Before leaving for Armenia I had a very strange dream in which I had two parts in the story- in one of the parts I was the narrator, an outside observer; and in the other part I was a character in the plot of the dream. As a narrator I had the unusual ability to interact with the characters of the dream, telling a murderer that he wasn’t looking for me as the narrator but was looking for her (pointing in the direction of me as the character). But this is an aside…
So now that I’m back home and have told my family and friends about my experiences about Armenia, I have had the opportunity to really look at my trip as an outsider and appreciate different aspects of it as a participant.
As far as looking at it as an outsider goes, I am able to laugh at all the uncomfortable times and situations I was put in- like being packed like a sardine in the mashutkas or being matchmaked with some nephew/cousin/brother/son.
Before leaving Armenia, Sevan warned me that I might encounter some readjustment issues… that being, my family and friends would care and be interested about my trip but not be as enthusiastic about it as me. Luckily, I am blessed to have an amazing family and wonderful friends who, in a way, have been with me throughout the trip, listening to my crazy stories and taking an interest in all I have to say.
Being that the first people to see me once I landed in England were my family, they were the first to hear about Armenia and they kept on probing for more and more stories and information about my trip, even though I was tired and honestly just wanted to sleep and tell them later. But I was able to muster up some energy to tell them a few of my adventures which they loved hearing. My cousins, not knowing much about Armenia, probed me for information about the country and wanted to learn more about it from me. Back in Florida, my friends are doing the same… asking me lots of questions and wanting to hear every last detail.— It seems I won’t have any readjustment problems after all.
Looking back on my trip as a character in the story, I can appreciate the vitality of the people… they do not go to work to necessarily make the most money in the world, although that would be nice, but however work to make enough to live- at least from what I observed. They understand that life is too short and therefore enjoy other people’s company, having discussions with a cup of coffee in hand, and taking their time to enjoy life. I was told that there is a cafe for each person in Yerevan, and although I’m pretty sure this is an exaggeration I think it has to do with the mind set of the people. They go out to the cafes, enjoy each other’s company and get on with their lives, not focussing solely on work.
My host family took good care of me, taking note of the fact that I didn’t eat meat and trying to provide me with plenty to eat despite that. My host mother became more of a friend (which I guess makes sense considering the fact that she’s only 4 years older). Despite the language barrier, we were able to have several conversations about life and about culture, me asking questions about the Armenian culture and she asking questions about the American culture. Often I would ask her for advise on what to wear to make sure that what I was wearing was acceptable for conservative Gyumri and many times she helped me do my hair.
My host brothers were adorable. They were happy with any toy they received no matter how big or small and would amuse themselves for days with the same toy. The enjoyed running around, playing soccer, and dancing. Quite contrary to the little boys you find in the States, playing video games all the time, constantly on the computer, not seeing the light of day and quite honestly, for the most part- spoiled. My host brothers were definitely not spoiled- they were very appreciative.
Looking at my place of work, I was surrounded by really friendly and smart people. They were always willing to help me, even though I was placed to help them, and constantly checked on me to see if I needed anything. If I did need something and went to their office to ask them for help they readily gave it to me. Quite contrary to my work experience in the States where everybody was too busy to help anybody else and you had to constantly work by their time schedules which means I could only get a word in edgewise in their five minute breaks between this meeting or that meeting.
When I would go to the grocery store to get food to take home, or the side fruit and vegetable stands the people were always so friendly, trying to make conversation with me even though I don’t speak very much Armenian, being patient with the fact that I don’t speak much Armenian, and usually putting extra things into my bag as gifts. They were all very friendly.
So looking back on my experience, I would have to say that it was a good one… I learned a lot, I was able to see what the real Armenia is all about, I was able to live amongst the people and share their problems and joys, I was able to understand the culture better, and I was able to give something back, however small or large, to my “motherland”.
