il est temps de pratiquer mon francais...
se sont passees plusieurs choses dans la derneire semaine! samedi nous sommes allees a matenadaran - un musee et centre de recherche qui contient des vieux manuscrits et livres armeniens. TRES interessant! les couleurs sont encore vives et les pages sont faites de la peau de moutons.
samedi, j'ai aussi rencontre de la famille. lucy, c'est la cousine a mon grand-pere nubar (d'egypte) qui est decede il y a un mois (qu'il soit en paix). lucy a environ 95 ans, comme mon grand-pere, et se souvient de lui et de son frere edouard tres bien. mais elle fait de l'alzheimers. donc elle m'a demande pas moins de quarante fois qui je connaissais dans la famille. et quand je disais que j'etais la petite fille a nubar, elle avait toujours les larmes aux yeux. elle ressemble beaucoup a mon grand pere, d'une facon bizarre... ca m'a fait un coup, j'etais tres emotive.
sa fille, c'est lili. et son marie a elle c'est berdj. ils ont deux filles, zara (a los angeles) et... me souviens plus, a moscou. berdj etait le ministre de la culture avant de prendre sa retraite, et il ecrit des pieces. d'ailleurs, j'ai achete deux de ses pieces aujourd'hui. hate de lire ca!
samedi soir nous avons fete agop et vivien, deux armeniens de la france, qui viennent d'avoir 22 ans. on est alle dans un beau et bon resto a l'exterieur de yerevan, on a danse sur de la musique armenienne, on s'est bien marres!
dimanche, nous sommes alles a sevan et a dilijan. sevan est le plus grand lac en armenie. on a nage un peu, je me suis fait bien bronzer... :) c'est drole parce que l'eau est tellement calme, c'est presque une blague. mais les armeniens croient que le courant est fort et que c'est hyper dangereux. je disais a un gars qu'en egypte, le courant est tellement fort qu'il fait enfoncer ses orteils dans le sable pour ne pas se laisser emporter. et lui, qui n'a jamais ete en egypte, insistait qu'en egypte ce n'est pas dangereux, que c'est plus dangereux ici a sevan ou il n'y a meme pas de vagues... hehe :)
lundi etait probablement notre meilleure journee passee en tant que groupe. une quinzaine de nous avons loue trois voitures et sommes partis de yerevan, voir autre chose. nous sommes passes par bdjni, hrazdan, saghmosavank... pour finir a tsaghgadzor, ou nous avons pris un "ski lift" au sommet d'une montagne, et huit de nous sommes descendus a pied. a part une pente a jermuk, tsaghgadzor est la seule place en armenie ou l'on peut skier. on s'est promenes beaucoup en auto, on s'est vraiment amuses! l'armenie est vraiment un tres beau pays, je crois que je ne l'ai pas assez dit. we come from a beautiful country. parfois je me demande comment je survivrais en montagne, si physiquement je suis faite pour ca...
pour les voyages, il y a plusieurs changements. donc mon vol de prague a toronto est le 29 aout. j'arrives a toronto a 14h30 et j'espere rentrer tout de suite a montreal, quoique ma cousine insiste que je restes avec elle et sa famille une nuit, le temps de me reposer. je ne veux pas vraiment rester a toronto, je veux plutot finir avec.
pour la georgie, j'etais sensee partir avec krikor, un gars que j'avais rencontre deux trois fois que je trouvais bien interessant. en tout cas pour raccourcir la longue histoire, je ne voulais plus partir avec lui, je pars plutot avec mon ami chris, a qui je fais confiance, et avec qui j'etais sensee partir des le debut. nous passerons par tbilisi et par batumi. ensuite, je reviens a yerevan pour deux jours. l'un de ces deux jours j'irais a aragats avec mon ami matt, pour une randonee pedestre. apparement il fait tres froid la haut!
le 6 aout je quittes yerevan pour paris (avec un stop a prague). je veux aller faire un tour dans le sud avec nvart, une des filles de mon programme avec qui j'habites, puisque nous serons la en meme temps. je vais aussi passer tout plein de temps avec marie-eve evidemment, et j'etais sensee partir en espagne, la raison pour laquelle je reviens le 29. cependant je partais avec krikor et la ca ne me tente plus. anette, une autre amie de mon programme, sera la et j'irai surement la rejoindre avec matt.
donc c'est ca pour l'instant... tout va bien :)
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
plux
coucou!
hmm.... what to say. i am leaving for georgia with my friend krikor next wednesday morning. we're going to take marshrutkas, which are little vans (or buses). they cost 100 dram which is about 30 cents. we'll be spending some time in tbilisi and batumi. i'll be leaving yerevan on the seventh, off to paris for about ten days, and then krikor and i will join up in spain. barcelona, ibiza and some islands south of ibiza. i can't wait!
by the way, who is krikor? krikor was on the same flight as some of the people from our program coming to armenia. we then ran into him at vernissage, whch is a flea market, and we see each other about twice a week and socialize. he was teaching at AUA here, he was teaching ecology. he studies the evolution of plants, and insects, and things like that. he's very interesting, he knows a lot and it's great to hear him talk about this stuff. initially i was to go to georgia with people from birthright next friday. but they are dilly-dallying and i'm sick of waiting for a clear answer, and i don't feel like going with ten other people. it will be difficult travelling with all of them, so i think i'll meet up with them once we're there for some sight-seeing or something. anyway i can't wait!
i haven't really been up to much these past few days except for socializing. setta left yesterday morning and i miss her lots. c'est tout i guess...
i'm meeting our relatives, my grand-father's cousin, on saturday with isabelle. it should be quite interesting!
hmm.... what to say. i am leaving for georgia with my friend krikor next wednesday morning. we're going to take marshrutkas, which are little vans (or buses). they cost 100 dram which is about 30 cents. we'll be spending some time in tbilisi and batumi. i'll be leaving yerevan on the seventh, off to paris for about ten days, and then krikor and i will join up in spain. barcelona, ibiza and some islands south of ibiza. i can't wait!
by the way, who is krikor? krikor was on the same flight as some of the people from our program coming to armenia. we then ran into him at vernissage, whch is a flea market, and we see each other about twice a week and socialize. he was teaching at AUA here, he was teaching ecology. he studies the evolution of plants, and insects, and things like that. he's very interesting, he knows a lot and it's great to hear him talk about this stuff. initially i was to go to georgia with people from birthright next friday. but they are dilly-dallying and i'm sick of waiting for a clear answer, and i don't feel like going with ten other people. it will be difficult travelling with all of them, so i think i'll meet up with them once we're there for some sight-seeing or something. anyway i can't wait!
i haven't really been up to much these past few days except for socializing. setta left yesterday morning and i miss her lots. c'est tout i guess...
i'm meeting our relatives, my grand-father's cousin, on saturday with isabelle. it should be quite interesting!
Monday, July 21, 2008
elevators
a lot has happened i suppose in the past week. i was in the hospital because i was dehydrated, had an IV stuck in me and got all better. on friday, the group left for artsakh. it's about an eight hour ride. we stoped in gandzassar on the way there, and some other place, as well as shushi on the way back. i have to say artsakh is very beautiful. the mountains are so so so high, you feel like you can touch the moon. at night if you listen closely you can hear dogs barking from afar, they sound like wolves and it was very nice. the moon shines so brightly, i've never seen that before. it was also ara's birthday, and we celebrated with cake and champagne, and a drinking night and a huge pillow fight at the hotel nairi (we were pretty much the only ones there, and yes that is what it was called!).
we got back yesterday and went to a latino night at a hotel, i wish i knew they had a pool because people were dancing and swimming. i haven't been swimming yet, and i don't have a tan at all except for on my feet, and you can see the line of my flip-flops. ew. i barely went into the tv station last week, i don't really care to at all. i just have to go in to give the der hair his questions.. setta leaves on wednesday. :(
i had a bit of a breakdown yesterday. i think there have been too many ups and downs since i got here, and certain people in the group are so... such despicable people that i just don't see why i'd even talk to them at all at this point.
i'm going to be staying in france for two weeks i think. marie-eve is most likely not coming back to montreal ever. she's starting a life there for herself, and i am so happy for her. so i want to see her since i don't know when i'll see her next.
we got back yesterday and went to a latino night at a hotel, i wish i knew they had a pool because people were dancing and swimming. i haven't been swimming yet, and i don't have a tan at all except for on my feet, and you can see the line of my flip-flops. ew. i barely went into the tv station last week, i don't really care to at all. i just have to go in to give the der hair his questions.. setta leaves on wednesday. :(
i had a bit of a breakdown yesterday. i think there have been too many ups and downs since i got here, and certain people in the group are so... such despicable people that i just don't see why i'd even talk to them at all at this point.
i'm going to be staying in france for two weeks i think. marie-eve is most likely not coming back to montreal ever. she's starting a life there for herself, and i am so happy for her. so i want to see her since i don't know when i'll see her next.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
:(
.
a couple of us have fallen sick over the past few days, to the point of hospitalization. i myself went to the hospital today and they gave me an IV. i don't want you guys (particularly my family) to worry because i've got antibiotics and all that jazz. i was simply dehydrated from... well from going to the bathroom too often, and i had some taboule last night that i did not digest and vomitted nine hours later. but i am fine. i am resting lots, drinking lots of fluids, being taken care of.
other than that, things are good. last night was maria's last night, and we all went out to a resto. i had a lovely time (but got sick!), and maria was so depressed. one good thing is that we don't really have a curfew anymore. we do, but if we come in after that time then whatever might happen to us or our belongings is out of AGBU's responsibility. to be perfectly honest i think that's crap to free yourself of guilt like that, "i told you so," and i mean what responsibility would they have if anything did happen to me? besides paying for meds all they can do is call my parents and say "oh so sorry, your daughter's dead" or something.
one thing i'll be missing because i'm sick, and because we are going to artsakh this week-end, is the golden apricot, an independant film festival, and i'm pretty upset about that. there are some armenian movies i wouldn't see anywhere else but here and i'll be missing them. wah wah waaaaah! another thing, was the roundtable discussion i was supposed to give at the women's ressource center at 4pm today, and the french class i'm supposed to teach tomorrow. i figure that since my ticket will be left open for an extra week then i can give a class that week. because otherwise it's so pointless.
.
a couple of us have fallen sick over the past few days, to the point of hospitalization. i myself went to the hospital today and they gave me an IV. i don't want you guys (particularly my family) to worry because i've got antibiotics and all that jazz. i was simply dehydrated from... well from going to the bathroom too often, and i had some taboule last night that i did not digest and vomitted nine hours later. but i am fine. i am resting lots, drinking lots of fluids, being taken care of.
other than that, things are good. last night was maria's last night, and we all went out to a resto. i had a lovely time (but got sick!), and maria was so depressed. one good thing is that we don't really have a curfew anymore. we do, but if we come in after that time then whatever might happen to us or our belongings is out of AGBU's responsibility. to be perfectly honest i think that's crap to free yourself of guilt like that, "i told you so," and i mean what responsibility would they have if anything did happen to me? besides paying for meds all they can do is call my parents and say "oh so sorry, your daughter's dead" or something.
one thing i'll be missing because i'm sick, and because we are going to artsakh this week-end, is the golden apricot, an independant film festival, and i'm pretty upset about that. there are some armenian movies i wouldn't see anywhere else but here and i'll be missing them. wah wah waaaaah! another thing, was the roundtable discussion i was supposed to give at the women's ressource center at 4pm today, and the french class i'm supposed to teach tomorrow. i figure that since my ticket will be left open for an extra week then i can give a class that week. because otherwise it's so pointless.
.
Monday, July 14, 2008
one rohypnol on the rocks, please!
this week-end we went to ashtarak, oshakan, garni and geghard. we mainly just saw khatchkar's and visited churches. if there's one thing about armenia i love it's the suburbs/country. that makes it worthwhile. random people i meet keep asking me about what i think of yerevan and i feel very "meh" about it so far. but the countryside is breathtaking, and the people are something else. yesterday we got to talk to the organizers about what we think of the program. it took a while... i think we got through to them.
i've been getting a little bit more alone time, clearing my head out. it has done me good.
also, my plans have changed, again (i think - nothing is set in stone, ever). i might be going to georgia for a few days with some birthright people around the time i was supposed to leave yerevan. and i still plan on going to paris for a few days. i have no news from marie-eve for now since she's digging on an island so that, too, is still up in the air.
sinon... for once i'm not thinking too far ahead. i'm not even thinking at all of when i'll be coming back to montreal, i'm just letting things flow and that's kind of new for me. even thinking just a few weeks ahead instead of months is a big improvement. it's almost as though i've forgotten what's at home, what i'll have when i get back (including comms and all that jazz that i am so excited for), and it's not even because i've got so much here. it just feels better. jess, you should join me, fuck the mortgages and babies, we can do without, we should just think as far as the desert and balls of string and cut-offs.
pa, why not go out into the suburbs? van, thanks for taking care of bitch!
i've been getting a little bit more alone time, clearing my head out. it has done me good.
also, my plans have changed, again (i think - nothing is set in stone, ever). i might be going to georgia for a few days with some birthright people around the time i was supposed to leave yerevan. and i still plan on going to paris for a few days. i have no news from marie-eve for now since she's digging on an island so that, too, is still up in the air.
sinon... for once i'm not thinking too far ahead. i'm not even thinking at all of when i'll be coming back to montreal, i'm just letting things flow and that's kind of new for me. even thinking just a few weeks ahead instead of months is a big improvement. it's almost as though i've forgotten what's at home, what i'll have when i get back (including comms and all that jazz that i am so excited for), and it's not even because i've got so much here. it just feels better. jess, you should join me, fuck the mortgages and babies, we can do without, we should just think as far as the desert and balls of string and cut-offs.
pa, why not go out into the suburbs? van, thanks for taking care of bitch!
Thursday, July 10, 2008
hey babe, take a walk on the wild side
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zat eez ze numbah! that is what you have to dial out of canada to reach me. apparently it does not always connect, or it rings and i don't answer, but i don't have any missed calls from you people. so maybe you're lying.
a couple of us made a decision yesterday, sitting at a lovely cafe (i had a run-lemon-anice golden espresso!). we do not feel AGBU has planned enough trips for us, nor that they are interesting enough or organized properly. we are therefore all going to try to take half-days or full days off work (perhaps doing more work on a specific day) and visiting the suburbs of yerevan. initiatiiiiive!!
last night we had YP (young professionals, another program) over for a giant barbecue (or khorovatz as they call it here). lots of dancing ensued, and we all went for a walk afterward. i think looking for silence is a lost cause at this point. i wanted to go for that walk with one other person and all of a sudden everyone was in. which is fun.... but i can't hear myself think, ever.
some things i should mention i guess. there is a dog when we walk to our house who barks like mad, he is enclosed in a very weak fence, and i call him cujo because i think he will kill us one day. he is the most violent beast i have ever encountered. also, pomegranates (or nour) as a symbol are everywhere here. i actually haven't tasted them yet, but there are pomegranate trees as decoration in many places. i would have thought it would be the apricot, but nope. tis the pomegranate! did you know that there are ALWAYS 365 seeds in each pomegranate? very interesting!
the WRC is kicking it. adrina and i are preparing two round-table discussions: one on dating, and one on body image and health. i am also preparing a pamphlet on menstruation for saturday, when they have the sex-ed class, but unfortunately we won't be here. this is definitely a highlight for us both.
zat eez ze numbah! that is what you have to dial out of canada to reach me. apparently it does not always connect, or it rings and i don't answer, but i don't have any missed calls from you people. so maybe you're lying.
a couple of us made a decision yesterday, sitting at a lovely cafe (i had a run-lemon-anice golden espresso!). we do not feel AGBU has planned enough trips for us, nor that they are interesting enough or organized properly. we are therefore all going to try to take half-days or full days off work (perhaps doing more work on a specific day) and visiting the suburbs of yerevan. initiatiiiiive!!
last night we had YP (young professionals, another program) over for a giant barbecue (or khorovatz as they call it here). lots of dancing ensued, and we all went for a walk afterward. i think looking for silence is a lost cause at this point. i wanted to go for that walk with one other person and all of a sudden everyone was in. which is fun.... but i can't hear myself think, ever.
some things i should mention i guess. there is a dog when we walk to our house who barks like mad, he is enclosed in a very weak fence, and i call him cujo because i think he will kill us one day. he is the most violent beast i have ever encountered. also, pomegranates (or nour) as a symbol are everywhere here. i actually haven't tasted them yet, but there are pomegranate trees as decoration in many places. i would have thought it would be the apricot, but nope. tis the pomegranate! did you know that there are ALWAYS 365 seeds in each pomegranate? very interesting!
the WRC is kicking it. adrina and i are preparing two round-table discussions: one on dating, and one on body image and health. i am also preparing a pamphlet on menstruation for saturday, when they have the sex-ed class, but unfortunately we won't be here. this is definitely a highlight for us both.
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
ah ah aaaah
vonts ek!
we had dance class last night. i always end up feeling like shit afterwards. not physically, but mentally. i just look at everyone else doing everything right, and then me being the only one not getting it, being taller than everyone, and it just makes me feel awkward.
basket-ball didn't work out last night, a couple of people couldn't make it. maria invited some of us over but by the time we were done with dinner, we had to be home in two hours' time... we made dinner at home last night. chicken nuggets and french fries. can you imagine how long it took to make though... like two hours. and annie, the first lady of the veeps, was doing everything and controlling everything. i can't stand this girl. she always barks orders at someone, anyone, no matter what the situation, and i always add "PLEASE" at the end of her sentences and she smiles at me but... why does she smile, why doesn't she just say please and thanks. she's a bit of a wench, this one.
then we played some games (most of us). one was writing down everyone's name on a piece of paper, and picking one and imitating the person who you picked. seta, the theater major, imitated me simply by taking her bra off. she said this would make us or break us, that she might make an enemy when she does this, but then she did and i recognized myself immediately. i thought it was hilarious. then we played one where one person asks three questions, everyone answers on one piece of paper, and then that person asking has to guess who answered what. we had a good time. i slept well.
tonight we've got a cooking class, tomorrow we've got ... i don't know what we've got.
we had dance class last night. i always end up feeling like shit afterwards. not physically, but mentally. i just look at everyone else doing everything right, and then me being the only one not getting it, being taller than everyone, and it just makes me feel awkward.
basket-ball didn't work out last night, a couple of people couldn't make it. maria invited some of us over but by the time we were done with dinner, we had to be home in two hours' time... we made dinner at home last night. chicken nuggets and french fries. can you imagine how long it took to make though... like two hours. and annie, the first lady of the veeps, was doing everything and controlling everything. i can't stand this girl. she always barks orders at someone, anyone, no matter what the situation, and i always add "PLEASE" at the end of her sentences and she smiles at me but... why does she smile, why doesn't she just say please and thanks. she's a bit of a wench, this one.
then we played some games (most of us). one was writing down everyone's name on a piece of paper, and picking one and imitating the person who you picked. seta, the theater major, imitated me simply by taking her bra off. she said this would make us or break us, that she might make an enemy when she does this, but then she did and i recognized myself immediately. i thought it was hilarious. then we played one where one person asks three questions, everyone answers on one piece of paper, and then that person asking has to guess who answered what. we had a good time. i slept well.
tonight we've got a cooking class, tomorrow we've got ... i don't know what we've got.
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