Friday, 7 October 2011

Armenia

Saturday 3rd September 2011

We caught the Envoy Hostel Tour bus from Tbilisi to Yerevan stopping on the way to see several beauty spots in the north of Armenia.  We were travelling for 11 hours but we saw some lovely places.  I didn’t know a thing about the country before this trip.  We went because it was there but when I first saw the country it was stunning.  We seemed to be driving surrounded by mountains, with the towns and villages nestled within them.  At a later point there were also a lot of heavy industrial sites and abandoned factories from when the Russians moved out.  

We visited the Aktal Monastary. I have to tell you this story.  This is what’s left of the amazing fresco of the Virgin Mary and Jesus on the wall and ceiling in the centre of the nave.  There was an attack by the Mongols and they came to the church looking for the villagers who were concealed behind this wall.  They heard a chid cry and so they aimed the cannon from where they heard the noise and sent a cannon ball right through the face of Mary and the people were all killed.  But look at the outside of the church where the shot passed through the wall:  Straight through the centre of the cross!  This was such a peaceful place.  It was warm, quiet and so, so restful.  Surrounded by green mountains it was out of this world.



Meet the Yedzies: a nomadic tribe that sets up tents in the summer and breed sheep and then move to the villages during winter.  It is a pretty desolate way of living but they seem to have quite a lot of comfort.  They used to have a TV and computer which was run on a generator but the kids spent too much time on them and didn’t watch the sheep so they got rid of them.  This family have 300 sheep which is considered a small herd.  The family consist of mother, father and 2 boys aged 8 and 10.  The 2 daughters got married at 14 members of another Yedzie family.  However because of in-breeding there is a high occurrence of genetic illnesses such as Downs Syndrome.  The mother here is about 30 but it is a hard life on these hills.  She gets money from the tour people to allow us to come and glimpse their life but when the old fellah turned up he told her to get rid of us.  She wasn’t happy as she probably is grateful for all the drams she can get; but he wanted to eat his dinner and have a drink with some other bloke that turned up.  We saw her wander off while we were hanging around outside.  Guess she thought she would get out of the way.  The central heating system is a stove that is heated by sheep droppings.  No worries about feeding the dogs. Look closely and you can see it is a sheepskin!

Family and neighbours didn’t seem to understand why we wanted to go to Armenia.  I still don’t know why there is this anti-Armenia view but they were also insistent on knowing which country we preferred, Armenia or Georgia.   “You’re not just saying that?!” When I declared my allegiance to Georgia was one response.  I didn’t want to lie and at the same time didn’t want to appear to be a traitor of some kind.  Things get lost in translation as well.  Armenia was beautiful.  The mountains and churches and monasteries were lovely peaceful places and we also had a good time, with good company and lots of laughs.  However in the capital city of Yerevan where we spent a couple of days, there was a very heavy Russian presence.  Russian as opposed to English was displayed in shops and there was also a strong mafia presence.  Designer clothes were worn by most people walking around the town and men in Armani, flanked by body guards were evident also, especially around the Marriot hotel.  There was a lot of money being invested in the city but it was a bit soulless.  The centre could have been anywhere.

The difference between Georgian people and Armenians can be illustrated in this example.   When I was in Batumi in Georgia in a supermarket, trying to find hair conditioner (I couldn’t tell the difference between shampoo and conditioner) the staff were really helpful.  Other shoppers tried to help and they persisted in trying to answer my question until the problem was solved.  I did exactly the same thing in a supermarket in Yerevan.   The supermarket assistant simply shrugged her shoulders and walked off.  However, one redeeming thing about Armenia was the fact that they produce the best brandy I have ever tasted – Ararat – it is absolutely delicious.  I looked online to see if they sell it in the UK but sadly they don’t.  I am telling everyone I meet who may go to Armenia that they MUST buy me a bottle!

 
 
Click on the above links for the hundreds of pictures of Armenia!
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