We all had a great stay in Armenia. Jakob especially says he could happily live in Yerevan. Every once in awhile we visit a place where Jakob declares he could live in that spot - it is growing into an interesting list. Here is a list of a few things we like or found interesting.
1. Chess
Armenians have always enjoyed chess. Because of this love of chess and one particular Armenian grandmaster about a decade ago Armenia decided to make chess a required subject in school. From a young age Armenian children study chess twice a week for an hour. The hope is that teaching children chess will also teach them strategy, healthy competition, patience, and honesty. I wasn't in Armenia long enough to say if children personify all those attributes but I can say that the children of Armenia have become quite good at chess and the world can expect to see a slur of Armenian grandmasters in the future. Jakob played in a chess tournament one evening, where the tone was set by a 13-year old girl with pigtails who smashed him in 25 moves. But everyone was very nice, he won half his games, and the girl ended up winning the tournament.
2. Fruit
Armenia is a fertile country. This gift is seen in the local diet which is high in fresh produce. Fruit seems to be an integral part of Armenian life - both fresh and dried. We were fortunate to have also arrived at a particularly good season for fruit. The local produce markets were overflowing with cherries, mulberries, strawberries, apricots, nectarines, watermelon, to name a few. We liked strolling past cafes where platters filled high with fruit were laden on decadent tables. We are not talking a small bowl of cherries - these would be massive bowls overflowing with fruit making us think the quantity of fruit eaten rivals the variety. We like fruit a lot so this worked out well for us.
3. Pulpulak (and other fountains!)
Armenia is a country that is not only blessed with an abundance of fruit but also with an abundance of fresh water. In the early 19th century the city of Yerevan decided to highlight its liquid bounty by installing public fountains all over the city, and country. They didn't hold back. Yerevan has over 1,500 stone fountains that provide fresh mountain spring water to city residents. Often the fountains are works of art and sometimes even tributes to deceased residents. We really liked living in a place where we were always assured a clean accessible water supply no matter where we went. Armenians must be a very well hydrated population as the pulpulak seem to be in continual use. The love of fountain also extends to the decorative and the city of Yerevan is full of grand public water displays.
4. Cafes
Yerevan is chock-full of amazing coffee. We sat in park cafes by fountains, chatting with French backpackers. We walked uphill to Altar cafe which even has its own prayer room. We checked out a half-dozen cafes across town - and constantly met the scent of freshly roasted beans from shopfronts and grocery stores.
6. Ancient history
Armenia is a very old country. It is known for being the first country in the world to adopt Christianity (3rd century). Yerevan, similarly is one of the oldest continually inhabited countries in the world. Like Georgia, Armenia has its own unique alphabet. The number of ancient manuscripts is a vast enough collection that there is a museum dedicated entirely to ancient Armenian manuscripts and books. Armenians, a distinct ethnic group, have been continuously living in the region for 4000 years. Despite numerous regime changes and a genocide Armenia is still thriving. While Yerevan is a modern city this ancient history shines through in the form of very old churches and buildings and a very established culture.
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Living like the locals |
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The local kids chess club is a little more serious looking than our setup |
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A small section of the greens in the grocery store |
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Pukpulak for 7 - staying hydrated the Armenian way |
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Next time we need more time in the countryside |
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Making lavash |
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Hills outside of Yerevan |
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So old it doesn't even look Armenian |
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This was my favourite ancient church |
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Cooling down the local way (sort of) |
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Hard to get a photo without feeling invasive but you can get the sense of how much fruit is loved |
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Armenian circus |