Great churches

Akhali Atoni has three tourist sights, where Saint Simon the Canaanite Church (also known as Church of Simon the Zealot) is one of them. Like with the other sights, the area around the church is turned into, what most will call, a tacky tourist hell for the many Russian tourists. There are cafes and restaurants, small stands selling everything from local made wine to honey, and if you are looking for to have your picture taken with a hawk, owl or bear cub, that will sadly be possible too. The church itself is a 10th-century Georgian church built on the ruins of a fourth-century church and now sadly on a backdrop of an abandoned construction. The church is dedicated to Saint Simon the Canaanite, an apostle who came here in AD 55. For a more interesting way to reach the church, follow the short trail along the river, which starts at the fine old abandoned train station.

The town of Mbanza Kongo was once the capital of the Kingdom of Kongo, one of the largest states in Southern Africa during the Middle Ages. Later at the end of the 15th century Portuguese missionaries arrived and built the first Catholic church in Central Africa. The church was later extended to a cathedral known as the Cathedral of the Holy Saviour of Congo (in Portuguese Catedral de São Salvador de Congo). The present day ruins are no bigger than a two-story house, but there is also the graveyard of the kings, along with a small, but impressive, museum with artifacts from the old Kingdom. Mbanza Kongo was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2017.

Geghard is probably the finest cave monastery in Armenia. It stands deep in a canyon and blends in with the surrounding cliffs. The complex is partly dug out of the mountainside with annexed buildings. It was supposedly founded in the 4th century but invading armies have left nothing from that time. The two cave churches and vestibules you see today are all from the 13th century. Above the main entrance to the churches is a 10 m passage which leads to a cave chapel that is fully carved out of the mountain and has amazing acoustics. A small peephole in the corner makes it possible to look into the cave chamber below (see picture). The monastery got its name Geghardavank - meaning "the Monastery of the Spear" - since the spear that wounded Christ on the cross was kept here (the spear is now displayed in the Echmiadzin treasury).

Haghpat and Sanahin monasteries lie in plain view of each other separated by a canyon. Haghpat is also on UNESCO's World Heritage list and dates from the 10th century as well, though Sanahin is 50 years younger. Haghpat is a compact monastery complex with several chapels, some fine cross stones (khachkars) and a groomed garden setting. The views are splendid and the village of Haghpat is charming and easygoing.

Khor Virap is that iconic church you see on postcards and paintings from Armenia. It is perched on a small hill with an almost too picturesque background of majestic Mt. Ararat which rises across the border in Turkey. The present church of Khor Virap was built in the 17th century on a foundation of previous chapels. Saint Gregory the Illuminator was initially imprisoned here for 13 years in a deep pit - khor virap means "deep well" in Armenian - which can be visited today by climbing down a steep creepy ladder. Khor Virap is an important pilgrimage site for Armenians and religious services are held at the church, including some strange rituals like sacrifice of roosters and release of white doves (which are trained to fly back to the seller). Try to visit in the weekends if you want to see some action.

It seems that the early Christians in Armenia were really fond of splendid views for churches in Armenia are often perched on hilltops or edge of gorges, and Tatev monastery is a prime example. Sitting high on an outcrop at the end of Vorotan Canyon, with impressive views down the length of the canyon, it is surely jaw-dropping. Tatev was constructed in the 9th century and functioned as a university in the 14th and 15th centuries. The complex includes several halls and towers which some were used as library, kitchen and dining hall. The 8 m tall, but damaged, pillar in the corner of the courtyard is said to be an sensor for earthquakes - or approaching armies (Tatev was as looted as any other monastery in Armenia by various armies through times). Today you can "fly" over the canyon to the monastery in the brand new cable-car, which, by the way, is the world's longest with its 5.7 km.

Inside the small Boyana Church are some of the finest frescoes in the world - the reason why it’s an UNESCO World Heritage site. It’s easy to see that the small church is made up of three sections. The oldest dating back to the 10th century with impressive mural paintings. When the second section was added the 13th century, the whole interior, including the first section, was done up with a new layer of even more impressive frescoes, which is today considered by art historians as predecessor of European rennanciane. The church went through a careful restoration in, so today you can see parts of both the original frescoes along with the second layer. The church stopped function as a church in 1954 and today only 8 visitors can see the interior at a time (but not that many visit the church

The biggest Catholic church in the world isn't the Basilica of St Peter in the Vatican, it's surprisingly the Basilica of Our Lady of Peace in Yamoussoukro in Côte d'Ivoire. Completed in 1990 and standing 158 metres tall, it's 22 metres higher than St Peter's. This massive piece of work is wholly unexpected and the "Basilica of the Bush" is, not surprising, the most visited tourist attraction in the country. It's probably also one of the most prominent tourist sights in all of West Africa, even through the construction was highly controversial. The final cost has never been revealed, but guesses range from US$200 million to US$600 million with most suggestions being around US$300 million. This massive sum was spent while the country was in a recession and is said to have doubled the country’s foreign debt.

The Agios Loannis lambadistis Monastery is considered one of the best of Cyprus' painted church – ten of which have been designated by UNESCO as World Heritage sites. From the outside the small monastery doesn't look like much, but when entering the dark interior, it's a different story. The whole ceiling is covered in vivid frescos from the 11th to the 15th century. Like ancient cartoons, each illustrates an episode from the bible. Getting to Agios Loannis lambadistis Monastery is almost half the fun. First by navigating the winding roads through Troodos Mountains, and then wriggle your way through the narrow lanes of the small villages of Kalopanagiotis, where the monastery lies at the bottom across the river. The villages itself could easily be a candidate for the cutest villages in Cyprus.

Denmark has some magnificent churches, but Grundtvig's Church still stands out from the crowd with its imposing expressionist architecture. The construction started 1921, but when the mastermind behind the unique design, Danish architect Peder Vilhelm Jensen Klint died in 1930, the church still wasn't finished (his urn was later sealed in one of the walls). The task was then entrusted to his son architect and designer Kaare Klint, who completed the church in 1940. Kaare Klint became even more famous than his father, particularly as a furniture designer, and the chairs he designed for Grundtvig's Church have later become a Danish design icon. The church is named after the Danish philosopher and hymn writer N. F. S. Grundtvig.