October 19, 2020, Yerevan. A unique dining experience was organized at Wings of Tatev cableway’s maximum altitude of 320 meters dedicated to the 11th anniversary of its construction.
Inspired by the history of the Tatev Monastery Complex and the experience of building the Wings of Tatev cableway, on October 15, the well-known chef Rafael Kazumyan prepared a special dish in the cable car cabin at its maximum altitude of the runway. Guests and the international journalistic group who arrived in Armenia from different countries of the world took part in the incredible experience.
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The visit to Tatev was organized by the Wings of Tatev cableway and The Armenian Quest project which is being implemented by the DAR Foundation in cooperation with Bon Vivant Communications.
Rafael Kazumyan has worked in internationally famous restaurants in Europe and Asia; some of them are 2 Michelin-starred restaurants. He is the winner of the first MasterChef show in Russia, and the founder of the first private chef service company in Moscow. He is also Executive Chef at Stage by Dvin and creator of famous Armenian restaurants’ menu.
“I wanted to tell about Wings of Tatev through symbolism. We all know the legend about the winged bird and architect of the Tatev Monastery, who got wings and rushed down the gorge striving to reach eternity. That is why the symbol of eternity for me is the egg of the winged bird, which is exactly what I chose today. I made an edible shell from non-melting sugar. Custard is the most popular dessert sauce made from egg yolk. I made it using walnut milk. Then I made crumble from pumpkin seeds, adding honey. The yolk was made from sea buckthorn as a chocolate bonbon with liquid filling,” said chef Rafael Kazumyan.
While hovering over the Vorotan gorge, enjoying the wonderful panorama of nature, first of all, the guests congratulated on the 11th anniversary of the construction of the Wings of Tatev cableway․ Then, they tasted the symbolic dish. After the flight, they toured the Tatev Monastery Complex, which is built in the 9th century. They got acquainted with the rich historical and cultural heritage of the place. After the tour, the guests were introduced to the past path of the Tatev Revival program, the socio-economic impact on the region, including the restoration of the Tatev Monastery Complex, the awakening of cultural, spiritual, and educational life in the complex, tourism, community development programs and future-oriented initiatives.
“Wings of Tatev is not only the longest reversible aerial tramway in the world (5752 m) but also one of the business cards of Armenia. In 11 years, we have served more than 1 million visitors, and the flow of tourists to the region has increased 17 times. Thanks to the cableway, about 330 permanent and temporary jobs have been created. As a result of tourism growth, about 100 guest houses and hotels have been opened in the Tatev community alone,” said Ani Davtyan, Marketing Manager at Wings of Tatev Cableway.
Thanks to the unique location and provided experiences, as well as positive impact and changes, Wings of Tatev has also been nominated for the World Travel Awards 2021 in the World’s Leading Cable Car Ride 2021 nomination this year. And Armenia has been nominated in the World’s Leading Heritage Destination 2021 nomination.
The foreign guests and the two international journalistic groups arrived in Armenia and visited Tatev in October not only to get acquainted with the Armenian history, culture, tourist attraction, but also to discover the opportunities and potential of gastronomic tourism and winemaking in Armenia.
