KOBAYR MONASTERY

Leaning against the wooded walls of the Débét canyon, it is a little-known site that can be reached from the disused Kobayr railway station, after 20 minutes of ascent on a steep path, between vineyards and waterfalls: in a superb site, the monastic complex dating back to 1223 is in poor condition but its beautiful colourful frescoes, even beaten by the winds, have withstood the test of time in the central apse of the main church (katoghike). They betray the influence of Georgia in this Armenian-Chalcedonian monastery, which has kept the remains of ramparts.