Why is Yerevan so interesting? Because there are not so many cities in the world that are thoroughly saturated with the culture of their ancient country, and at the same time so modern. Living here is comfortable and pleasant, and at the same time you can enjoy the old times at any time. And if you suddenly want to go to nature, then a couple of hours drive from Yerevan you can find quiet villages, and amazingly beautiful landscapes with mountains and lakes.
Facts about Yerevan
- In Russian, until the mid-30s of the last century, its name was written as «Erivan».
- The first chronicle mention of Yerevan was made about 2800 years ago. It is indeed an ancient city.
- Yerevan’s average height above sea level is more than 1 kilometer.
- About 99% of the city’s population are ethnic Armenians. However, a similar situation is observed throughout Armenia, it is one of the most mono-ethnic countries in the world (interesting facts about Armenia).
- The vast majority of locals constantly drink coffee. This drink is extremely popular here.
- Local roads are often noisy. Yerevan drivers often honk, and in general, as tourists pay attention, they do not pay much attention to the rules of the road.
- There are many places where there is free Internet access via Wi-Fi.
- Yerevan is one of the few major cities in the world where trolleybus service is still widely used.
- The Yerevan metro has only one line and a dozen stations, but expansion is planned.
- The record frost in Yerevan was -28.2 degrees, and the record heat was +42.4 degrees.
- Once Yerevan was a simple fortress and was called Erebuni.
- Even in the 5th century, a church was built here, which stood for almost one and a half thousand years, until the 30s of the 20th century.
- Sometimes Yerevan is called the pink city, since many buildings here were built from volcanic tuff, a mineral that has a pink tint (interesting facts about minerals).
- Various publications and researchers have repeatedly included Yerevan in the list of «100 safe cities in the world».
- It is almost impossible to see a drunk person on the street in Yerevan. As, in fact, in the whole of Armenia.
- Water from the city water supply system can be drunk directly from the tap, without additional filtration – it is clean.
- Most of the local residents, in addition to Armenian, also speak Russian, especially the older generation.
- There are many drinking fountains on the streets of Yerevan.
- More than a million people live in Yerevan. This is more than in the entire Republic of Cyprus (interesting facts about Cyprus).
- Here you will not find a single «McDonald’s» — they simply do not exist in Yerevan.
- The fact that Armenian laws do not limit the architectural styles of the city gives diversity to Yerevan architecture. As a result, almost all the buildings here are completely different from others. Looks pretty original.
- Unlike some provincial corners of Armenia, it is not customary in Yerevan to take off your shoes when visiting.
- Most of the cars on Yerevan roads are luxurious «Mercedes», «BMW» and other luxury cars. True, almost all of them were such 10-15 years ago. But most locals would rather buy a 20-year-old «Mercedes» than a new «Lada».
- In Yerevan, you can see the sun in the sky for about 300 days a year, that is on average, out of 12 months, 10 are sunny here.
- Gas fuel here is significantly cheaper than gasoline or diesel, so many Yerevan car owners switch their cars to it.
- The ancient Blue Mosque of Yerevan, built back in in the 18th century, it fell into decay over time, but at the end of the 90s of the last century it was restored at the expense of Iran (interesting facts about Iran).
- In sunny weather, you can see the legendary Mount Ararat, located in Turkey.