Tuesday June 22, 2010

Any sickness that was trying to take over me has subsided thanks to my zinc tabs and I am back on track! I have been able to recruit some others to run with me from my village and nearby Karashamb. We meet at 7 and it has been gorgeous in the morning. It is much cooler in the morning making my sweating at a somewhat controllable level and of course the country side is absolutely gorgeous. This week it has been raining (and even hailing!) in the evening so everything looks lush and smells fresh in the morning. This also adds the fun of dodging puddles, trying to decipher between actual mud and cow piles (generally unsuccessfully), and hoping the vehicles that pass dangerously close slow down so they don’t spray water all over us. If any of you have Google earthed my location we usually run out of Teghenik and turn right running toward Karashamb, climb the gorge past Karashamb for a lovely view and then head back down running past the road to Teghenik and on to Arzakan and then back to Teghenik. This can alter drastically though depending on the runners/ walkers/ gossipers in tow.
This week was time for every family to cut their exceedingly tall grass and pile it high in haystacks. From the top of our village you can look out and see the fields of many of the homes and it looks surreal. The only thing I can relate it to in my life are images from puzzles of crops being harvested circa 1850. Just another delight of the simple subsistence farming lifestyle that most of my village and the surrounding areas embody that I get to soak in. My host family, being of higher class in the village did not cut their own grass but hired an adorable elderly woman to come scythe the land. Often when I am outside on the porch doing my language homework before lunch she is called in for the afternoon coffee (a staple in their diet) and I get to chat with her.
Thanks to the orchard being cleared though, we were able to get to the fruit trees much easier and Saturday evening we picked from the cherry tree. It was amazing climbing the tree into the branches and being surrounded by an abundance of cherries all ripe for the picking and delicious when popped directly into your mouth. It has been nice to relax by going into the orchard, picking a handful and staring out across the valley while eating these delectable cherries.

Our Community Project of weeding at the church went quite well. We had lots of local children show up to help us and after three hours of work, and very sore fingers we called it a day. There is still a lot of work to be done but we are continuing to work about three times a week to clear the entire courtyard masonry of any weeds. I have only cut three fingers with my knife so far. Go me!
Sunday I had quite the experience with my family. I gathered that my family was going to see Garnik, the brother who left for the army only three days prior, and welcomed me to come along. I thought this would be a nice treat to do something different and see some of the countryside so I went through proper PC protocol for a trip out of our village and we were on our way. Well, we were on our way only an hour after they had originally told me we would be leaving. Problem? Ch’ka. In Armenian. The first two hours we visited many stores, markets, and a gas station as we ran errands. We made it into Yeghvard and I was shown where my family lives during the school year, and where my host dad works. I had my trusty guide book with me (Thanks Kathy!!) and had read that the church here was a notable one, built in 1301 so I asked where it was. My family obliged to take me there which I was thrilled about and my host mom even bought me candles to light.

Armenians find it next to impossible to enter a church, no matter how short of a time they are there, and not light the 2 candles and place them in either sand, or sand covered with water. They create a beautiful flickering in the dark and dank churches built centuries ago.
We then drove in a few circles around the town, and found a house where a red-headed man got in the car. Excitement was building in me as I prepared to have another American with me who I would be able to carry a conversation with. However, this man proved to be of the .00001% of Armenians that are red-headed. Grrrr. Besides having phenomenal physical attributes as an Armenian, he also was apparently very important in the military world. Once we arrived at the military barracks a lean across the driver’s seat and a cheery Barev (Hello!) we were ushered past the civilian parking lot where all the other families were unloading. Once we parked and grabbed our picnic supplies we jumped the line of families waiting at the second gate and walked straight toward the barracks. He bounced inside while we waited outside (keep in mind I have no idea what is going on at all) and then he came back welcoming us into a private office. Literally no other families/civilians were inside this building but was littered with boys and men ranging from approximately 16-25 doing various activities. Garnik came and met us there and we proceeded to have a family reunion for two hours in these barracks. This involved Garnik getting to use a cell phone for the first time in three days and was on the phone a lot and getting numbers so he would be able to contact people once we left. Interesting indeed.


After that treat of probably being one of very few Americans who have been inside those barracks my family took me to the main attraction of Ejmiatsin, the spiritual center for Armenian’s since the 4th Century. The large church that stands now was rebuilt in the 480s.

The church is surrounded by beautiful gardens with many Khachkars (literally ‘stone cross’) from all over Armenia. The stone detail on the outside and the frescoes inside were quite breathtaking.



There was some sort of procession taking place, and of course we lit more candles. In typical Margaux-form as I was placing my second candle it tilted over and fell into the water extinguishing the flame. Thankfully my host mother was right there to grab it up and safely secure my candles so that I wouldn’t be such a shame. Ha. Another custom that needs to be observed in all churches here is exiting backwards through the door so as not to turn your back on god. Being respectful of the culture I almost tripped while exiting, again my host mother put her arm out to support and save me from being shameful. Or, some higher being is getting back at me for all those years of walking face forward through doorways!



Oh, the views of Mt. Ararat were quite spectacular from Ejmiatsin but it was still somewhat overcast so no photos as of yet are worthy of posting.
I did laundry for the first time today in country. It was an experience hand washing a considerable amount of laundry and had me exhausted when I was finished hanging all of it up. My mom and Gor were impressed with my skills and joked that I would be able to find an Armenian husband after all. My response: “Che Che Che!!!”
Language is progressing rapidly as we have now learned many of the tenses and practically all the small talk one could ever want to know in a foreign language. Next week is our mock language test; hopefully it will be a good indicator of how well we are doing so far. We head to Yerevan on Saturday as a large group of PSTs and will get to roam through the museums which I am looking forward to, especially the Art Gallery and the Genocide Museum. I also hope that we will be able to roam around on our own for awhile to explore the city, but we shall see. Hope all is well with everyone. Cheers!