas Divine Liturgy, a ceremony called "Blessing of Water" is held in the Church to commemorate Christ's Baptism.

It is frequently asked as to why Armenians do not celebrate Christmas on December 25th with the rest of the world. Obviously, the exact date of Christ's birth has not been historically established - it is neither recorded in the Gospels. However, historically, all Christian churches celebrated Christ's birth on January 6th until the fourth century.

According to Roman Catholic sources, the date was changed from January 6th to December 25th in order to override a pagan feast dedicated to the birth of the Sun, which was celebrated on December 25th. At the time Christians used to continue their observance of these pagan festivities. In order to undermine this pagan practice, the church hierarchy designated December 25th as the official date of Christmas and January 6th as the feast of Epiphany.

However, Armenia was not affected by this change for the reason that there were no such pagan practices in Armenia, on that date, and the fact that the Armenian Church independent from the Roman Church. Remaining faithful to their Church traditions, Armenians continue to celebrate Christmas on January 6th until today.


Source: oriental_orthodoxy@yahoogroups.com

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Of all the emerging destinations in religious tourism, the one that just may possess the greatest potential is Armenia

In December issue of the Tourism Review Kevin J. Wright, president of the World Religious Travel Association, shares his vision on emerging faith-based travel destinations for the 21st century religious travelers. He figures out 3 main destinations - Armenia, Cyprus and Jordan since "each of these destinations boast a rich religious history and culture, while also serving home to many important pilgrimage sites."

Touching upon Armenia, Kevin J. Wright writes:

"Of all the emerging destinations in religious tourism, the one that just may possess the greatest potential is Armenia. For one, Armenia is situated in the highlands surrounding the Biblical mountains of Ararat, the very place where according to the Old Testament, Noah’s Ark landed after the flood. Secondly, Armenia was the first nation to adopt Christianity as its state religion in 301 A.D., which is believed to have originally been evangelized by two of Jesus’ apostles Thaddeus and Bartholomew (Note: It wasn’t until around 314 A.D. that Constantine recognized Christianity in the Roman Empire). As such, Armenians are considered by many “the first Christians.” The result? Armenia possesses a very rich and ancient Christian history with some 4,000 churches available to visiting religious travelers. And more than ever before, Armenia itself is beginning to reach out to the global religious travel market and sharing its message."

While being in Yerevan, Armenia, Kevin J. Wright foresaw "Armenia to become leading Biblical and faith based destination". Let this become true in God.

WRTA President Kevin J. Wright about His Remarkable Trip to Biblical Armenia

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“Remarkable,” “memorable,” and “enriching” are just a few words to describe my recent two-week trip to Armenia. Although the primary purpose of my visit was business, in the end – I also became a tourist and religious traveler of Armenia. 

What brought me to Armenia? In short, as the president of the World Religious Travel Association, I came to discover whether Armenia is the next great “untapped” destination of the 300 million traveler Religious Market. What is my answer now? It is a resounding yes. Only Armenia can offer faith-based travelers a religious history that begins with the first book of the Bible (Genesis), serves as the first country to adopt the Christian faith, and can claim being evangelized by two of Jesus’ apostles Bartholomew and Thaddeus. No other biblical or faith-based destination can boast such facts and highlights.

 

During my time here in Armenia, I had the honor of meeting several dozen local tour operators, while also conducting several workshops – including one not only for travel industry professionals, but also one for Armenian tourism instructors. I also had the great pleasure of touring many of Armenia’s great religious, cultural, and historical sites; my travels stretched from Yerevan to Gyumri to Noravank to Sevan to the UNESCO Heritage sites of Sanahin and Haghpat Monasteries. A personal highlight for me was visiting Khor Virap Monastery and viewing the biblical Mt. Ararat on a perfectly blue and sunny day. I will forever and always remember this very special day.

With the current and continued growth/expansion of the religious tourism industry, I look forward to watching Armenia evolve from a “lesser known” faith-based destination to one of the great biblical travel destinations. The only ingredient currently missing is “awareness.” As such, I look forward to sharing the great story of Armenia with the rest of the global faith-based travel marketplace. And now with my visit to Armenia completed, I’m ready to get started!