I
was determined to leave the caravan, since we did not go more than
four hours a day.
I had two letters; one to the town physician, the other to the
governor. The latter was in the country; Dr. Muller, however,
received me so well that I could not possibly have been better taken
care of.
Erivan {305} is situated on the river Zengui, and is the capital of
Armenia; it contains about 17,000 inhabitants, and is built upon low
hills, in a large plain, surrounded on all sides with mountains.
The town has some fortified walls. Although the European mode of
architecture already begins to predominate greatly, this town is by
no means to be reckoned among either the handsome or cleanly ones.
I was most amused by the bazaars, not on account of their contents,
for these do not present any remarkable features, but because I
always saw there different, and for the most part unknown, national
costumes. There were Tartars, Cossacks, Circassians, Georgians,
Mingrelians, Turkonians, Armenians, etc.; chiefly powerful, handsome
people, with fine expressive features--particularly the Tartars and
Circassians.
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