Lake Sevan, the blue pearl at 1,900 metres

Armenians call Sevan the sea, and after a week in the country you will too. At 1,900 metres of altitude the light is harder, the water colder, the sky closer.

Climb the 200 steps of the Sevanavank peninsula for the postcard view, then do what locals do: order sig — smoked whitefish — with lavash and herbs, and eat it at a plastic table ten metres from the water.

Worth knowing

• The west shore is for views, the east shore for swimming.
• Noratus, twenty minutes away, holds the largest field of khachkars (carved cross-stones) in the world.
• In September the crowds leave and the water is still warm enough for the brave.