Personal Tour of Central Armenia

Brace yourselves for about 100 photos, folks.

http://picasaweb.google.com/ndbrown1701/PersonalTourOfArmeniaOct102010#

Absolutely Perfect Tour of Central Yerevan

Monday, 11 October

Back again, everybody.

Let’s pick up my heading out to a concert Saturday night by Daniel Decker, billed as a German of Armenia heritage.  Since it was billed as a pop concert I left with low expectations…and those were barely met.  The dude couldn’t speak Armenian, so he used a translator, but he phonetically sang several songs in Armenian.  But, his style was like watching Jack Jones or Steve Lawrence 40 years ago.  At the intermission, I drifted outside and, dang nab it, totally forgot to return.

Still early, I drifted into the locally-famous Mahklas Jazz Club, and had a most pleasant pepper steak dinner while listening to a local trio.  Resurrected a failed evening.

Up this morning and out the hotel door at 11:00 for my personal tour of a good chunk of Armenia, hosted by my three friends in the bank’s training department and the 2 YO daughter of one.

From downtown Yerevan we first headed south and slightly east through the fertile Ararat Valley, the prime cropland of Armenia.  There were major fields of wheat, and some corn, with many roadside stands of veggies and melons.  I was told that the valley typically hits about 110 degrees F during the summer, so life is not all that easy.  In addition, some pockets of soil are tainted with salt concentrations – I’m guessing that the valley used to be an inland sea that has since dried. 

We quickly drove through the small city of Artashot, which was one of the old capitals of Armenia in past eras.  It was also the site of the first theatre in Armenia, dating back to a couple of centuries B.C.  The drive outside of there was replete with fruit (apple) orchards and grapevines.  The harsh weather seems to make perfect grapes for brandy.  We literally saw a farmer an average of every 100 meters, some with build roadside shacks and some just sitting in a chair with a few baskets of produce to sell.  From the human activity in the fields immediately behind, it was obvious that many offerings were only minutes from being picked.

The next leg took us up a major hill (part driving, part walking) to the monastery at Khor Virap, dating back to 301 A.D. (309 under the current calendar).  The monestary was founded by St. Gregor upon being released from 13 years in captivity in a stone room some 4’ x 4’ x 7’ (yes, the room was available for viewing and fitting).   We happened upon a Sunday mass being said in the chapel, so I couldn’t take pictures.  Interestingly, the practice was to exit the chapel door backwards, so as not to turn one’s back on the altar.  Outside, on the ramparts of the monastery, we also viewed the Turkish border less than 200 meters away.  I could have crossed the border without a problem.  Armenian citizens, however, must enter Turkey by first flying to Georgia….they cannot directly enter Turkey because of the lingering dispute over the Turkish genocide of several million Armenians near the end of WWI.

The next few kilometers took us past the village of Ararat, noted for having the largest (only?) cement factory in Armenia.  Shortly beyond that lay the village of Rasdan, with numerous small lakes in which fish are naturally raised.  My hosts, of course, had to stop at a roadside store where live fish were being vended from ersatz vats made from converted small dump truck beds.  I made friends with a Russian kingfish that was supposed to weigh 50 kg.  We opted not to buy any such souvenirs.

My hosts also noted that a good proportion of  the autos in the country run on natural gas, instead of petroleum.  In this petrol-poor country, natural gas tends to have a more stable supply.

The next photo is of the large village of “Dream”, notable only because the road alongside also abuts the hills that form the Azerbaijani border (totally closed along the Armenian border, of course).  That particular road only recently reopened…I am told because Azerbaijani snipers made it too dangerous.  Cease fires CAN be good.   

We then headed north past Tigronashen into the Kyarki Mountains.  For those of you following this on a map, the route took us through Vardashot village, the Vyotsdvor region, and the Chiva village.  The latter is particularly known for the quality and quantity of peaches and grapes, both of which were in full harvest on this delightful Sunday afternoon.

Just outside of Areni, we stopped at one of the larger roadside stands to sample some homemade wine….many farmers brew it themselves and sell it along the road, pouring it from 20-liter jugs into 1-liter reused soda bottles.  The sweet wine offered by one vendor was OK, while the dry red was quite good.  I bought a liter for $2.78.  While sipping yet more Armenian coffee, I also sampled a snack of ghavrma, the local winter food.  It is prepared in autumn by boiling any meat for several days in salt water, which preserves it throughout the harsh winters (elevation at this time was close to a mile).  The meat is wrapped in lavash for easy eating.

Just a few kilometers we climbed a beautiful, steep road leading to the Noravank (New Church) monastery, sating back to the 1300.  Here, we were also fortunate to encounter a christening, attended by perhaps 20 of the newborn’s relatives.  Houses and farmsteads are few and far between in those parts.  Most of the activity I saw was sheepherding….given how thin and rocky the soil is, I cannot imagine anything growing there.

We departed the monastery along the same road (OK, the ONLY road) and stopped at some Paleolithic caves.  The caves supposedly go back some 1.6 km which has been explored, but your claustrophobic writer had no intention of confirming that.  Signs of civilization dating back 16,000 years have been found in the caves.  Elsewhere, remains dating back 40,000 years have been found here.

From there, we tailed the Arpat River towards Lake Seva, the only large lake in the country and the source of most of Yerevan’s water.  For you geographers here, we then stopped in the village of Hagavauadzdor for lunch, which consisted of:

-          tomatoes (grown on the premises)

-          cukes (ditto)

-          Greek olives

-          Cilantro

-          A bitter local lettuce

-          Hot and sweet peppers

-          Lavash

-          White bread (both breads baked on the premises)

-          Homemade dry red wine

-          Pear juice

-          Pomegranate juice

-          BBQ pork

-          BBQ beef

-          BBQ fish (from a Russian fish that was introduced 20 years ago, and has now devastated the local lakes because it eats all of the other baby fish)

-          And, of course Armenian coffee

We killed about 90 minutes over lunch.  The locale, as you will see when I upload the pics, was by a pretty mountain stream.

We’re nearing the end of the trip, and our endurance.  My next photo is of the switchback we were about to challenge to get to the highest part of the land around here (Caravangerai), about 6600 feet.  It is typical for cars to encounter problems navigating this road, between the low oxygen and poor maintenance on most autos.  Due to a lack of good communication, my host did not stop at the apex, so you will not enjoy the panorama that I did.  Eat your hearts out!

From the high point, we trailed down among another switchback towards Lake Seva, to the city of Nortvok.  This city is noted as the wealthiest (per capita) in Armenia because most residents work in Russia, sending their earnings back home for years before returning and retiring.

This last village reminded me that I hap passed (probably) a dozen signs on the tour indicating bird sanctuaries.  I found this notable and commendable in a relatively poor country.  Someday, if I am fortunate to return, they will bear checking out. 

By this time, we were really burned out.  So, my hosts headed back along the highway to Yerevan, skirting the villages of Martun and Vardadzov, and we burned back into home about 8:00 at night after a glorious 9-hour personal tour.  The celebration of Yerevan’s 2,792^nd anniversary was still going on, but I chose to stay in my room and avoid the crowds.

So, that is the story of my Sunday.  One could not hope for better hosts, a more beautiful countryside, or more perfect weather on any day of life.

Thanks for reading.

Photos

Here is my photo tour of last night and today

http://picasaweb.google.com/ndbrown1701/YerevanBeautifulSaturday#

A Perfect Weekend Day

Saturday, 9 October

Good afternoon, everybody.

It has been a busy almost-two days since the last posting.  Let’s see if I can remember everything that has been going on.

Successfully moved from the 5-star non-internet hotel Friday morning to the 3-star yes-we-know-we-are-in-the-internet-age hotel where I started.  Life is much better.

My new room has a balcony that overlooks a garden restaurant next door (where they have had 3 weddings in the past 24 hours) and, just beyond that, the French embassy.  There is a lovely view from the room.  I am writing this from a café in the park across the street…when I get back to the room, many pics will be uploaded.

Ended the training at the 1:00 lunch break yesterday, giving the willing trainees a bonus.  I have no sympathy for those who skipped the morning session and showed up at 2:00 for the afternoon training.  Hope they got caught in severe traffic on the way home.  :>)

After unpacking and a quick nap I headed out about 4:00 to see what Friday evenings were like around here.  Strolled a few blocks north to the city center (actually an oval), which is the focus of tomorrow’s celebration of the 2792^nd anniversary of the city.  Nobody can yet tell me why they are celebrating this year instead of waiting until 2018, when it will be an even 2800 years.  Any numerologists reading this?

I went from there to walk along the main shopping street, filled with brand names anyone in the world knows.  Prices were universally high, by Columbus standards.  Although there were many people on the streets, most stores did not seem to have any customers.  There is no recession here, so maybe I just caught the area at the wrong time.

The end of the shopping street conveniently abuts the opera house.  It was heavily surrounded by police, and I am not sure why.  Police here are fairly plentiful but, unlike Baku, few carry firearms.  They are a comforting, rather than menacing, presence, and there is precious little street crime at any hour of the day.

Anyway, I got several good pics of the opera house (built in 1932), and stopped at the box office to see what was playing over the next week.  Last night was sold out and, not knowing what my evening schedule might be during my final week, I dropped 10,000 dram (about $27) on tonight’s concert for a German pop artist of Armenian heritage.  I may be out of my league in the crowd.

Unforecasted rain then dropped in, and I spent an hour drinking Armenian coffee (about 85 cents a cup) at a covered opera-side café) while crowd watching.  An hour of this was enough, and I hit a grocery store for provisions before returning to the room for the night about 8:30.

Now, to today’s fun…and it WAS fun.

I have walked just over 8 miles today, so far.

 Slept in until 9:00, checked email and world events over a light breakfast before showering, and was on my way before 11:00.  The sun has been shining all day, and the temp right now is about 68 F.

Just to orient correctly, I headed back to the city oval and parked my butt at a streetside café to enjoy two Armenian coffees and a sausage sandwich totaling less than $3.00.  I then ambled along another major thoroughfare that seemed to be the main tourist trap in town..airline offices, tour buses, and too many souvenir stores to mention.  I stopped in one of the souvenir stores, but swear that they changed the price tags in the time it took me to cross the street.  I’ll find some little momento over the next week.

That random road too me to the city outskirts…conveniently, the main city is in a valley, with a concentric road encircling it.   Heading NW along that road, I came upon Cascade park, which flows from city level on the NW up to the monument near my non-internet hotel.  The hotel, from which I took the pics with the overarching view of the city, was build to commemorate to 50^th year of Soviet cooperation with (domination of) Armenia.  I’m sure the city leaders would love to remove it, but it would be incredibly expensive.

Leaving that park, I proceeded counterclockwise along that concentric road.  This led me along “minor embassy” row….Syria, Thailand, etc.  All embassies have attractive buildings, courtesy of their respective taxpayers.  When you multiply that over 200+ countries in the world, you can see what an expensive game diplomacy is.

Along that walk, I also got some good shots of the city university (lovely campus even by American standards). 

Next to the University, I just happened to stumble into a refuge called Lover’s Park.  Absolutely beautiful (you should have been with me, Nancy!).  Of course, there is a café (100% organic and natural) in the park and, of course, I had to stop in for more coffee (are you sensing a trend here?).  I wound up buying a fine pasta & red pepper salad, coke, and coffee for just over $4.00.  I also tipped heavily.  The park concessions are run by volunteers.  All tips are donated to a fund to assist juvenile cancer patients.  In addition, profits from food sales are donated to the park for maintenance.  I was told that my 2000 dram purchase paid to maintain 2 square meters of the park for the next year.  Works for me.

From the park, my strolls wound around to the Church St. Paul-Peter, built in the 5^th and 6^th centuries.  The inside was gorgeous, and hopefully my pic of the altar will turn out OK.  I decided not to nose around too much because there were about 30 people inside for some sort of death commemoration (funeral or anniversary, I do not know which).

Finally finishing the half-circle tour of the city, I visited the Museum of the History of Yerevan.  After visiting each of the 3 floors, I happened to encounter the Director in the lobby, and he insisted on showing me the lobby displays of crafts that citizens have made to commemorate tomorrow.  They were truly astounding, particularly the woodworking and tapestry.  He was deservedly proud of his people.

And that is all so far today.  In a few minutes, I shall return to my room to upload this blog post and associated pics.  Tonight is the concert and, on the way back, there is a famous jazz club that I shall investigate.  It may be a late night, but I have only one weekend to discover what I can about this city.

Tomorrow, my hosts will show me the country outside of Yerevan.

And now, for some commentary.

I have only Baku to which to compare Yerevan.  While that is a limited comparison, it may be enhanced by the fact that the two countries have been at war for 14 years.  I had a good time in Baku and made many friends, albeit mainly expats.  People there were friendly, once you got to know them individually.  But, there was a prevailing sadness and reservation which I attributed to the recent Soviet domination.  Also, nobody would ever position Baku as a tourist destination.

Now I am seeing the other side of another former Soviet state.  The people here are happy and optimistic, and I cannot imagine a higher level of friendliness and hospitality.  My hosts speak of diplomatically solving the Nogorno-Karabach occupation dispute with Azerbaijan diplomatically, instead of constantly referring to potential war.  There is a calm approach to life, and everything is oriented towards outdoor activities and interaction.  The State lays a light hand on the people and, again unlike Baku, one does not need top bribe his way into a job or for necessary documents.  The streets are clean, and people put their litter into waste baskets instead of dropping it at their feet.  It is just a bunch of little things that combine to set the character of a locale, and Yerevan had discovered them.  I would look forward to returning here (WITH Nancy) at any time.

Enough with waxing philosophically…back to the room to connect online. Thanks for reading.

This was a good day

Thursday night, sitting in the hotel lobby at 10:30 so I can access internet and get some work done.  And, more importantly, chat with Nancy over gmail.

Today was a tiring and frustrating, but productive day.  We had several good discussions during the training exercises, but I perceive that those who should be there (small business calling officers) are not, and those who aspire to be said officers ARE.  We shall see next week when we get into financial analysis, but there may be a disconnect between those who think they need training, and those who think their employees need training.  That is one of the dangers of an assignment like this – since I did not negotiate directly with the bank, I had to depend upon others to correctly and competently convey the needs and assignment.  It is not until one arrives on site that any discrepancies become apparent.   We shall do the best we can with the time we have.

My hosts ( the two top people in the training dept.) have been nothing short of spectacular during the visit….going out of their way to show me nearby sites, make recommendations, and do things for me before I even know I need them done.  They need to work at least a half day this weekend, but are tentatively planning to take me on a daylong tour of Armenia, outside of Yerevan, so I get a proper feel for the country of which they are so proud.  Of course, it is an opportunity I cannot pass up.

If I happen to be in town Sunday, the city is also celebrating (Big Time!) its founding 2,792 years ago.  Kinda puts our “old” cities to shame, doesn’t it?  I have no idea exactly what it planned, but the epicenter is about ½ km from my hotel, so I shall be there if possible.  I caught on a marketing newsletter, a month ago, that the world’s largest candy bar had been created for this event.  The 1,000 kg+ bar was reported to be scheduled to be cut up and distributed during the celebration.

Training ends at 5:00 every day (the work day ends at 6:00).  Today, instead of going back to the hotel, my hosts included me in a party for a co-worker whose first child was born Monday.  About 15 people attended, around a formal table with traditional Armenian dishes (ALL delicious).  Of course, there were also several traditional Armenian toasts with 8 YO Armenian brandy.  They really go out of their way here to make one feel welcome.

OK, it is late and I need sleep.  More over the weekend.  Have a great day, everybody.

Photos on a Clearer Day

Here are just a few more for you, folks...my new hotel, clear views, and the city from the other side of the valley.

http://picasaweb.google.com/ndbrown1701/SomeBetterWeatherInYerevan#

New Hotel

7:10 local time Wednesday evening, and I’m in the restaurant of the Golden Palace Hotel in Yerevan, my abode for 2 nights until I can return to my first hotel.  This is the only(?) 5-star hotel in the city, and it certainly looks and feels that way.  Far above my norm.  But, it is deserted.  There is a couple dining across the room and, otherwise, I’ve only seen one guest.  The impression after my first hour is that I would not stay here again.  The first reason is that it is across town, on the main hill, and there are no shops or other attractions to walk to.  So, not only is the neighborhood boring, but one must dine here or use a car or taxi to head down the hill.  The other problem, and the killer of the deal, is that there is no internet in the rooms.  There is wifi in the lobby but, of course, I would be much more comfortable upstairs.  Plus, I am not going to use Skype from the lobby.  The wifi does not extend to this restaurant. But, it is only for two nights.  And maybe, when I check later, the TV will pull in more channels than my first hotel.

The reason why I was booted out of my hotel for two days became obvious this evening – we went to retrieve my luggage, and a large bus of German tourists had pulled up.  This city seems to be popular with that nation…I am hearing German spoken all over.

For those curious ones, I am dining on a fresh (local) tomato/cuke/spinach/soft feta salad, local lake trout with veggies, a chocolate brownie, and my first Armenian beer.  And fresh Armenian bread, of course.  Can’t complain.

A piano player just started in the lobby, and the music is penetrating the restaurant walls.  They really do seem to be trying hard here…perhaps the hotel just opened, or perhaps the location is just too relatively inconvenient.  Hope the restaurant staff isn’t surviving on tips.

The last two days have been a tiring whirl.  Training is draining, whether one is listening or delivering, And the participants are a little less prepared than I had guessed…most are very junior lenders who have been in their positions for less than a year.  Because of the need to go over some material in more detail, and eliminate some other parts that I’ve judged to be worthless to them, I have had to substantially rewrite my approach each of the last two nights.  Tomorrow should pretty well go as originally scheduled.

The trout just arrived – whole. I hate having my dinner stare at me.  He seems pissed.  Maybe tomorrow night will be something benign, like spaghetti.

It has hailed each of the past three days, and residents are really complaining about the weather.  This is unusual for Yerevan in October.  We have already exceeded the average October rainfall. 

Traffic here is quite manageable…drivers obey the traffic lights, stay in their lanes, and do NOT just back up on the street when missing their turnoff.  Much better than Baku.  Downtown parking is a problem, but they do no use the sidewalks for parking.  The only thing to be alert about walking in a crosswalk…drivers obeying a turn arrow do not feel obligated to yield to pedestrians. 

My hosts (training managers at the bank) took me on a brief tour of center city on the drive here…shopping seemed robust and storefronts and buildings clean and updated.  The opera house was most spectacular…if there is a production this weekend, I shall take it in.   I sincerely hope the weekend weather cooperates so some good pics can flow your way.

This server also looked at me twice when I ordered Armenian (essentially strong Turkish) coffee without sugar.  Obviously a very unusual request. 

Coffee is here, dinner is over, and I shall tie up this missive and retire to the lobby to upload it, check email, and (hopefully) IM with Nancy.  Have a great day, everybody.  Back in the States in 10 days.