We continued along the shores of Lake Sevan. With two churches and a cemetery behind us – and after a quick lunch – we were now heading for a free afternoon in our holiday resort right at the beach of the lake.

Things were strange, when we arrived at the hotel … the whole complex, including the park felt a bit like a trip back to Soviet times – – also there was no one at the hotel, to actually welcome us or hand out room keys. After some minutes the receptionist did show up and we made it into the hotel, received our room keys and – after a bit of debate – decided, to have dinner in the restaurant of the hotel.

While the rooms were actually quiet suitable (including balconies overlooking the lake), there was still a sort of eerie feeling around the place – – it felt like a haunted house, when someone started playing the (somewhat out-of-tune) piano in the lobby …

Things were similar in the park around the hotel … clearly this place had seen better and more busy days in the past. Some parts here were well maintained – others however had a slight feeling of decay, giving them a somewhat morbid atmosphere. It reminded me a bit of Pripjat, as those parts were similarly abandoned with no one looking back – just a lower levels of radiation. The old, long given up, shop surely is good example here – its main exhibit was an old MOCKBA fridge from 1968 (complete with its USSR inventory card).

Leaving the odd feelings aside, I had a great time here … the wine was good, dinner and breakfast delicious and the staff were serving us well – the Soviet side-flavor was just a nice add-on.