*** JC: This story ‘Wonder and reflection in the Russian Arctic’ was published in the December 2020 issue of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society’s magazine, The Geographer. The Royal Scottish Geographical Society is a fantastic organisation; learn more about the RSGS on its website, and read previous editions of The Geographer online here. *** I … More Wonder and reflection in the Russian Arctic
Georgia was ranked the fourth-safest country in the world in 2020 by the quality of life researchers Numbeo, and this is how it feels. The internet is great in Tbilisi – and in the second city, Batumi on the Black Sea – but disappears elsewhere. I learned this the hard way, when I went hiking in the Caucasus Mountains for the weekend, got avalanched-in, and went AWOL from work for two days. … More Working remotely from Georgia – Lonely Planet
It was lunchtime at Chorsu Bazaar, and the wooden benches of the choykhona were filling up with hungry families. The room was dark from the smoke of cigarettes and shashlyk. I took a space opposite an older middle-aged couple, sitting with a boy of about six. … More A miracle in Tashkent
One of my photographs from Azerbaijan, taken in the courtyard of Baku’s Şəhidlər Məscidi (Martyr’s Mosque), is being displayed in the online exhibition ‘Top 25 Artworks of Eurasia’. This exhibition is organised by the Eurasian Creative Guild, and features paintings and photographs by artists from Russia, Belarus, Moldova, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. … More A photograph from Baku, Azerbaijan in the exhibition ‘Artworks of Eurasia’
The next day he drove me south, to Tatev monastery: on the way he gave me time on my own, to explore and contemplate at Khor Virap, climb up the wall of Noravank monastery, and wander through the Zorats Karer stones. These places fascinated me – but more than that, the journey was breathtaking. I am still mesmerised by how the towns of Yeghegnadzor and Vayk felt, and the landscapes we passed between Areni and Tatev. … More Saying goodbye to Armenia
The two provinces in the south of Armenia, Vayots Dzor and Syunik, are a spectacular strip of land at the very bottom of the Caucasus. The highway that runs through them, between the towns of Yeraskh and Meghri, passes over the mountains that separate the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh in the east from the Azeri enclave of Nakhchivan to the west.
The journey is breathtaking, and takes in some of Armenia’s cultural treasures: the monasteries of Noravank and Tatev and the wine-making town of Areni are all on the road to Meghri.
The most unusual place in Syunik province is the Zorats Karer stone formation, near the settlement of Sisian – 223 giant boulders that are described, inevitably, as the ‘Armenian Stonehenge’. But unlike the stones in Wiltshire, Zorats Karer still stands in the middle of wild nature: you can wander between the rocks, touch and photograph them. … More Armenia’s Ancient Zorats Karer Stones – for OCA Magazine
LIFE IN CENTRAL ASIA 