International Railroad Discussion > Armenia, part 10. Streamliner meet

A few more from train 684. Photo 7 is of the streamliner meet.

1) Timetable

2) System map for entire country of Armenia, and abridged timetables. Yerevan is in the lower center at the stub and of a track going north. My train follwed the red line for two stops to the junction, then went northwest on the green line to the terminus in the upper right.

The reason for the gap in the system at Yerevan is a high bluff to the north of downtown. Rather than have a slow train wind its way up to the rim of the city (line now abandoned anyway) they just have a separate small station to the north of downtown, at the top of the bluff. (I didn't get up there to see it.)

3) Fare chart?

All were posted on the inside of the train.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 04/07/18 22:32 by gobbl3gook.

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4) A notice of some sort. Bilingual -- Armenian and Russian.

5) Another notice. After seeing Marty Bernards' posts of Roger Puta's photos from the 1960s, I figured I should try to shoot a lot of detail. Laminated photocopies taped to formica walls isn't quite in his league, but, I thought is was a good show.
https://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?11,4337780
https://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?15,4337705
https://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?11,4331253

6) View of the inside of the car just before the terminus at Gyumri. You can see there's a few people on the train, not a whole lot. Not empty, but pretty close... Minibuses have probably cut into their business in recent years, but you can see that the train is clean and serviceable. Not bad for 55 years of continuous use, and probably a few of those with minimal maintenance.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 04/07/18 22:44 by gobbl3gook.

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7) We met sister train 681, it whooshed by pretty quickly, but I got a grab shot of it out the window, and you can see it also has a turret cab train set.
See national schedule here (photo 2)
https://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?6,4497661
And another photo of this train set as 681
https://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?6,4498496

It made me happy to be riding a streamliner train and meeting another one out on the rails. I doubt I'll ever have that experience again. In fact, the EM1s are probably the only streamliners left in service anywhere in the world, and there probably aren't many of the original 258 that were manufactured that are still in revenue service, seeing as the youngest ones are 55 years old.

8) Somewhere in the first half of the trip.

9) Lots of wooden boxcars, seemed to still be in revenue service.

It was like time travel. Streamlined passenger trains and wooden boxcars. With station agents at every station.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/07/18 22:46 by gobbl3gook.

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Bonus photos -- Rural churches

Churches in Armenia are also a time-travel experience, but going back 1000 years.

Ancient Christian churches are all over the countryside in Armenia, and they are kept in a wonderful state of arrested decay. If they are 1000 years old, they look 1000 years old. And every component is ancient.

I always find it disturbing and distasteful when a historic structure is restored, or renovated in a way that makes it look brand new. Most of what you see is no longer historic, but a replica of what was once historic.

In Armenia, it's not the case. Most churches are left to sit, and maybe be periodically reconstructed.

I only included one rural church site in my itinerary, Marmashan 15 kilometers north of Gyumri.

It looked pretty good for being 1100 years old. And if it had been rebuilt, they certainly did a good job of keeping it authentic.

Location
https://www.google.com/maps/@40.8461027,43.7576903,2201m/data=!3m1!1e3
Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marmashen_Monastery

1) View from the side of the bluff, dropping into the river valley.

2) The main church. No power lines, no parking lots, no lawns. A very authentic ancient building.

3) Inside the main church. Pretty spartan -- no pews, no organ. Probably no electricity. Services (I only attended one in a village church) are all done standing up. With lots of incense.

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13) Close-up of the script on the side.

14) Arriving by bicycle, like a modern horse, contributed to the experience. I liked that I was arriving silently, in the open air, seeing, smelling and hearing the landscape, rather than seeing bits and pieces from the inside of a minivan.

(I left my luggage at a gas station in the village. Other times I'd just hide it behind a rock or shed if going off-route for an hour or two. Only problem I ever had was when a 5 year old girl and her dog found my bags in Kazakhstan and carted my sleeping bag off. Luckily I was already back and saw it all happen, and she politely gave it back to me).

If you like ancient buildings in states of arrested decay like this, a simple Google search will deliver you a lot eye candy.
https://www.google.com/search?q=images+churches+armenia

Marmashen, Armenia.

Photos taken early November, 2017.

Questions, comments?

Ted in OR



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/07/18 22:39 by gobbl3gook.

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Fascinating series! What brought you to visit the country? What sparked your interest on the topic? Most of my family and origins are from there, but I have yet to visit.

Jason Eminian
Smith Brothers Hobby Center

Glad you're back and posting again!

gobbl3gook Wrote:
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> Bonus photos -- Rural churches .....
> ....It looked pretty good for being 1100 years old.
> And if it had been rebuilt, they certainly did a
> good job of keeping it authentic....

Authentic, yes, with the exception of the hi-res video display monitor showing Virgin and Child.
Just kidding, thanks for pix and descriptions.

Fizzboy -- Armenia is a wonderful place. I'd suggest going every couple years if you have connections there. It's easy to get to if you fly Emirates, Aeroflot or Turkish Air, watch for the sales.

Looking today, I see $713 RT from NYC, or $950 from LAX. Or just $650 from NYC to Tbilisi, then it's an easy jaunt to Yerevan.
If you wait for a sale you'll get it for a couple hundred cheaper.
https://www.google.com/flights/#flt=/m/02_286.EVN.2018-05-09*EVN./m/02_286.2018-05-23;c:USD;e:1;sd:1;t:f
https://www.google.com/flights/#flt=/m/02_286.TBS.2018-05-02*TBS./m/02_286.2018-05-16;c:USD;e:1;sd:1;t:f

Once you're there the cost of travel and lodging is essentially free if you're on a North American budget. Hostel dorm beds are about $5/night. (see them listed at hostelworld.com) The food is great -- fresh, local, tasty, and inexpensive.

Pop over there and check it out.

As for me, I've always wanted to go around the world, preferably by bicycle and local train. I only had time to do part of the whole world now, and rather than keep putting it off I just picked the most interesting parts that I could see in 2 months. I started in Kazakhstan, ended up in Bulgaria, restricted the itinerary to countries with easy tourist visa requirements.

A bit more of my travel philosophy in my first Kazakhstan post.
https://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?6,4467027

Ted in OR

Outstanding! I'm so envious of your travels and goals to bike all around. Same interest here, but work will not allow that for quite a while. Thank you for sharing your photos and inspiring. One day...

Nice shots of the church. I hope I look that distinguished when I'm 1100 years old. :>}}

Were any of the rural churches you saw still in use? Just curious about how the many decades of Soviet rule played out in Armenia.