So this week was a continuation of our break due to the Flu Pandemic here. Its been great. Hector, Pat and I decided that we were going to go to the southern part of Armenia to see some of the sights down there and to see some friends. We left on Tuesday and went down to Sisian and hung out with Ben. We threw the football around and we just walked around. We went to the Sisian stonehenge and walked around there. Actually what we did was just take pictures. I was really disappointed in the place because I thought it was going to be like the Stonehenge in England. It wasn’t. It was some stones in a row about 3 feet high with holes in them. Nothing really that impressive in my opinion. They are really old though. This is where I lost my telephone.
So about that. We got back to Sisian and I realized that I had lost my phone. Now, those of you that know me know that I don’t really lose things because I am paranoid about that kind of thing. So we called the taxi and we actually went to back to the Stonehenge place and I looked around in the snow for my phone, but to no avail. Honestly, I wasn’t really that bummed because the phone was old and didn’t really work that well. So we leave Sisian and we go to Goris. Goris is beautiful. We went over a ledge and the whole city is in this bowl. Its so pretty there. We got there and met up with some of the other volunteers. I found a viva-cell store which is one of their telecommunication companies here, and I asked them to cancel my numbers.
Yeah, the second I get out of the store, Hector tells me that my phone called his phone. Apparently a guy found my phone and called Hector because it was the last person I had called when I had the phone. So here I am with my phone now but without a number since I just cancelled them. Well, the vivacell people were really nice and after cancelling my number, they put my old number on the new cards. I have two phone numbers. One for the city and one for the village because its cheaper to have one for each place. If I use my village number in the city its much more expensive. Anyway, they actually cancelled someone else’s number because mine still works the same. There is someone out there with a phone card that just stopped working. I feel bad about that...
So anyway, everything with the phone is alright. Got everything squared away with the help of the people from vivacell.
While in Goris, there is Tatev. Its a monestary that dates back about 1000 years. Its still in excellent condition so we went there and looked around. It was really beautiful and I wish I had some pictures to show. The only way out there is by Taxi and its about ten dollars per person, so we got a taxi and we went out there for the morning. It was really nice. You have to go down into a valley and then come back up the other side to get to Tatev. Its funny because when you get there, you see this really big crane there right in front of the church. Apparently it has been there since the 1930s and there are people now that are protesting the removal of this crane because it has been there for such a long time, they say its now a historical monument. Yeah, you are right, it does not make any sense. So all my pictures do not have the crane, but if you buy any postcards, they all have this red crane in the middle of the pictures. Kind of kills the beauty of the picture.
Anyway, we got back and what do I do... I drop my camera on the pavement. Fortunately I had a UV filter on the lens because the 5 dollar UV filter shattered... the lens did not. This has been one hell of a trip so far. So Tatev was gorgeous.
Also, on the way back, there is this really nice gazebo that is placed at the edge of this peninsula in the mountains. By peninsula, I mean a gazebo on this path and on three sides there are just sheer cliffs. It is really nice. The interesting this about this is that all these old buildings are in line with each other. This gazebo, Tatev and three other structures are in a row with huge bells on them and back in the day they used this as a warning signal, kind of like in Lord of the Rings where they make the fires on top of the mountains. Maybe you can relate. Anyway, it is pretty interesting.
So, one of the greatest things about Peace Corps are the volunteers. We are spread out all over the country so no matter where you go, there will be a volunteer pretty close by. Its great. The first night we stayed at Brian's house because there was no room at Pat and Meaghan's. So Brian let us stay there. It was funny because everyone said that Brian's house was really cold. Hector and I laughed because we are from the Martuni region where its wicked cold. We had no problems at his house. I snored so loud that Brian got up, and moved to the other room and just slept on the floor. He was really nice to let us stay there.
Then, Patrick and Meaghan let us stay at their place for a while and it was great. Meaghan made this really good ramen soup thing for dinner and the following morning she made eggs and pancakes. PANCAKES. I know most of you in the states are like "oh pancakes" but people... I am in Armenia and Pancakes are a novelty here. Its fantastic. They were so good. We just hung out and saw Goris. It was great. This is probably the prettiest city I have seen in Armenia so far. Anyway, I know I have written about it before but the camaraderie here is unparallel. Its just great. These are people with the same cause but from different backgrounds so you can talk for hours about stuff and its so interesting.
Another great thing about Goris, is the Shwarma that they have here. It was delicious. It is bread, pork, mayonnaise, hot sauce, and cilantro. It was really really good. I like Mayo.
This morning, we went over to see Chris. He is working with a local TV studio making a show. Basically the show is about two puppets and the puppets interview people from different places. So since volunteers have been to different places and from different places, they come down to Goris and get interviewed. Hector was interviewed about LA because he is from there. Its a pretty good idea. The show is for little kids but is all in English.
Anyway, I really wish that I could put up some pictures because the places were really pretty. Im sorry if this blog seems spacey or is not how it normally sounds but I am battling a whole bunch of people talking and its hard to pay attention, but anyway, it was a great time.
Four more days of school, then vacation. Its actually three weeks from today and we will be going on our trip to India. Holy crap time is clipping along.
Until next time... and I will try to pay more attention.
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