Introducing Kars
This is the city that provided the setting for Orhan Pamuk’s prize-winning novel Kar (Snow). Kars always elicits strong reactions – negative or positive, depending on your perspective. Some travellers loathe it (‘muddy’, ‘lethargic’, ‘stark’, ‘sad’); others scratch below the surface and realise that Kars is high on personality and atmosphere. All right, it’s a bit nibbled around the edges, but when the sun shines, the stately, pastel-coloured stone buildings look almost chirpy, giving the town the look of a Little Russia in Turkey. And the mix of influences – Azeri, Turkmen, Kurdish, Turkish and Russian – adds to the appeal.
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The main reason for coming to Kars is usually to visit Ani, but don’t forget to enjoy the delicious local bal (honey) and peynir (cheese); these will certainly keep your spirits high. When the border with Armenia reopens, which is bound to happen one of these days, business with nearby Gyumri will thrive.
Last updated: Feb 17, 2009
Thorn Tree forum discussion
Recent posts
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RE: Turkey-Armenia
by Giora 14 September 2011
There are some interesting off-beat border crossings for this trip. From Kars, you can take a minibus to Posof. From there across the…
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Re: From Iran to Tbilisi
by superbohater 13 September 2011
Hey, thanks for quick reply. Generally, my trip starts in Istanbul and then, after wandering around turkish coast, I'm going to the eastern…
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Skype and wifi
by soldanella 13 September 2011
First time to Turkey and wanting to hear of others' experiences using Skype to call locally within Turkey and to be in touch occasionally…
Hotels & Hostels in Kars
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Kar's Otel
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Güngören Hotel
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Hotel Temel
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