Do you ever get that feeling that its going to be one of those days?

Our uncomfortable feeling from yesterday is still with us but its more in the background. Maybe it was all the military presence on top of the lack of waves?  Who knows but lets hope it passes. We filled up with LPG, as it only seems right given we used the safety of their garage as sleepy spot.  Once full we decide to check the tyre pressure. Three tyres checked fine but the air valve would just not stop on the final one.  And when it did it just let air out. After an hour of fiddling and farting around we ended up with an almost flat tyre. The compressor had given up the goose, so we moved on to next garage. To which their air compressor was broke then the next and so on until we finally found a garage with a decent compressor.

With all the frustration Craig had lost the will to live, so everything in Kars became too much trouble. A broken road surface and a city centre full of honking horn drivers pushed every button. To top it off the dashboard decided to play an orchestra of squeaks. Poor Craig was like a coiled spring by the time we parked up at Kars train station. I kept out his way as he ripped the dashboard to pieces and rebuilt it, fully loaded with sponges and any other form of shock absorbing material. In 40+ heat he soon melted. Red faced with rage and heat; and with sweat pumping out of every pore he looked like someone in need of serious medication.

The characters lurking around Kars seem a little odd. Not like the Turks we have come to love but more shifty looking folk with frowns and glares. Not necessarily at us but at each other. To be honest, the city looks like it may well be home to a variety of nationalities. A border town feel. Some living in harmony and others clearly living in tolerance. It feels very tense and volatile like it could explode at any moment.  After weeks of feeling comfortable, we felt unsure and uncertain. I really do hope things change soon or we might have to rethink our plans. 

Mid afternoon and we called it quits in Kars. Off to Ani we go, down a bumpy road and what did Vin do…squeak like billy ho. Craig was now like a loaded gun and he wanted to shoot someone, I was prime target. Thankfully, Ani was only 45 kilometres away and we arrived in the nick of time for me to take the dudes for a walk and dodge the bullet (click to enlarge photo). 

Ani was off limits to visitors for many years. This was a hostile border and consequently, the ruins never really received the restoration or attention they deserved. And with sour relations between Turkey and Armenia continuing, there’s been little emphasis for the Turkish government to preserve what they see as predominantly Armenian legacies. Vin our motorhome is parked on a dirt patch right in front of the contentious historical walled city of Ani. Less than 500 metres to the armed ‘closed’ border with Armenia. Given the tension between the two countries and presence of military police in Kars, I can’t help but feel rather nervous.  Is it just us being paranoid or are we right to feel anxious?

Parking Spot…Ancient City of Ani behind the wall

Time for bed and we realise we had not eaten all day. After a day like today I was not hungry and so relieved Craig had finally chilled.  Then just as we tucked under the sheets, all the dogs in Turkey start to yap, bark, growl, yelp and whine . And if thats now enough a shit load of ducks and geese surrounded the van quacking and honking.  Roll on tomorrow. 

Our Bumble wild camping spot at Ani GPS position N040.512470, E043.571952

A new day and a new dawn. After a reasonable nights sleep the only signs of anger are from ravens chasing a bird of pray off their nest. We are ready to explore Ani and the first tourists to arrive, so we have the place to ourselves. Once inside, Craig got so excited with all the architecture and detail he could hardly hold the camera still. 

Initial View…doesn’t look that great but wait step inside…

Ani is an eerie, abandoned city of ghosts that stands alone on a plateau in the remote highlands of northeast Turkey. You enter through lion’s gate and the enormity of the place hits you. As you walk among the many ruins the only sound is the wind howling through a ravine.

The Cathedral

The city of Ani once housed 100,000 people, becoming a cultural hub and regional power under the medieval Bagratid Armenian dynasty. Ruled by a vast array of kingdoms and spanning five empires – the Armenians, Byzantines, Seljuk Turks, Georgians and Ottomans. The land is literally on the border with Armenia and as such it is constantly contested and volatile land. In 1920, under the Turkish War of Independence it became part of Turkey.   

As time went on, an earthquake toppled much of the city and trade routes changed and Ani became less important. So, here it has sat in ruins since 1239! The setting for Ani is surreal and totally breathtaking. The ruins are dotted all along grassy plains covered in flowers with a rock cut river on both sides and rolling hills in the distance. On the walls of the gorge 100’s of cave dwellings of varies shape and size. The landscape reminded us of Tuscany and the caves of the Matera.  

The Church of St Gregory of Tigran Honents

The castle wall is the highest point on the land. From here you can really see the size of the ancient city with its surrounding deep gorge and underground city.  A series of caves dug out of the rock, which some historians speculate may predate Ani. In the early 20th Century, some of these caves were still used as dwellings. The gorge acts as a natural border between the two countries. The ruins of an ancient bridge over the Akhurian River is rather fitting given the vexed state of Turkish-Armenian relations.

There was one mosque at the site which is said to have been the first mosque built by the Seljuk Turks in 1072. The style of the mosque was completely different than the other ones we’ve seen on our travels. The shape was more rectangular rather than circular and there were no domes.  From a distance it looked more like a factory or mill. Close up and Craig wasn’t convinced it started life as a mosque.  The original pillars and walls didn’t match.  If you imagined the building without the walls you could see the building as an open air verandah?

Mosque – looks like a factory

The site’s archaeological findings show a bustling medieval centre crowded with myriad homes, artisanal workshops and impressive churches scattered throughout. Hence the name “The City of 1,001 Churches”. Although the nickname is exaggerated, archaeologists have discovered evidence of at least 40 churches, chapels and mausoleums.

The presence of such historic monuments leads me to beg the question of why these ruins receive such little attention, and so few visitors. Politics plays its inevitable role, as does Ani’s location on a potentially volatile border, but surely the importance to both cultures of these ruins should outweigh these negatives?

Castle

If you are in Eastern Anatolia, then Ani simply cannot be missed. Entrance to the site is 8 TL per person and there are no cafes or toilet facilities inside. There is no where else quite like it in Turkey and it is fantastic. You can walk the site on foot and you need a half day to explore the ruins..or if you are like us, head back at sunset for a few extra hours. The light at this time of day is just adds a whole new dimension .

How Ani is still standing after years of neglect, war and natural disasters is beyond us. But we are sure glad it is! As a traveller, visiting this site is a wonderful experience. We were in awe of every bit of architecture that we saw, Ani is simply just amazing.