We are visiting Armenia, a beautiful and mountainous country located in the Caucasus region between Europe and Asia. There are around 3 million people living here, and the capital is Yerevan, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the entire world! The official language is Armenian, which has its own unique and beautiful alphabet that doesn’t look like any other.

Armenia is a smaller, landlocked country, covering about 29,743 square kilometers, or 11,500 square miles. To imagine its size, it is about the same size as the state of Maryland in the U.S., or roughly the same size as Belgium. Most of the country is covered by high mountains and deep valleys.

The most popular sport in Armenia is Football, but they are also world-famous for Chess! In Armenia, chess is so important that it is a mandatory subject in school for every child to learn. Their national animal is the Eagle, which represents power and feathers of gold in their ancient stories.

The flag consists of three horizontal stripes of red, blue, and orange, where the red symbolizes the mountains and the people’s struggle for survival, the blue represents the peaceful sky, and the orange stands for the hard-working nature of the people.

The food is very ancient and healthy. The most famous food is Lavash, a very thin, soft flatbread that can be so long it covers a whole table! It is often wrapped around fresh herbs and cheese. They also love Apricots, which grow so well there that the fruit’s scientific name actually means “Armenian Plum.”

Armenia is home to the world’s oldest known winery, found inside a cave, where people were making grape drinks over 6,000 years ago! You can also find the longest non-stop cable car in the world, called the Wings of Tatev, which carries you high over a deep river gorge to reach an ancient monastery. In many parts of the country, you will see Khachkars, which are giant stone crosses carved with incredibly detailed patterns of flowers and knots; no two are exactly the same.

From the sparkling blue waters of Lake Sevan to the snow-capped peaks of Mount Ararat, Armenia is a land of ancient history and mountain wonders. Shnorhakalut’yun! That means “Thank you!”