You know how in In Bruges, the characters keep repeating in reference to the city, “It’s like a f—in’ fairytale or something.”
That’s exactly how I felt when I went to this monastery in the tiny Azerbaijani village of Kish.
Forget Bruges, this is a fairy tale. That ‘happy place’ that people claim to go to when they’re stressed? This is it. It’s real, and it exists in the mountains of the Azerbaijani countryside.
I am not a quiet-loving person. I prefer noise, hubbub, chaos: I’ll take the soundtrack of the city over the silence of the country any day. As a child my parents had to play various music tapes to get me to sleep; these days the television (put on timer to save electricity, of course) acts as my lullaby.
And yet.
This Albanian monastery took my breath away. I’ve never felt more at peace, nor more happy to be so.
From the moment I walked through the gates, I was entranced. Clouds hung perfectly, lazily, on the mountains in the distance. The gardens were silent, the rose bushes manicured and in bloom. I felt like the prince stepping into Sleeping Beauty’s time-frozen kindgom.
There was something magical about this place. Everyone could tell. The others, normally rowdy and rambunctious, finally quieted down — some walked around, exploring the tiny museum inside the medieval church, others sat on benches in the gardens and simply rested, staring wistfully into the mountains.
(Then again, I could have mistaken boredom for wistfulness, but I’m choosing to think they were as bewitched as I was.)
Maybe it was the remoteness of it all: knowing I was high in the mountains, hundreds of miles away from big cities, bright lights, first-world problems.
Maybe it was the antiquity: knowing this temple lasted from the first century, that the simple, beautiful things stand the test of time — made my present day worries seem less urgent.
Whatever it was, something in me changed that day. If nothing else, now I have a happy place…and it is just like a f—ing fairytale.
No words could describe how much I loved this place. If you ever find yourself in northern Azerbaijan, you absolutely must go to Sheki and hire a taxi driver to take you the three kilometers into the village of Kish to see this monastery.
I'm an American writer living in Paris and serial expat addicted to living abroad. I believe in traveling while you're young – and that it's possible to balance long-term travel, a career, and a relationship at the same time. I first moved abroad at 18 and have been permanently overseas since graduating in 2010. I've built a career in media and journalism through living in China, Singapore, and Paris, and have covered sports events from London to Azerbaijan. I currently travel solo while engaged to someone 6,000 miles away. 
Finding your happy place=PRICELESS.
Seriously, I have never really thought about Albania as a place that I wanted to go to soon (nothing against Albania, just never really put much thought into it) but WOW. It looks like there are some spectacular places to see.
My most recent happy place was the Cote du Rhone wine villages in the mountains in the south of France. I couldn’t believe that there were no other tourists to be seen in any of the cute little, picture perfect villages that we visited. I still think about that place in times of stress, and it makes me smile!
Shanna Schultz,this is not an Albania) This is a little village in mountainous region of Azerbaijan.More precisely: Kish village,Shaki, Azerbaijan.Welcome to Azerbaijan!
As Casander said, this is in Azerbaijan (but it is an Albanian monastery) :) wine villages in southern France sound pretty relaxing too!
I absolutely love these photos, great job. The town actually looks so much like Tallinn, Estonia, with the round red roofs. Ah, I need to go to Kish!
Thanks Ashley. Funny enough Estonia’s a country I really want to visit as well.
Adorable! Reminds me a lot of a town I visited in the Swiss Alps, oddly enough.
I’ve never been, but I bet the Alps are full of adorable little towns!
Gorgeous! This looks like an ideal spot for a wedding. Or just a nice place to sit out on a blanket and enjoy wine and cheese.
I didn’t think of either but you’re so right, it’d be perfect for a wedding or a picnic!
Thank you for posting………absolutely lovely………..
makes me want to hop on a plane right this minute!
Thanks Kay!
There’s something otherworldly about the beauty of that place. I’d love to spend an afternoon there, just relaxing in the gardens.
Otherworldly…spot on. Maybe it was the altitude of the mountains :)
Sounds like a wonderful, magical little village :). I just love finding those places that make you feel so at peace and as if all is right with your world.
Me too, it’s one of the best parts about travel.
This post is just beautiful- the pictures are truly wonderful and the writing is just perfect. I could feel the happiness, the peace and tranquility. I’m so glad you found such a happy place and thank you for sharing :)
That’s very kind of you, thanks Rhi!
Stunning! I’m a city girl longing for the country when I’m in the city, I’m a country girl longing for the city when I’m in the country, I feel like I could have been here for a while.
Each of these pictures looks just like pictures from a story book! Also, have you started frequently using filters on your photos?
I don’t long for the country that often, but a weekend is just perfect; it’s nice to get out of the city every now and again. And no, I usually don’t edit my photos very much — that last one’s instagrammed though :)
This is so gorgeous. Monasteries do that to me too. I remember how in Ohrid, in Macedonia, I went to a small church that until today is one of my favorites, and the peace there brought me to my knees, and I had to cry as everything that was impure in my life seemed to drift away from me into the quiet beauty of the moment. Thanks for sharing this place.
Wow, that sounds incredibly peaceful. Thanks for sharing Mariella!
Wow, what a beautiful place! Your posts about Azerbaijan have really surprised me. I know nothing about the country, but now I’d really like to go.
Aw thanks Jessica :) (That’s the greatest compliment a travel blogger can get, right?)