Armenia

This trip is a short escape from the Arabic world to the Caucasus. We travelled in 3, Marius (Netherlands), Pelle (Danish) and me. Armenia is an interesting country because its Christian Apostolic country hooked between Muslims countries as Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Iran and also because they had to fight during centuries to keep their lands as we still see with the Kharabagh conflict.

If you are looking for more information about Armenia, I advise you:

http://www.armeniapedia.org/index.php?title=Main_Page

(Click on the name of places to access my pictures)

17/11/07

-Yerevan-

We visit the unique mosque of Armenia (the blue mosque), housed by Iranian Shi’a and the most important spot of the city as:

• The Obelisk of the 50 years of the soviet Armenia;
• The Central theatre and opera;
• The republic square;
• The Central market and some churches.

All details on: Churches and monasteries of Armenia

18/11/07

-Edjmiatzin-

In the morning, we take a bus to the city of Edjmiatzin where the Armenian "Vatican" is located, the holy see of the Armenian Church. We had the chance to get inside the cathedral when the mass was beginning. Songs and music was wonderful with men and women choirs answering and replying. I strongly advice to go listen an Armenian mass in the Sunday morning!

We had a long time in this peaceful place with incredible autumn’s colours.

19/11/07

-Sevan, Dilijan-

The countryside of Armenia is so different from the capital: we find some remains of the soviet era with industrial plants and rectangular buildings…In Sevan we eat in the only restaurant we found, a kind of family bar where kids, adults and old persons were coming to buy food, alcohol or just to have a cup of coffee to smoke their cigarettes.

The Sevan Lake use to be a summer place with beaches and a president holiday house. We loved to stay in the top of a hill next to the lake where 2 old little chapels resist from ages (670a.c.).

We celebrate the 50 years of the European Union in the Armenian forest, drinking homemade vodka of pears, smoking Austrian cigarette made in Armenia and listening to the accordion of our host. To get into the ambiance, just imagine a retired painter loving getting drunk to play “Besame mucho”, Armenian folk, Classic soviet songs or Charles Aznavour in a wood house with a big room of Cactus and succulents in the middle of the Armenian Northern Mountains: a fairy tale!

20/11/07

- Haghartsin ~ Goshavank -

Haghartsin (XII century) and Goshavank (around XII century) monasteries are located near Dilijan. They were beautiful but I was more interested in the old men we meet on this trip: the 2 taxi drivers and the church keeper. I tried to observe them, looking for a feeling about their lives. I cannot say anything because they did not reveal anything, I think that their face hide many things.

-Vanadzor-

This is the saddest city we visited in Armenia, everything is grey. It is quite better during the night. After having a lunch in a very sad cafeteria called ‘999 café’ – the waiter is a old woman that seems crying behind her deep black eyes – in which the client can choose isolated table in single proper room, we took a walk through the city.

We found the university by accident just entering an abandoned area of 2 destroyed buildings then we met the director of the environmental centre. Armenia is trying to build citizen behaviour about the respect of the nature. There are 12 national parks in Armenia.

In the evening, we had a diner in a centre. The owner was an immigrated Lebanese Jew so we had chance to talk in Arabic! To make us warmer, we shared a bottle of 5 years old Ararat (Armenian cognac) watching videos of Armenian songs.

Tradition:

When young Armenian boys turn 15 years old, they get a bottle of a very good Cognac (15 years old). Then, when they go to ask the hand of the girl they want to married, they have to offer the bottle to the father.

21/11/07

-Sanahin-

Church is beautiful from inside. The graveyard is also interesting because it have engraved modern picture of the dead on the tomb stone. The landscape is also amazing because you have the view on the factory of Alaverdi and the entire canyon that the Sanahin village overlook on the top of the mountain from which you can also see the highest mountains that have snow.

-Haghpat-

Church is beautiful from outside. One room have also a very good echo. We had a cup coffee in the main square of the village with the oldest man of Armenia, so beautiful with his huge glasses that make his eyes very big.

The car driver was very funny guy, small with a prominent belay and a weekly beard, smoking constantly long tiny cigarettes. He was always trying to keep gas as much as he could let the car going in the downhill very fast listening to folk Armenian songs. I had to help him to repair the junction gear on the way back to Vanadzor!

-Vanadzor by night-

We went to a big restaurant around the city. It has these typical rooms with big table, sofas and TV. It was a bit sad to not share a common space with the other clients but it seems to be a habit in most of the restaurant of this part of Armenia. We had a delicious big rainbow trout cooked in a butter stock with spices and parsley. Back to the hotel, we had some Ararat and jazz…

22/11/07

-Aragatz – way back to Yerevan-

This trip is the most beautiful we had in Armenia, the road goes up to the mountains that have sensual shapes and there are covered by snow. In Yerevan, we visited the History national museum. It is good because it show many maps of the former Armenia draw by Latin’s, Persian, Armenian and French. There is one part about Urartu, bronze time and Hellenic empire but there is a significant problem, almost nothing is translated in English and the heating is about 40°C when the outside temperature is 0°C or less!

23/11/07

-Yerevan – Genocide Memorial-

We visit the genocide memorial and the museum with a freezing rain made of snow. A gallery of paintings with a collection of original text and photo from different countries show you the massacre with many details about places, facts, numbers, official letters and telegrams. The memorial has a permanent music and flame in a big circle of huge basalt oblique stones that symbolize the regions were the genocide happened. It is essential but you feel bad after the visit.

Mezze

Victory!
This is my first night at home! What an enjoyment to bring all my stuff to our house!
We going to live in 3 with Juan and Anaïs. Life in Mezze is little bit different : people living here are younger, there is not only ultra-conservative families.

-Click on the title link to look on google maps about mezze district in Damascus.-

Home, sweet home?

After one week of trying to find home, it seems that today is a success day?
Last Wednesday, I met a Syrian guy that would like to live with a foreigner. It is very difficult to meet arabic student to live with because mos of them live with their family or in the student residence. He is not a student, he is working as graphic designer (http://www.juanzero.com).
If everything works, after signing papers, will be home in 2 days, inch Allah!
Will live in Mezze so I will be nearer to the university than in Baramkeh!

Looking for a new home...

As I planned my coming in Syria, I am now looking for a new student house or residence to live in during this year. My current home was only for the first month because I am living with foreigners and I want to live only with arabs. I would like to experience the arabic way of life and had a cheaper bill than the Baramkeh fee. I am searching for about 2 weeks but I did not find any contacts that succeed. Here, it works diferent, they is not any board in the university where to look about it. I asked many Syrian, I know that there is a residence in Mezze.

Damascus University

Today was the First Day on the Damascus University. It give me the same feeling as last year: good rhythm in the schedule with a pause each hour to keep concentrated, nice teachers and classes with few students (8~12). I am in the 2nd level as I was expecting. In the language center, there are many Europeans and also Syrians because they teach also Russian, Japanese, French, etc. After Abdul* lessons during one year it is easier to learn the complete writing grammar because it sounds logic and only practical application of oral expression.
The language center schedule is organized by month sessions. But it follows the Arabic Muslim calendar (Moon calendar) as dates do not fit with Christian months: a session can begin and finish in some day during the Christian month. Between each session, we have an average of 10 days of holiday. In conclusion, the rhythm of the university is strong and we can not miss more than 4 days during a session.
Lessons are between 9am to 1pm. The week-end is on Friday and Saturday.

*Abdul was my teacher in Madrid, his method of teaching Arabic is based in listening and repeating daily use of Arabic. It introduces you to the complex grammar structure of the language without getting rid of it because you just use the forms you repeat in a context.

Burkina Faso Wedding (18/10/07)‎

The Damascus quarter were the wedding was celebrated

The friends of the groom, in front of the mosque after the praying time

We met a guy from Comores that explaned us the customs and tradition in a african wedding

The groom just came and salute his guests

He salute and have a speech with the family of the bride next to the door of the mosque

The Comorian tell us about the suits for an african wedding

The typical shoes made of coco tree

~~~~~~~~~~~~

The groom had a long speech with each of his guests

In the way to the house of the groom

The wedding meal

Before we ate, many sourats from the holy quran were read

Quran lecture, followed by long spiritual and tribal speeches adressed to the groom in both classic arabic and tribal language

We were only 3 europeans, we enjoyed a lot these unknowed customs !

Tahdiid moustawa

Level test on Tuesday 16th october was not so great...everybody felt that it was too difficult!
But it is quite normal : they give us the hardest test just to be able to make easily the groups of students in the 8 levels from beginner to advanced.
No surprises, I get the results and I will be in 2nd level as I expected.
Classes will begin on Sunday 21th october.

Damascus views

Some landscapes in Damascus...

The Mount Qasioun is on the right side
a typical street in Damascus

Eid

In the street jasmatiia, the incredible atmosphere of the people going to buy some sweeties.
It's a kind of souk with all kind of arabic sweets. Every merchant try to convince with a so great hability and so original ideas...

Iskandar (Thursday 3rd October 2007)‎

This day we went to mosque near Iskandar house to have the Iftar at 6:30pm. The ‎quarter was quite poor. Muslims are respectful with non-Muslim people; they let you ‎come to watch their praying and share the meal in the mosque. In the meantime, I try ‎to read some piece of a good looking Koran but it is still to difficult for me to ‎understand. The vocabulary is old and you need strong knowledge of grammar to get ‎the finest sentences. ‎
Iskandar = Alexander in Arabic

Iskandar looking beyond the atmosphere

We were among a group of little boys

An "access" to a little souk, on the way

The typical health way of seating on the floor

Try to find what it is made from ?

Happy faces after some food!

AEU (Wednesday 3rd October 2007)‎

The first starving day at Arab European University was awful. So tired and so rid of ‎everything! And it is almost guilt of Arabesk turn over: The night I came to Baramkeh ‎house, the bed I should take from the polish guy that was living was still occupied. But ‎it was still amazing to discover a new build university in the middle of the desert after ‎‎45’ bus trip! It looks like an American modern campus with palms, grass and high tech ‎buildings. I will experiment only 2 days on the Arabic Language Centre of this private ‎Syrian college because courses do not fit to my way of learning instead of being ‎cheaper than the public university. Other particularity, the week is scheduled as ‎Saturday to Wednesday as working days when all Syria week is from Sunday to ‎Thursday! (Some people say ‎ديمشق مجنون‎, Dimasq Majnoun as ‘crazy Damascus’…)‎
On the evening, the first Arabic meal at home…made on the Danish way by Pelle ‎‎(from Copenhagen): lens soup, dates, etc... ‎

Tuesday 2nd October 2007 / Arrival‎

During the trip to Damascus, an interesting doctor was seating next to me. He was ‎going back to Syria to have some holidays with his family after a half face paralysis. I ‎get impressed by his life story and what happened to him. We had a long speech ‎about people aims in occident and middle-east. With this paralysis he realized that all ‎his life was only hurry to make something for the future. I felt that this accident woke ‎up his ‘Syrian roots’ and he was regardless to his interest in occident. I loved speak ‎with him about politics and news. He has a clear and easy point of view to explain ‎complex happenings. I like when somebody simplify situation to get into his truth with ‎only few demonstrated arguments.‎
I hope to see him again, one day…‎

Life in Damascus

(title of the blog : Hayati fi Dimasq = My life in Damascus)

I came in Syria on Tuesday 2nd of October 2007...
This blog will be my log book as I made a commitment to publish it.