So I guess a lot has happened since Thursday when I wrote last. Thursday I called over fifty of the volunteers and asked if they were having an problems with the HIV/AIDS poster contest and if they wanted a T-shirt. All but 4 of the 50+ wanted a T-shirt. So, it was a success. However, that night when I went to bed, my throat was a little scratchy and my voice was a bit weak. Overall, I was really happy with the volunteers participation in buying a shirt to wear for the flashmob in about 5 weeks.
That night I went to bed watching a little bit of Eddie Izzard. I woke up the next morning. I guess you never talk until you run into someone to talk to. I did the usually. Got out of bed. Stood there blankly for a while. Made my bed, moved my computer back to my desk, got my washing supplies and towel and headed to the bathroom. Everyday, on the way to the bathroom, I see Grandma in the kitchen making breakfast. Every morning I say “Dobrum Utrum” or “Good Morning” in Russian. But not that day. The sound that spilled out of my mouth was a combination of a whisper and squeaks. I had lost my voice. It was gone. Completely. I will never forget my Grandma’s face because she just froze and looked at me and asked if I was sick or feeling bad. I started laughing. I said “no.” Then she mocked me and then made fun of me. I went to the bathroom and did my usual bathroom things, put my things back in my room and went to breakfast. Grandma asked me some questions. I kept forgetting that I didn’t have a voice and I tried to answer. Grandma really got a kick out of that. Yeah...
That day didn’t go over so well. I went to school on Friday momentarily and then got on the bus and headed into Yerevan again to go to some meetings. I got into Martuni and met Hector there and we went together to the tailors because the zipper on his bag broke and needed a new one put on. So I went with him and then went to the bus stop and got on a bus to Yerevan. It was a quick ride and I got there around 12:30. I went straight to the Peace Corps office and met with Nick about the flashmob we want to do December 1st. So far, there are no problems. I was afraid of some of the red tape we might run into but so far nothing has gotten in our way. After that meeting, I went with Kevin, a new volunteer and introduced him to American Councils. We met with the Alumni Coordinator there and got them to join us for the flashmob and buy T-shirts. There are going to be a lot of people there and it should be pretty fun. Hopefully at least.
After that we got some lunch with some other volunteers and then I went to the hostel to give Gevorg his wedding present. He wasn’t there so I just hung out there for about an hour before going to meet a friend. We talked for a while and then went to the opera to see a concert. It wasn’t as good as the last one I saw, but there were some guest performers, a cellist from England and a pianist from Italy. Both really good. You know, I enjoyed the encores more than the actual performances. I really like the cello played by itself and I really like the piano played by itself. The Italian guy was really good. They played Dvorak and Tchaikovsky. Pretty good.
Afterwards, I walked back to the hostel to get my bags and then headed over to Gevorg’s house. Since he just got married, he moved in with his wife and wanted to show me his new place. It was really nice. I had a great time there and we talked for about 3 hours, until about 1:30. He is a really interesting guy and his wife is really nice. She didn’t talk too much but Gevorg had a lot of interesting things to say about life and about how life works. Another one of those people that really have an impact by the things they say.
I left there and got in a taxi to take me to Jason and Elvira’s place. The taxi driver was awesome. He was just a really nice guy and we talked the whole way to the apartment. He didn’t want to even take my money but I forced it upon him. It was one of those really good taxi experiences, and yes, good taxi experiences are amazing. I got his phone number just in case I needed a taxi one day. His name was Ando.
I got to Jason and Elvira’s house and snuck in. They usually just leave the door open for me, so I snuck in and just passed out for 5 hours. I woke up at 7:00 to get ready to go to the Embassy. The Embassy was having its annual auction and since my neighbors computer broke, I told him about this auction and said they sold computers there. My neighbor, Varton didn’t come but sent his son-in-law out there. A nice guy. We met there for the first time and then headed in. They had all sorts of things there from pretty nice furniture to cars, to computers. The computers weren’t that good so I didn’t get anything for him. It was funny though because the son-in-law fell in love with some lawn furniture and kept asking me about it. I mean, what do I know about lawn furniture, but this guy was all about it. Well, he didn’t want to wait until the auction for that particular item started so we eventually left. He gave me a ride to the bus stop and I got on the bus and waited for about twenty minutes and then left. I was the only guy on the bus besides the bus driver. Interesting.
I got off at the village exit and just walked home. I just wanted to get home. The previous night I didn’t sleep much either and after running around and going to meetings and hanging out and this and that, I just wanted to sleep. No one was home on Saturday when I got home so I just passed out. I woke up and it was 6. I fell asleep at 2. I woke up and Grandma said that Varton was looking for me so I went over to his house and he and his extended family was having a get together. They were roasting potatoes, so I stuck around for a while and had some potatoes and a crapload of vodka. Actually, it wasn’t that much. I came home and hung out with Grandma and then went to bed.
I slept through the night and my voice was pretty much back. A little weak but overall not too bad. You can understand me now.
Early this morning, Grandma and I went to the market to sell some beans. Its funny here because as soon as you get off the bus, there are people wanting to buy beans and other things to take to Yerevan to sell. So, not more than 15 minutes later, Grandma had already sold her beans. I needed some meat so I got some meat from the meat people or butchers, I guess. The cow was probably moo-ing 6 hours prior... The meat was fresh.
I came home on the next bus and Grandma stayed at the market because she needed to buy some clothes. I came home and started making some food for my guests Gayane and Mane(t). I always make fun of them because people from Yerevan rarely leave the capital. So, I told them to come to my village and I would educate them about Armenia. Ha ha. Well, apparently I didn’t do the best job giving them directions because instead of telling them to go right, I told them to go left and they got lost. We made a bet that they couldn’t find the house, but they did, even with wrong directions. They were just an hour late. But, it was my fault. They came and met Grandma. It was funny though because in Armenia there are very laid out gender roles and I broke about every one of them. All the ladies were sitting down, and I was cooking, cleaning, taking their dishes, making coffee and tea. Grandma said that I would make a great wife... Thank you.
So it was time for Gayane and Mane(t) to leave. We started walking to the intersection and I called Vincent. Vincent got to the bus station and said that the bus that was just about full was about to leave. I started trying to figure out what we could do. I saw a truck coming and stopped it and asked if the two young men could take the two young girls to the intersection to meet the bus that was leaving Martuni. I called Gayane every 5 minutes to make sure that the guys didn’t kill the girls. They didn’t. Mane(t) and Gayane stood at the road for about ten minutes, saw the bus pass them and got in a taxi and just went back to Yerevan. They paid only 300 dram more (about 80 cents) more than they would have if they were in a bus. So, in the end everything worked out. I was really glad they got a chance to come out and see where I live. It is common for people from Yerevan to never leave Yerevan and see the outer regions. This accounts for the great disconnect between the development in Yerevan and the regions.
It was funny how many people, as I was walking home, asked me who the two girls I was walking with were. I just explained that I worked with them over the summer and we had some work to do and they had to come out.
Ok, I have to post this post because there is a lot more for me to write. I forgot about this post until now, the 29th but I need to start a new blog.
Until next time... (although you probably already read the latest blog by now...)
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
I think they're here to take me to jail...
The pace is picking up and its hard to imagine that its almost November. Already. Geez. Last Friday, the new country director came to my house with Mariam the “executive assistant.” It was really fun. Diana the new CD wanted to visit some volunteers and see how we lived at site. It was a welcomed visit. After they visited Nick in the next village they called me and I told them I would meet them on the road and that they would see me. Well, I figured they would ride on the main road, surely to see me. Not the case. They called and asked where I was, and I responded by asking where they were. The PC drivers usually go to the same regions of the country so they are familiar with where we live. We have to submit a map and an emergency plan to PC when we first get here. When I first got to site, about 14 months ago, I drew in another road. A road that I thought was the main road but apparently was not. So, they had passed me on the other road and I didn’t see them because houses blocked my view. Honestly, I don’t know why I wrote all that, because its not that interesting...
Anyway, they came to my house. Diana used to be a PCV in Ukraine a number of years back and still knew her Ukraine/Russian pretty well. She had also finished as the CD in Ukraine this past spring so it was still at the forefront of her brain. Grandma was thrilled about this because usually PC Staff comes just to talk to the volunteers and she just does stuff. This time she was an active participant in all conversation. It was much more interesting that way. I may have already said this, but when Grandma speaks Russian/Ukrainian, she always gets a big smile on her face. That may because, to her, its funny to hear me try and speak it to her. She still had the smile on when Diana was talking so Im thinking that she just likes to hear it.
One of my students made me a box of baklava the previous day. I had tutored her for three weeks as a FLEX crash course review session thing. She wanted to pay me but as volunteers its against the rules to accept money, so she made me baklava instead. So we sat in the kitchen and ate baklava, drank tea, and just talked. It was a really good visit and I really appreciated the effort she made to come and see me and the other volunteers.
After our meeting, I asked if I could get a ride to Gavar because I hadn’t seen Bryan in a long while. Gavar is the next biggest town on the way to Yerevan, about 45 minutes up the road. We went the opposite way to Vaghashen to pick up Kyle because he was going into Yerevan to meet his parents at the airport the following day. Exciting. So, we picked up Kyle and off we went. We got to the Gavar Bridge and I got out and started walking the 30 minutes into town. Its just what you do as a volunteer. I did some filming of the walk and Ill include that in my next documentary that I am going to start making soon. Soon-ish. (Speaking of, those of you that still read my blog and said you were going to make a video last December, where is it... Matt, Kelly, and Laura?)
Usually walking, people will ask for a ride. People in cars. This time, there was a dump truck that started honking and I thought he wanted me to get off the road even though there was no one else in sight. As the truck was coasting, the driver was pantomiming, trying to ask if i wanted a ride to Gavar. (I wish I got that on film). I nodded so he stopped and I got to ride in a dump truck (I don’t know why that excites me so much). Anyway, it was fun, and I talked to the driver as we headed into town. Conversation was good and I forgot where I needed to get off, so when the truck stopped, I got out and had to backtrack about ten minutes to get to where I needed to go.
I got to Bryan’s and hung out there. He made Sloppy Joes and it was really good. Remember that my diet mainly consists of potatoes and potatoes... That night, I talked with Bryan and his site mates who are all new volunteers, Genya, Danna, and Chris. A good bunch.
The next morning, I wanted to take the bus back. Hmm, no bus anymore. The man said that the bus didn’t run anymore because not enough people were taking it, so I waited for a shared Taxi. The bus is usually 500 dram and a private taxi is 4000. But with a shared taxi its 2000 dram, 500 dram per person. I didn’t understand the math but whatever. So, I waited with the taxi driver and two people showed up going in my direction. We waited another another hour and then the driver said, “listen, how about you pay 1000 dram. That is what everyone else is paying and we can go.” I knew he was lying but I went along with it and pretended that I didn’t know what he was talking about and we left. The taxi driver and the other two passengers planned some kind of conspiracy against me. I wasn’t born yesterday. So we started riding and we got to a village outside of Martuni and the two ladies got out. The lady made it very obvious that I see that she handed the driver 2000 dram. Then the driver for some reason got out and I looked back and the driver was giving 1000 dram back to the lady. The driver got back in the car and we started going. I was a little peeved at this. I told him that I wanted to go to this road that connects my village to the road. I said that he didn’t need to go all the way into Martuni and instead of going all the way there, he could make up the differing distance by turning onto the road. When he turned, I asked if we had gone far enough and I said, “no, turn left here... we are almost to my house,” so he kept driving and asked again if that was far enough. Again I told him that the house was just a little bit further. So we got to my house and I gave him 1000 dram and he said that it wasn’t enough. I told him I saw him give back 1000 dram to the ladies. That was the end of that conversation.
So Saturday, I just laid low, relaxed a bit. Studied my Russian and I think watched a movie. Sunday, I was going to go to Hector’s house just to take a walk out there, but the clouds looked ominous, and Grandma wanted me to help out with some other things, so I just hung out again at the house. It was fun. We had a good time.
Monday, I didn’t go to school. I had some work to do in Martuni and I met up with Hector. I needed to get some software from him to install a language program on some of the school computers. We had some time to catch up and then I came home.
The following day, after my classes, I went out to Vaghashen to meet Kyle’s parents with some of the other volunteers. Kyle was taking his parents out to the lake with some kids to do some water quality tests. Since I had class, I went out there a bit late and walked from Martuni to Vaghashen. Then I turned and took a road out toward the lake. It was beautiful (footage will be included in the documentary). The area out there was clean and the trees were changing colors and you could see the lake in the distance. It was really nice. I took the wrong road though and walked through the field into the forest when I realized that there were no footprints of the dozen kids and volunteers and parents on the road. I called Kyle. I was on the wrong road. So with some cows as companions I walked to the right road and met up with everyone. We came back to Kyle’s house, talked there for a while and walked to Kyle’s host family’s house. Kyle moved out...
There we talked with everyone and then had a dinner. It was funny because here were Kyle’s parents from the States and Kyle’s family made pizza. Yeah, that’s all I ate. I ate nothing else but the pizza. It was pretty good. Around 9, with Pat, Vincent, and Nick, I walked back to Martuni. It was really nice out. I got my package from Vincent’s house along with his 15 pound heavy duty plastic lockable case and rode the taxi back home.
I got home and Grandma just stared at the plastic case then looked at me and then went back to watching her show. Priceless.
Two or three of the homes around my house had been broken into. This concerned Grandma. She said that, yeah we have a TV and dvd player, but she was worried about my computer, camera, whatever else in my room. A bit of paranoia set in because now she won’t go somewhere unless Im at home. Apparently the windows are easy to break into with a knife and that is the kind of window I have in my room so her uneasiness was understandable. I really didn’t have any concerns, but I emailed our safety and security director who decided that he would just call the Martuni police and then call me afterwards. He called me and said that the Martuni police hadn’t gotten any police reports or calls about the robberies but that they could come to the house.
Well news spreads like wildfire and the village talks, so when they saw a police car come to the American’s house, there was some speculation and talk. I love it... Grandma and I were drinking coffee yesterday (Wednesday) when we heard the outside door open. Grandma went out there. The police asked if Zoya (my host mom who moved to Germany) lived here. Grandma said no, that she moved to Germany but that was her daughter. Then they asked if the American lived here. She said yes as I was peaking my head out the door. Suhweet...
So the policemen came into the house and we talked about some things. They heard what Grandma had to say and they listened to me and my concerns. I just said I didn’t want Grandma to worry. There is someone on patrol every night in the village and he said that the police person would come to the area around the house to keep an eye out. I also bought a heavy duty lock for that case that Vincent got me. Doubtful that they would go into that much trouble to take whatever is here. Usually when I leave my house, I take my computer and camera with me anyway.
When the policemen left, Grandma asked why they came and I told her that they were here to take me to jail but I convinced them not to. Grandma just started hitting me and pushed me into the house laughing.
I went to school yesterday and talked with the school director and it looks like we are going to start on the bathroom tomorrow. We have the workers and the mold for the concrete now. I was on the phone yesterday for about six hours calling the volunteers and talking to other people and I woke up this morning with a non-existent voice. I tried talking this morning and nothing. This was hilarious for Grandma because I didn’t realize this until I tried to say Good Morning to her and all that came out were cracks and whispers. After she asked what was wrong, I told her I lost my voice. It must have really amused her because she would ask me a question, just to hear me speak, then she would mock me and make fun of me and then laugh. Five minutes would go by before the same thing would happen. I think she got tired of it now. I still don’t have a voice which is going to make my meetings tomorrow nearly impossible and probably embarrassing. Yeah.
So tomorrow, I am going to Yerevan for meetings and staying there until Saturday. Then on Sunday, the young ladies that I worked with this summer are going to come to my village to see what village life is like. There is a really big disconnect between those that live in Yerevan and those that live in the village and I think it would be good for them to see what’s on the other side of the bridge. They said I had to cook something, so Im still trying to figure out what to make.
Next week is fall break and we don’t have school. We are having a sports conference here. By “we” I mean not me, but some of the other volunteers. I have other things I need to be doing so Im just going to sit around.
If this is the last message before Halloween, have a Happy Halloween. Brandon, if you still read this, Happy Birthday on the 30th boyo. Mom and Dad, don’t buy crappy candy. Buy something good for the kids, like snickers, or twix, or skittles...
That’s all for now.
Until next time...
Anyway, they came to my house. Diana used to be a PCV in Ukraine a number of years back and still knew her Ukraine/Russian pretty well. She had also finished as the CD in Ukraine this past spring so it was still at the forefront of her brain. Grandma was thrilled about this because usually PC Staff comes just to talk to the volunteers and she just does stuff. This time she was an active participant in all conversation. It was much more interesting that way. I may have already said this, but when Grandma speaks Russian/Ukrainian, she always gets a big smile on her face. That may because, to her, its funny to hear me try and speak it to her. She still had the smile on when Diana was talking so Im thinking that she just likes to hear it.
One of my students made me a box of baklava the previous day. I had tutored her for three weeks as a FLEX crash course review session thing. She wanted to pay me but as volunteers its against the rules to accept money, so she made me baklava instead. So we sat in the kitchen and ate baklava, drank tea, and just talked. It was a really good visit and I really appreciated the effort she made to come and see me and the other volunteers.
After our meeting, I asked if I could get a ride to Gavar because I hadn’t seen Bryan in a long while. Gavar is the next biggest town on the way to Yerevan, about 45 minutes up the road. We went the opposite way to Vaghashen to pick up Kyle because he was going into Yerevan to meet his parents at the airport the following day. Exciting. So, we picked up Kyle and off we went. We got to the Gavar Bridge and I got out and started walking the 30 minutes into town. Its just what you do as a volunteer. I did some filming of the walk and Ill include that in my next documentary that I am going to start making soon. Soon-ish. (Speaking of, those of you that still read my blog and said you were going to make a video last December, where is it... Matt, Kelly, and Laura?)
Usually walking, people will ask for a ride. People in cars. This time, there was a dump truck that started honking and I thought he wanted me to get off the road even though there was no one else in sight. As the truck was coasting, the driver was pantomiming, trying to ask if i wanted a ride to Gavar. (I wish I got that on film). I nodded so he stopped and I got to ride in a dump truck (I don’t know why that excites me so much). Anyway, it was fun, and I talked to the driver as we headed into town. Conversation was good and I forgot where I needed to get off, so when the truck stopped, I got out and had to backtrack about ten minutes to get to where I needed to go.
I got to Bryan’s and hung out there. He made Sloppy Joes and it was really good. Remember that my diet mainly consists of potatoes and potatoes... That night, I talked with Bryan and his site mates who are all new volunteers, Genya, Danna, and Chris. A good bunch.
The next morning, I wanted to take the bus back. Hmm, no bus anymore. The man said that the bus didn’t run anymore because not enough people were taking it, so I waited for a shared Taxi. The bus is usually 500 dram and a private taxi is 4000. But with a shared taxi its 2000 dram, 500 dram per person. I didn’t understand the math but whatever. So, I waited with the taxi driver and two people showed up going in my direction. We waited another another hour and then the driver said, “listen, how about you pay 1000 dram. That is what everyone else is paying and we can go.” I knew he was lying but I went along with it and pretended that I didn’t know what he was talking about and we left. The taxi driver and the other two passengers planned some kind of conspiracy against me. I wasn’t born yesterday. So we started riding and we got to a village outside of Martuni and the two ladies got out. The lady made it very obvious that I see that she handed the driver 2000 dram. Then the driver for some reason got out and I looked back and the driver was giving 1000 dram back to the lady. The driver got back in the car and we started going. I was a little peeved at this. I told him that I wanted to go to this road that connects my village to the road. I said that he didn’t need to go all the way into Martuni and instead of going all the way there, he could make up the differing distance by turning onto the road. When he turned, I asked if we had gone far enough and I said, “no, turn left here... we are almost to my house,” so he kept driving and asked again if that was far enough. Again I told him that the house was just a little bit further. So we got to my house and I gave him 1000 dram and he said that it wasn’t enough. I told him I saw him give back 1000 dram to the ladies. That was the end of that conversation.
So Saturday, I just laid low, relaxed a bit. Studied my Russian and I think watched a movie. Sunday, I was going to go to Hector’s house just to take a walk out there, but the clouds looked ominous, and Grandma wanted me to help out with some other things, so I just hung out again at the house. It was fun. We had a good time.
Monday, I didn’t go to school. I had some work to do in Martuni and I met up with Hector. I needed to get some software from him to install a language program on some of the school computers. We had some time to catch up and then I came home.
The following day, after my classes, I went out to Vaghashen to meet Kyle’s parents with some of the other volunteers. Kyle was taking his parents out to the lake with some kids to do some water quality tests. Since I had class, I went out there a bit late and walked from Martuni to Vaghashen. Then I turned and took a road out toward the lake. It was beautiful (footage will be included in the documentary). The area out there was clean and the trees were changing colors and you could see the lake in the distance. It was really nice. I took the wrong road though and walked through the field into the forest when I realized that there were no footprints of the dozen kids and volunteers and parents on the road. I called Kyle. I was on the wrong road. So with some cows as companions I walked to the right road and met up with everyone. We came back to Kyle’s house, talked there for a while and walked to Kyle’s host family’s house. Kyle moved out...
There we talked with everyone and then had a dinner. It was funny because here were Kyle’s parents from the States and Kyle’s family made pizza. Yeah, that’s all I ate. I ate nothing else but the pizza. It was pretty good. Around 9, with Pat, Vincent, and Nick, I walked back to Martuni. It was really nice out. I got my package from Vincent’s house along with his 15 pound heavy duty plastic lockable case and rode the taxi back home.
I got home and Grandma just stared at the plastic case then looked at me and then went back to watching her show. Priceless.
Two or three of the homes around my house had been broken into. This concerned Grandma. She said that, yeah we have a TV and dvd player, but she was worried about my computer, camera, whatever else in my room. A bit of paranoia set in because now she won’t go somewhere unless Im at home. Apparently the windows are easy to break into with a knife and that is the kind of window I have in my room so her uneasiness was understandable. I really didn’t have any concerns, but I emailed our safety and security director who decided that he would just call the Martuni police and then call me afterwards. He called me and said that the Martuni police hadn’t gotten any police reports or calls about the robberies but that they could come to the house.
Well news spreads like wildfire and the village talks, so when they saw a police car come to the American’s house, there was some speculation and talk. I love it... Grandma and I were drinking coffee yesterday (Wednesday) when we heard the outside door open. Grandma went out there. The police asked if Zoya (my host mom who moved to Germany) lived here. Grandma said no, that she moved to Germany but that was her daughter. Then they asked if the American lived here. She said yes as I was peaking my head out the door. Suhweet...
So the policemen came into the house and we talked about some things. They heard what Grandma had to say and they listened to me and my concerns. I just said I didn’t want Grandma to worry. There is someone on patrol every night in the village and he said that the police person would come to the area around the house to keep an eye out. I also bought a heavy duty lock for that case that Vincent got me. Doubtful that they would go into that much trouble to take whatever is here. Usually when I leave my house, I take my computer and camera with me anyway.
When the policemen left, Grandma asked why they came and I told her that they were here to take me to jail but I convinced them not to. Grandma just started hitting me and pushed me into the house laughing.
I went to school yesterday and talked with the school director and it looks like we are going to start on the bathroom tomorrow. We have the workers and the mold for the concrete now. I was on the phone yesterday for about six hours calling the volunteers and talking to other people and I woke up this morning with a non-existent voice. I tried talking this morning and nothing. This was hilarious for Grandma because I didn’t realize this until I tried to say Good Morning to her and all that came out were cracks and whispers. After she asked what was wrong, I told her I lost my voice. It must have really amused her because she would ask me a question, just to hear me speak, then she would mock me and make fun of me and then laugh. Five minutes would go by before the same thing would happen. I think she got tired of it now. I still don’t have a voice which is going to make my meetings tomorrow nearly impossible and probably embarrassing. Yeah.
So tomorrow, I am going to Yerevan for meetings and staying there until Saturday. Then on Sunday, the young ladies that I worked with this summer are going to come to my village to see what village life is like. There is a really big disconnect between those that live in Yerevan and those that live in the village and I think it would be good for them to see what’s on the other side of the bridge. They said I had to cook something, so Im still trying to figure out what to make.
Next week is fall break and we don’t have school. We are having a sports conference here. By “we” I mean not me, but some of the other volunteers. I have other things I need to be doing so Im just going to sit around.
If this is the last message before Halloween, have a Happy Halloween. Brandon, if you still read this, Happy Birthday on the 30th boyo. Mom and Dad, don’t buy crappy candy. Buy something good for the kids, like snickers, or twix, or skittles...
That’s all for now.
Until next time...
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Kids say the darndest things...
Last weekend, my friend Gayvorg got married. I was excited because although I went to Sean’s wedding, it wasn’t a completely Armenian style wedding. I wanted that cultural experience. Gayvorg and his wife are both Armenian and I was ready for this experience. From what I heard, it was a whole lot of drinking, dancing, and a whole crapload of food. I went to Yerevan on Saturday and took the evening bus in because I don’t really like being in Yerevan longer than I absolutely have to be. I went to the office and did some work there and used the internet and headed over to Elvira and Jason’s house. I stay there sometimes when I need to a place to stay and I like hanging out with Jason. Jason is interesting because he is the gardener boss of “lover’s park” and he owns a church in Vermont because he thought it would be a good investment. Now, some five to ten years later, he still owns it. He used to live in it. I can hear him tell that story a million times and never get bored of it.
Ok, so they frequently have visitors over, whether other PC Volunteers or couchsurfers. This particular night, there was a full house. A family from New Zealand was staying at their house to I slept on the floor. No big deal. The next morning, we had breakfast, and then I sat around for a while until it was time to go to the wedding.
So, it was Elvira, Jason, Their ten month old, and myself. We got in a taxi and went to the hostel where Gayvork works and waited. Elvira asked me to go and see what was going on, so I went and asked some of the other workers at the hostel, Ani and Anahit. As I was turning around, the bus was pulling away so I ran after the bus. The bus stopped and I asked if there were three seats on the bus. After the bus driver said yes, I ran back to the taxi and told them to come to the bus. But then, someone else pulled up in their own car and said they could give us a ride, so I ran back to the bus to tell them that they could leave. Then I ran back to the taxi to make sure that Elvira and Jason were coming and then we collectively ran to the car and got in. So, if you can imagine, a guy in a suit running around a street trying to get a ride to the wedding which was held in a village outside of Yerevan. We got in and we were on our way.
We were about 15 minutes. Armenian weddings are about 20 minutes long. I got to see five minutes of the wedding. I didn’t know any of the other people there and neither did Jason nor Elvira so we just huddled and talked and walked around. I asked the same guy if he would give us a ride back to Yerevan and he said that since he brought us out there, he would take us back. Sweet. I think I forgot to mention we picked up two of his friends, so I was sitting in the front, Jason, Elvira and two girls sat in the back with the baby... in one row. Again... sweet.
So from the church we went to some private house somewhere. I had no idea where it was but all 60 some people went in. This is where it deviates from a true Armenian wedding. Basically, it was everyone standing up drinking wine and eating hors devours. I was starving and as soon as I got into the place, I picked up a wine glass and starting drinking because I thought there would be ample amounts of food. This was not the case. I was about two glasses in, and realized there was no food except for hors devours so Jason and I went over and tried to make a meal out of the hors devours. It didn’t happen. So in my semi-drunk state, I wandered into the kitchen and asked if they needed a hand making the food faster so that I could soak up some of the wine swishing around my stomach. I asked in Armenian and the guy responded in English. The owner of the house owned a restaurant which serves pretty good food. His name was Charles and he is originally from Scotland. His Grandfather was Armenian. So we got into a conversation and then finally Jason came in to help out with the talking. I kept telling him how I loved his lawn because it had real grass on it. This is something you don’t really find in Armenia... a lawn with grass. I told him that it had been about 15 months since I had touched real grass. He just looked at me... He also had two black labs. Reminded me of Raven, our black “lab” back in the States. Anyway, it was nice talking to Charles. (its even better if you say “Charles” in a classy British accent).
Anyway, Jason, Elvira, the kid, and I left early and went to find a place to get some food. We ate and then Jason and Elvira had to go back home so I met up with Gayane, the girl that I taught with for FLEX and we hung out with her friends. It was the 2792 birthday of Yerevan and there were bands playing everywhere so I went with her group to see some concerts. They were just on the street. I was the only sucker wearing a suit. I knew this because it seemed like everyone that passed me just stared at me. I get stared at anyway because I don’t Armenian, but the suit just added to it.
Around 9:30 I left and went to the wedding after party at a bar somewhere. I didn’t know anybody there, but struck up conversation with random people. Soon thereafter I left.
The next morning I left to come back home. I got back and met with my school director to talk about the progress of the bathroom. We were supposed to start the previous Thursday, then it was supposed to start on Tuesday, then today, and now probably next week. Um, its getting wicked cold here and it has already snowed once in the village where Hector lives which is 1 hour away from me by foot. So I don’t know what’s going on with that.
Onto another subject. I am teaching English now and I was in the class with the 7th graders and there was a little girl reading this line “The sun was out shining” She read it as “The sun was out shitting.” I about lost it. I think I remember this happening last year. I started chuckling a little and the teacher asked what was funny, so I had to tell her that the story reminded me or something funny. Aren’t kids just the darndest. Other than that, nothing really else to say. I know I say this everytime, but is has gotten colder. I wear my down jacket now everyday when Im at home. Its swell.
I am going up to Gavar tomorrow to see some of my friends there and just hanging out. Should be a good time.
Dad, I got my package yesterday. I don’t have it here but another volunteer saw it and has it now and I just have to get it from him now.
That’s it.
Until next time.
Ok, so they frequently have visitors over, whether other PC Volunteers or couchsurfers. This particular night, there was a full house. A family from New Zealand was staying at their house to I slept on the floor. No big deal. The next morning, we had breakfast, and then I sat around for a while until it was time to go to the wedding.
So, it was Elvira, Jason, Their ten month old, and myself. We got in a taxi and went to the hostel where Gayvork works and waited. Elvira asked me to go and see what was going on, so I went and asked some of the other workers at the hostel, Ani and Anahit. As I was turning around, the bus was pulling away so I ran after the bus. The bus stopped and I asked if there were three seats on the bus. After the bus driver said yes, I ran back to the taxi and told them to come to the bus. But then, someone else pulled up in their own car and said they could give us a ride, so I ran back to the bus to tell them that they could leave. Then I ran back to the taxi to make sure that Elvira and Jason were coming and then we collectively ran to the car and got in. So, if you can imagine, a guy in a suit running around a street trying to get a ride to the wedding which was held in a village outside of Yerevan. We got in and we were on our way.
We were about 15 minutes. Armenian weddings are about 20 minutes long. I got to see five minutes of the wedding. I didn’t know any of the other people there and neither did Jason nor Elvira so we just huddled and talked and walked around. I asked the same guy if he would give us a ride back to Yerevan and he said that since he brought us out there, he would take us back. Sweet. I think I forgot to mention we picked up two of his friends, so I was sitting in the front, Jason, Elvira and two girls sat in the back with the baby... in one row. Again... sweet.
So from the church we went to some private house somewhere. I had no idea where it was but all 60 some people went in. This is where it deviates from a true Armenian wedding. Basically, it was everyone standing up drinking wine and eating hors devours. I was starving and as soon as I got into the place, I picked up a wine glass and starting drinking because I thought there would be ample amounts of food. This was not the case. I was about two glasses in, and realized there was no food except for hors devours so Jason and I went over and tried to make a meal out of the hors devours. It didn’t happen. So in my semi-drunk state, I wandered into the kitchen and asked if they needed a hand making the food faster so that I could soak up some of the wine swishing around my stomach. I asked in Armenian and the guy responded in English. The owner of the house owned a restaurant which serves pretty good food. His name was Charles and he is originally from Scotland. His Grandfather was Armenian. So we got into a conversation and then finally Jason came in to help out with the talking. I kept telling him how I loved his lawn because it had real grass on it. This is something you don’t really find in Armenia... a lawn with grass. I told him that it had been about 15 months since I had touched real grass. He just looked at me... He also had two black labs. Reminded me of Raven, our black “lab” back in the States. Anyway, it was nice talking to Charles. (its even better if you say “Charles” in a classy British accent).
Anyway, Jason, Elvira, the kid, and I left early and went to find a place to get some food. We ate and then Jason and Elvira had to go back home so I met up with Gayane, the girl that I taught with for FLEX and we hung out with her friends. It was the 2792 birthday of Yerevan and there were bands playing everywhere so I went with her group to see some concerts. They were just on the street. I was the only sucker wearing a suit. I knew this because it seemed like everyone that passed me just stared at me. I get stared at anyway because I don’t Armenian, but the suit just added to it.
Around 9:30 I left and went to the wedding after party at a bar somewhere. I didn’t know anybody there, but struck up conversation with random people. Soon thereafter I left.
The next morning I left to come back home. I got back and met with my school director to talk about the progress of the bathroom. We were supposed to start the previous Thursday, then it was supposed to start on Tuesday, then today, and now probably next week. Um, its getting wicked cold here and it has already snowed once in the village where Hector lives which is 1 hour away from me by foot. So I don’t know what’s going on with that.
Onto another subject. I am teaching English now and I was in the class with the 7th graders and there was a little girl reading this line “The sun was out shining” She read it as “The sun was out shitting.” I about lost it. I think I remember this happening last year. I started chuckling a little and the teacher asked what was funny, so I had to tell her that the story reminded me or something funny. Aren’t kids just the darndest. Other than that, nothing really else to say. I know I say this everytime, but is has gotten colder. I wear my down jacket now everyday when Im at home. Its swell.
I am going up to Gavar tomorrow to see some of my friends there and just hanging out. Should be a good time.
Dad, I got my package yesterday. I don’t have it here but another volunteer saw it and has it now and I just have to get it from him now.
That’s it.
Until next time.
Friday, October 8, 2010
I could never smuggle drugs...
Last weekend we had our first AIDS initiative meeting with the new volunteers. It was fun because a lot of the volunteers came to Yerevan so we got to get some work done and then hang out. Since I only live two hours from the capitol, I woke up early Saturday morning and headed in with Hector. I have started taping my second documentary, so for those who I send it to, you will get to meet Hector. I did some taping in the morning and then got ready for my meeting.
It started at 2:00. There were about twenty or so volunteers there. A rather good turn out. It wasn’t the 32 people that signed up to come but that happens. I was still happy about the turn out. The meeting went on for about an hour. Our new Country Director was there to see how things went and she stressed the importance of the HIV/AIDS Initiative in many countries. My impression was after that speech and being there that she would stay more than five minutes, but no, she left. We covered a lot of stuff ranging from the continuation of the presentations to getting packets together to organizing a “flashmob.”
Now, I didn’t know what that meant and Im going to explain what it is for you Mom and Dad. A flashmob is when you get a bunch of people together and do an organized activity in a public place. What we are going to do is get shirts printed and get other organizations to join and we are going to go out to Republic Square on December 1st, or World AIDS Day. There at a certain time we are going to just be walking and when the clock hits the hour, we are going to take off our jackets and just be wearing our shirts in a frozen position for about five minutes and then after five minutes, just put out jackets back on like nothing happened and continue walking. We are hoping to get the Armenian Red Cross to come out there so that they can be there and give out information. Basically, it is a ploy to get the general public to start asking questions. The first one being “what the heck was that” and then “huh, I want to find out more information about whatever is going on.” Apparently they have been done before and they have been successful. (However you would define “success” in this situation)
After that, I hung out with some of my friends I hadn’t seen in a while and then went to the US Embassy for a fundraising party. Some of my friends I worked with when I was teaching for FLEX were there so I got to see them and that was fun.
The morning, I got ready and left pretty early to come home.
This week was rather uneventful. I taught some classes but it seemed like I had to go to Martuni almost every day to get stuff done for my grant. On Tuesday, I met with my school director and he said that we would meet the following day and that I should be at the mayor’s office at 8:45am. So, I got there at 8:45 sharp and in true Armenian form, the mayor and the school director got there at 9. Awesome. We went inside and the mayor said that he was busy after three minutes of talking. I just sat there thinking “I thought that they arranged this meeting...” Anyway, I went back home not in the best of moods. The next day I came back but got to the office at 9 and met with the mayor. Apparently my school director forgot about the meeting so we had to wait for him.
We went over the plan of the project and again talked about the distribution of responsibility. Things were going to work out well. I went back to the school and met with the contractor who said that he would measure everything. I looked at him and asked him “what do you mean you are going to measure everything.” He said that he wanted precise measurements. I told him he should have done the first time he took measurements. I don’t think he took me seriously the first time, but now that I actually have the money, I think his mindset has changed. It was very aggravating. I told him that I can’t get more money and that if he is short on anything, the money is going to come from the village. He responded by saying that the money was enough. I was with him re-measuring everything and surprisingly, after however many years he has been doing this, he has a good eye because with about every measurement, he was almost spot on.
It was my turn. I looked at my budget and try to see how much everything was. The school director got everything organized and the stuff was delivered to the school. I had to bring the money. So I went to the bank and told them I needed them to raise the limit on my withdraw amount. That is what they did and then I withdrew 700,000 dram or about 1600 dollars from the bank.
You know when you do something bad and you know you’re doing something bad you are supposed act normal. Yeah, well, easier said than done. I had my shoulder bag with me and as soon as the 700,000 dram came out of the ATM I stuffed it in my bag. I was basically on top of the ATM so that no one could see me take the money and shove it in my bag. So, already I looked suspicious. Then as I was walking I had the bag on my back and the strap across my chest. About 50 meters into the walk I got self conscious and put the bag in the front even though there are two plastic clips and a lot of velcro holding the flap shut including a large velcro strap on the inside. So, strike number two with the “acting normal” thing. Lastly, when you try to act cool in a situation, you rarely do and this was the last act that tipped me off. My eyes were bugged out of my head and my head would swivel everywhere at everything that happened. If I was walking on the street, and people were passing me I hugged the wall or walked into the street so that everyone was at least an arms distance away from me.
So, imagine a guy straddling an ATM, then walking with a bag in the front of his body and then walking quickly with bug eyes hugging walls and walking in streets... Basically it looked like I was cracked out.
On the bus, I embraced my bag and had a death grip on it until I got off the bus and back home. I didn’t tell a soul that I had that much money, including grandma. Not that I don’t trust her, but more so because the village talks and I don’t need Grandma telling our neighbors that the American has a crapload of cash in the house by accident...
I paid my school director and got a signed paper saying that he received payment. I let out a sigh and he asked what was wrong and I told him that I don’t like having that much on me. He said not to worry about it. I told him next time to go to the bank and I would pay for everything there and he could handle keeping that much money. To that, he simply laughed. I don’t know what that means.
So that was my week of excitement. Ground-breaking begins on Monday... or Tuesday... or whenever they get around to it, but soon. Im going to be glad when this is over. All this money exchange, getting people to get their part done, etc.
It has been raining a lot here. About every night it will just pour rain. The surrounding mountains already have snow on them. Winter is coming. Crap. I got out my heater and remember when I put it back in the box. It seemed like it was just yesterday. Geez. I got my down jacket out and am waiting for it to fluff up and get ready for me to wear. I wear my toboggan almost every night. Im sure soon the gas heater will be constructed.
Today, I am leaving to go to Yerevan to see one of my Armenian friends get married. Its going to be pretty sweet. Maybe. This is my first true Armenian wedding.
Laura if you still read my blogs... are you alive?
I am spending Christmas in another country. Looking forward to that...
I bought my tickets to go to Spain to see Kamran. Really looking forward to it because Ill meet up with Will, TJ, Derek, and Alex. (Mom and Dad, you don’t know the last two... Derek is Amanda’s Boyfriend/Fiance). Anyway, after almost two years, it will be nice to kick it with the fellas. But there is a winter standing in the way between now and then.
I guess that’s all I got to say right now. Yup.
Until next time...
It started at 2:00. There were about twenty or so volunteers there. A rather good turn out. It wasn’t the 32 people that signed up to come but that happens. I was still happy about the turn out. The meeting went on for about an hour. Our new Country Director was there to see how things went and she stressed the importance of the HIV/AIDS Initiative in many countries. My impression was after that speech and being there that she would stay more than five minutes, but no, she left. We covered a lot of stuff ranging from the continuation of the presentations to getting packets together to organizing a “flashmob.”
Now, I didn’t know what that meant and Im going to explain what it is for you Mom and Dad. A flashmob is when you get a bunch of people together and do an organized activity in a public place. What we are going to do is get shirts printed and get other organizations to join and we are going to go out to Republic Square on December 1st, or World AIDS Day. There at a certain time we are going to just be walking and when the clock hits the hour, we are going to take off our jackets and just be wearing our shirts in a frozen position for about five minutes and then after five minutes, just put out jackets back on like nothing happened and continue walking. We are hoping to get the Armenian Red Cross to come out there so that they can be there and give out information. Basically, it is a ploy to get the general public to start asking questions. The first one being “what the heck was that” and then “huh, I want to find out more information about whatever is going on.” Apparently they have been done before and they have been successful. (However you would define “success” in this situation)
After that, I hung out with some of my friends I hadn’t seen in a while and then went to the US Embassy for a fundraising party. Some of my friends I worked with when I was teaching for FLEX were there so I got to see them and that was fun.
The morning, I got ready and left pretty early to come home.
This week was rather uneventful. I taught some classes but it seemed like I had to go to Martuni almost every day to get stuff done for my grant. On Tuesday, I met with my school director and he said that we would meet the following day and that I should be at the mayor’s office at 8:45am. So, I got there at 8:45 sharp and in true Armenian form, the mayor and the school director got there at 9. Awesome. We went inside and the mayor said that he was busy after three minutes of talking. I just sat there thinking “I thought that they arranged this meeting...” Anyway, I went back home not in the best of moods. The next day I came back but got to the office at 9 and met with the mayor. Apparently my school director forgot about the meeting so we had to wait for him.
We went over the plan of the project and again talked about the distribution of responsibility. Things were going to work out well. I went back to the school and met with the contractor who said that he would measure everything. I looked at him and asked him “what do you mean you are going to measure everything.” He said that he wanted precise measurements. I told him he should have done the first time he took measurements. I don’t think he took me seriously the first time, but now that I actually have the money, I think his mindset has changed. It was very aggravating. I told him that I can’t get more money and that if he is short on anything, the money is going to come from the village. He responded by saying that the money was enough. I was with him re-measuring everything and surprisingly, after however many years he has been doing this, he has a good eye because with about every measurement, he was almost spot on.
It was my turn. I looked at my budget and try to see how much everything was. The school director got everything organized and the stuff was delivered to the school. I had to bring the money. So I went to the bank and told them I needed them to raise the limit on my withdraw amount. That is what they did and then I withdrew 700,000 dram or about 1600 dollars from the bank.
You know when you do something bad and you know you’re doing something bad you are supposed act normal. Yeah, well, easier said than done. I had my shoulder bag with me and as soon as the 700,000 dram came out of the ATM I stuffed it in my bag. I was basically on top of the ATM so that no one could see me take the money and shove it in my bag. So, already I looked suspicious. Then as I was walking I had the bag on my back and the strap across my chest. About 50 meters into the walk I got self conscious and put the bag in the front even though there are two plastic clips and a lot of velcro holding the flap shut including a large velcro strap on the inside. So, strike number two with the “acting normal” thing. Lastly, when you try to act cool in a situation, you rarely do and this was the last act that tipped me off. My eyes were bugged out of my head and my head would swivel everywhere at everything that happened. If I was walking on the street, and people were passing me I hugged the wall or walked into the street so that everyone was at least an arms distance away from me.
So, imagine a guy straddling an ATM, then walking with a bag in the front of his body and then walking quickly with bug eyes hugging walls and walking in streets... Basically it looked like I was cracked out.
On the bus, I embraced my bag and had a death grip on it until I got off the bus and back home. I didn’t tell a soul that I had that much money, including grandma. Not that I don’t trust her, but more so because the village talks and I don’t need Grandma telling our neighbors that the American has a crapload of cash in the house by accident...
I paid my school director and got a signed paper saying that he received payment. I let out a sigh and he asked what was wrong and I told him that I don’t like having that much on me. He said not to worry about it. I told him next time to go to the bank and I would pay for everything there and he could handle keeping that much money. To that, he simply laughed. I don’t know what that means.
So that was my week of excitement. Ground-breaking begins on Monday... or Tuesday... or whenever they get around to it, but soon. Im going to be glad when this is over. All this money exchange, getting people to get their part done, etc.
It has been raining a lot here. About every night it will just pour rain. The surrounding mountains already have snow on them. Winter is coming. Crap. I got out my heater and remember when I put it back in the box. It seemed like it was just yesterday. Geez. I got my down jacket out and am waiting for it to fluff up and get ready for me to wear. I wear my toboggan almost every night. Im sure soon the gas heater will be constructed.
Today, I am leaving to go to Yerevan to see one of my Armenian friends get married. Its going to be pretty sweet. Maybe. This is my first true Armenian wedding.
Laura if you still read my blogs... are you alive?
I am spending Christmas in another country. Looking forward to that...
I bought my tickets to go to Spain to see Kamran. Really looking forward to it because Ill meet up with Will, TJ, Derek, and Alex. (Mom and Dad, you don’t know the last two... Derek is Amanda’s Boyfriend/Fiance). Anyway, after almost two years, it will be nice to kick it with the fellas. But there is a winter standing in the way between now and then.
I guess that’s all I got to say right now. Yup.
Until next time...
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