To EPEBAH and beyond!

Hey all my JMUers, family, and DORTMUNDERS! I miss you all, and think about you guys all the time :)

This work week opened up a new insight into the Armenian education system. So kids here are taught their English lessons using a somewhat old-fashioned Russian textbook.   The kids’ knowledge of extensive grammar is really quite impressive, however they aren’t given many opportunities to speak English and use their knowledge. They were taken aback when I suggested using…a game(!) to practice new vocabulary. The 4^th & 6^th graders are really interesting and well-behaved. The 8^thgraders…not so much. It really reminded me of my Armenian school class at Hamasdegh Sunday School (A lot of yelling and ‘char’ behavior). Some of my funniest childhood memories took place at Hamasdegh…Neva & Tamar, I am thinking of you!

I was honored to be present at the ‘Climbing the Mountain’ presentation at the Moscow Red Theatre, to listen to Arsinee Khanjian (Diasporan Armenian acress/activist) and Fetiye Cetin (Turkish-Armenian lawyer and activist). Fetiye was born and raised as a Turkish Muslim but found out when she was about my age that her grandparents were Christian Armenians who converted to escape the Genocide. She researched into the family history and made it her mission to denounce genocide denial and be proud of her Armenian origin. Her testimony was incredible – it brought me to tears to hear her talk about how hard it is to feel the guilt that the Turkish nation continues to bring upon itself.

My first excursion with Birthright Armenia was fantastic. We began by driving for about an hour, ending up at the Alphabet Field. About half of the volunteers had either not been there before, or hadn’t been in a long time (my case). Of course I climbed around on my letter, the A letter in the Armenian alphabet. Check out my new album on facebook to see some of the pictures from here. 

We continued in ‘richtung Berg’…direction of Mount. Aragats. Our crew was equipped with trash bags and gloves – mine were definitely dentist gloves because they smelled like mint and fluoride. In any case, the group of 35 picked up loads of garbage that had been left from summer picnics and parties. I think we found more empty vodka bottles than anything else but Armenia doesn’t recycle glass. We all wondered why there wasn’t a regular garbage collection service, or even garbage bins for that matter. The local Armenian who tends the area says there isn’t enough money for gas to regularly travel up and down the mountain with trash. It was such a fun climb to one of the peaks near the Kari Lake. I enjoy physical activity and adventure, so climbing around on rocks was quite fun for me. We even found some snow that was left from LAST winter! The one ‘outhouse’ designated for us non-restaurant guests (who just cleaned up restaurant property) was shockingly putrid. I had low expectations to begin with…but my my my was this a stinky surprise. I assumed at an outhouse one was supposed to go IN the toilet. Not on it. Or around it. All in all, I roamed around like a dog until I found the perfect place to empty my bladder. The scenery throughout was breathtaking – mountain peaks topped with snow, and green hills that were Hyrule Field/LOTR-esque. And it helped I was wearing my Zelda t-shirt. My entire body is sore today…but not just from the labor! Read on…

After the mountain, we visited an animal therapy center for a while, and I got to ride around on Epona (nerds catch my drift?). I met a nice girl from Argentina, and we both discovered each other’s interest in gymnastics and enjoyed cartwheeling around the farm. The yoga retreat at the end of the day was incredible. The views from the compound were picturesque and the air was so clear and refreshing. I wonder how people actually get there, because it seems far from any ‘larger’ city. The food was delicious – organic Armenian food that is vegetarian. Afterwards, we had a 45 minute yoga session. It was my first legitimate yoga session; as I am relatively flexible the yoga itself was fun, but when it came to meditation I felt like a 5 year old. While many of the other volunteers were sitting Indian style with their eyes closed, I was rolling around on the mat looking at Yerevan’s lights and thinking about how I really wanted to shower. Our evening came to a relaxing close at Calumet – where the cigarette smoke made enemies with my contact lenses and my throat. I hate smoking, especially in closed spaces. Cancer sticks are really cheap here, which is why I assume they are so popular. Just the other day, I saw two Armenian policemen smoke cigarettes and then throw the butts on the ground, leaving them for someone else to take care of. Oh, and apparently the bigger a policeman’s hat is, the more important they are. These guys were scrubs, but they set a terrible example for everyone! 

My language skills are becoming stronger – it is relaxing to communicate with other Diasporans from Lebanon and Syria. Our language and pronunciation is the same, and the rhythm is so much more familiar. Locals speak differently, and the intonation of syllables makes it even harder to understand what they are talking about. 

Let’s see what this week brings :~) Liebe Gruesse!