Անի

Only in Armenia do we travel to various borders to see our own historical tourist attractions. We have to cross through backland Azerbaijan to visit our Artsakh, or our Nakhichevan. This time it was for me; we went to see the city of Ani. Historically known as the City of 1001 Churches, a city that once rivaled with Constantinople, the Christian capital of the Middle East now stands in ruins. Although an earthquake rocked the region and destroyed many of the monuments, it was the Turkish government that finished the job, by ordering its officers in the region to destroy all evidence of Christian Armenian existence. 

Look, you can see bits of the wall.

Once we approached the buffer zone between Armenia and Turkey, we had to switch to a different bus. The ‘road’ to the actual border was not exactly in great condition and our bus wasn’t going to exert itself to make it to the end. The border bus was quite the experience. The floor was covered in diesel fuel and the windows were mostly nailed shut. Oh yeah, and the driver was smoking...All of the Gamavors crammed into it, which resulted in marshrutka like chaos. A good stomach churning 20 minutes later, we reached the final border point. It was the edge of a cliff that led to the river, which separates Armenia and Turkey today. I had a feeling that visiting the city I was named after would be an emotional trip. 

Simon, Melissa, Armen & I enjoying the gasoline marshrutka

We got off the bus and walked past the border patrol to reach the viewpoint. Initially I was in such a shock, I didn’t move; I just gazed into the ruins. From that point, I could see some of the city’s walls that were still intact. I could see the remnants of many ancient churches. And there was one church that was still in good condition. As I sat on a rock, tears flowing down my cheeks, I imagined my Ani with full-fledged wings, a bustling metropolis in Western Armenia. Of course I was angry that it isn’t recognized as part of Armenia. However, I now know why I was named after this city. God blessed Ani with history of Christianity, and even though it was conquered 1000 years ago, it still stands today as a symbol of Armenians and their will to keep fighting, to never give up.

Me & my Ani

We had a picnic in a village also along the border. I should clarify – there are several kinds of ‘bathrooms’ in Armenia. There is your standard, European/American toilet with sandpaper toilet paper. There is your ‘arabgan’ (Arab) toilet, a hole in the ground with a small platform where one is to squat to relieve him or herself.  And there’s my personal favorite, au natural, or outdoors. The picnic spot was an extremely flat piece of land. Guys didn’t have much of a problem. They could just walk away far enough and do their business across the fence and into Turkey. It was a bit more difficult for women. I walked towards the train tracks, which I thought were abandoned. I was about to unzi…oh shoot, there’s a family in that house across the tracks. I walked for another good 10 minutes when I finally decided I just wanted to go and get back to lunch. Luckily there was an abandoned hut where I left a surprise for whoever comes in next. Word of wisdom – always carry tissues and hand sanitizer. 

We made it to Gyumri in the evening, where we endured a fascinating (…) tour of Gyumri’s history museum. Okay, so Gyumri was ravaged by the earthquake that rocked the region in 1988. The destruction was still visible, as many structures still lay in ruins. The Gyumretsis, on the other hand, are some of the most amazing people I’ve ever met. They speak a different dialect of Armenian, which is actually closer to Western Armenian. We were staying for less than 12 hours with our host families. However, it took about only an hour to make a connection with them that I know I will never forget. Gyumretsis like humor. I explained the marshrutka song, and the interesting dialect of Yerevanci men, to which we all started laughing. They especially enjoyed the grunt – this would be too much to explain, you’ll just have to visit and hear for yourself. This family told me that I’m not a Yerevanci, I’m a Gyumretsi at heart. I’m pretty sure they’re right!

Seto & I enjoying a Gyumri evening

On Sunday, November 4^th, we visited a children’s orphanage in Gyumri. Many of the children lost their parents during the earthquake or the war and now live in the center. I really loved playing with them, especially doing some acrobatic tricks with Evelyn! It was touching when they held hands and stood in front of the gate to block our bus from leaving. Our driver wasn’t exactly a charmer and just honked at them until they moved…

Church in Gyumri. Awesome!