Philanthropy not Charity

I have been in Armenia for nearly three months.  During my time here, I have been volunteering at the Civilitas Foundation.  Originally, I didn’t want to write about the organization on my blog, because I was really more interested in sharing the local culture and lifestyle.  I didn’t want my blog to be an advertisement.   But having been here for several weeks now, I am ready to talk about Civilitas, partially because I feel that NGOs, foundations and civil society organizations ARE part of the culture of Armenia, and partly because I am so impressed with the work Civilitas is doing.

Many people think that Civilitas is a political organization.  After all, it was founded by Vartan Oskanian, who was the Armenian Foreign Minister for 10 years.  But this couldn’t be farther from the truth.  Though Civilitas does try to impact policy in Armenia, it has no official political affiliation.  The Civilitas Foundation supports a variety of projects ranging from strengthening civil society in Armenia to providing micro loans to fighting human rights violations.  However, the question that always comes up is: what’s next?  

To explain Civilitas, I would say that their goal is philanthropy and not charity.  It’s something I observed over the past few weeks.  Unfortunately, Armenia receives a lot of outside aid.  Often, people here don’t think about the money well running dry.  The great thing about Civilitas’ projects is that they are sustainable.  They are not offering any handouts.  Rather, they provide the tools for success.

As an example, Civilitas recently completed a project that renovated a number of libraries in rural Armenia.  The goal was to take these cold, bare shell buildings and transform them to community centers.  By changing the windows, adding insulation, adding heat, new bookshelves and books, these libraries are transformed to a place where people can gather, learn and share ideas.  By adding a computer and an Internet connection, you open up an entire world to these folks.  You remove their isolation!

The thing I like the most about these library-related projects is that it’s really up to the locals to use the books and educational tools we give them to better themselves.  And this is exactly what has happened.  In the short time since they were renovated, the libraries themselves have already organized a number of events, including cultural nights dedicated to Armenian writers, educational events for both adults and children, and book drives to help the libraries grow.  It has been really amazing for me to watch the videos of the events held in these community libraries.  They are packed full of people!   I think with modern technology, many people living in developed countries have forgotten how important a community library can be. 

Civilitas has also been soliciting other sponsors to help purchase books and materials.  They have gotten corporate sponsors and also have a project called Angel Tree.  Angel Tree is a book collection effort to keep filling the libraries.  They are also collecting puzzles and educational games for the children’s sections of rural libraries throughout the country. 

Overall, my experience at Civilitas has been incredible.  The staff is made up of both Diasporans and locals, and many have studied at least a year abroad, so the perspectives are different and interesting.  The people are bright and friendly.  There’s a lot of laughter in the office, and we eat lunch together 3 days a week.  I am also impressed by the amount of passion and creativity.  It’s incredibly fast-paced, and in one day, the topics can range from A to Z.  So it’s rarely boring, and the days just fly by.  Best of all, at the end of the day, you feel like you’ve contributed something.  

Civilitas Foundation 

Strengthening Civil Society 

Civilitas America  

Red Apples in Armenia

Over the past few weeks, I’ve heard a lot about marriage traditions and gender roles in Armenia.  A lot of these topics are intimate, so getting people to open up isn’t always the easiest.  Slowly, certain things have come to light. 

The culture here appears to be fairly traditional, and views on marriage and sex are different than in most developed countries.  Many girls here remain virgins until marriage.  In fact, men seemingly prefer virgins.  At first glance, this seems to be a tradition that exists throughout the world.    However, the great importance placed on a woman’s virginity in Armenian society has some consequences that concern women’s rights activists. 

First, it interferes with the woman’s personal and intimate right to choose what she wants to do with her own body.  In a related matter, I have been told that a bride’s future in-laws sometimes review her medical records before the ceremony to ensure her “purity.”  As a result, girls will ask doctors not to make notes on their medical charts for fear that the future in-laws will find something unacceptable and interfere with the marriage.  This is a blatant human rights violation, and laws in developed countries would never allow such an invasion of privacy.  Without proper and enforceable privacy laws, anyone can bribe a doctor and receive another’s medical records.  Imagine the most intimate details of your life available for the entire world to scrutinize.

Second, since virginity is so important, rape victims often do not report sexual abuse.  Rape is still taboo in Armenia; the fact that a woman lost her virginity unwillingly will bring shame to her family.  Furthermore, victims of abuse are often blamed for wearing provocative clothing or accused of “asking for it.”  As such, these women are left without proper treatment and counseling and their abusers continue to evade the law.

I recently learned of an ancient tradition that is still alive in some parts of Armenia: red apples.  Apparently, the day after the wedding, the groom’s relatives bring the bride’s parents red apples after they check the bed sheets and are satisfied that their son’s new bride was, in fact, a virgin.  As such, the red apples symbolize the new bride’s virginity.

Last year, in celebration of International Women’s Day, a local women’s rights group in Yerevan helped stage a protest/march followed by a symbolic burial of red apples in its backyard.  It seems the reaction was negative, and people accused the organization of trying to destroy Armenian traditions with Western values.   Despite what onlookers thought, the organizers were not encouraging women to go out and have sex with multiple partners.  Rather, they were merely trying to reduce the importance placed on a woman’s virginity in the hopes of reducing the negative consequences discussed above.

Is that Person Speaking Armenian?

Often in my posts, I mention the differences between the Eastern and Western Armenian dialects.  Notably, there is a variation in pronunciation.  To an Armenian speaker, these are immediately apparent. 

In my case, upon my arrival in Yerevan, I saw the driver waiting for me holding a sign that read “Rupina Shaltchian” in Western Armenian. Since then, the spelling of my name has led to some interesting and loud “conversations.”  Needless to say, the pronunciation of the Armenian letters is a source of contention. 

The problem stems from the fact that the Armenian alphabet has 38 letters, and while Eastern Armenian (“Arevelahayeren”) pronounces each letter differently, Western Armenian (“Arevmdahayeren”) doesn’t.  As children learning Western Armenian, we are taught that there are differences between letters, that some are “harder” whereas others are “softer.”  But this has no practical significance because those variations are not observed. 

The letters “p” and “b” serve as a perfect illustration.  In both Eastern and Western Armenian, “փ" is “p.”  So far, so good.  Then, there is “բ,” which Eastern Armenian pronounces “b” and Western Armenian as “p,” though we are taught that it’s technically different than “փ” (also “p”).  Finally, “պ” in Eastern Armenian is pronounced somewhere between a “p” and a “b” – a soft “b,” if you will.  The same letter in Western Armenian is a hard “b.”  In other words, in practice, Western Armenian has only 2 sounds despite having 3 letters. 

Consequently, Eastern Armenian writers know how to spell a word as soon as it is spoken.  But Western Armenians often struggle with the “which ‘p’ do I use” question.  Now, if it were just a “p” and “b” issue, it wouldn’t be so bad.  Unfortunately, there are similar issues with other sounds, such as “k” and “g”,  “t” and “d” and “tch” and “dj.”  This is how I ended up as “Rupina Shaltchian.”

Aside from pronunciation, verbs are conjugated differently.  I couldn’t even begin to describe these differences.  But a good example is the addition of the ending “gor” to verbs in Western Armenian.  We are officially taught in school not to do this, because it’s not Armenian.  But that’s just how we speak.  I use the “gor” ending in 99% of my sentences.  The funny thing is that, when the Persian-Armenian girl I work with asked me what “gor” means, and I had nothing to tell her. 

There are also some words that are completely different.  Here is a short list of common offenders.  Interestingly, some of the words are used in both dialects but mean different things.  Those words are marked with **.

English	Eastern Armenian	Western Armenian
Clothes	Shor **in W. Arm, this word means diaper!	Hakoosd
Again	Elee	Noren
How	Vonts	Eenchbes
Egg	Dzoo	Havgit
Car	Mekena	Inknasharj
Telephone	Herakhos	Heratsayn
To Sleep	Knel **in W. Arm, this word means buy	Bargeel
To Make	Sarkel	Shinel ** in E. Arm, this is slang for having sex!  The word often generates giggles when W. Arm. Speakers use it.  Unfortunately, W. Arm makes use of this word a lot.

Then let’s throw in some Russian just for fun.

Russian Word (more or less)	Proper Armenian Word	In English
Khee	Inchoo	Why
Vabshe	Entanrabes	Usually, often
Privet	Parev (or Barev in E. Arm)	Hello
Spasiba	Shenorhagalem	Thank you
Paga	Tsedesutyun	Goodbye

How about some Turkish?  By far the most commonly used Turkish word is “aziz.”  It means “dear.”  The funny thing is that they call people “aziz jan.”  “Jan” in Armenian also means dear.  So when you hear “aziz jan,” it means “dear dear.” 

Don’t leave out the French!  “Merci” is commonly used to say thank you.  “Douche” is used for shower (not the bathing, but the actual location where one bathes).  And let’s not forget the word for Yerevan’s big weekend market, vernissage, which in French means exhibition (usually for art). 

Just to complicate things further, let’s add a few more things to the mix.  Many Spyurkahays (Armenians whose origins are from outside Armenia) come from Arab-speaking countries and also mix Arabic.  Most obviously, we end up with words like “tayeeb” (okay) and “yani” (it means).  Speaking of Spyurkahays, there are a lot of Barsgahays (Persian-Armenians) in Yerevan.  I generally like them a lot.  It’s always interesting to listen to them because they sing-song their words.  But when they speak to each other in “Armenian,” it’s like I am learning to speak again! 

In reality, I think half the time, we don’t even know what language we are speaking!  Words we think are Armenian are actually Turkish, Arabic or Russian.  On my first trip to Armenia, I wanted to order potatoes.  I used the word “kednakhentsor,” and the waiter had no idea what I was saying!  He told me they had “kartoshka.”  I asked him to please speak to me in Armenian.  He responded that he was speaking Armenian!  But “kartofil” or “kartoshka” is Russian for potato.  This happens incessantly.  So I have invested in a small Armenian-English dictionary, which I now use to just look up the words myself!

The Language Barrier in Action

I am usually very wary of new hairdressers.   But I’ve been in Armenia for several weeks now, and I was getting desperate for a color and a cut.  My friend EF was a hairdresser in Germany at one time.  She always tells me not to worry because hair grows back. With her voice in my head, I took the risk. 

I have a friend whose hair always looks fabulous, so I decided to try her girl.  The hairdresser’s name was Anna, and she was very nice.  But communication was sort of a problem.  I asked her for the same haircut, but trimmed.  She took her time when she was cutting my hair, and I appreciated her attention to detail.  But when I saw how she was going to cut the bangs, I tried to explain how my hairdresser does it in the US.  She responded in Russian (I think) and continued cutting.  I am sure she thought she was speaking in Armenian.  I decided to let it be.

What did I walk out with?  A sort of shag-looking cut with bangs.   I think the cut is cute.  I am just not so sure about the bangs.  As the day is progressing, the bangs are starting to more naturally fall into place.  But it’s different than anything I’ve had in a long time.  Maybe it will grow on me.  Thankfully, it only cost 7,000 AMD (which is about $19.40) for cutting, coloring, and straightening.  I really can’t complain.

I call it the Language Barrier Haircut.  What do you think?

Ashtarak: Part 2

When we returned to my friend’s childhood home, there was a mountain of sweets waiting for us.  First, there were the dry fruits: apricots, cherries, figs, etc.  My friend made sure I tried every single one of them.  Each one was better than the last.  So sweet and so moist! I simply cannot believe the quality of the dried fruits I have had in Armenia.  I love dried fruits, but they don’t always like me, so I have to be careful!  I wish I could eat them all day!

Then, there was this thing called soujoukh.  I am not sure if this is the right way to spell or pronounce this food, but just to avoid confusion, I mean the sweet kind and not the meat kind.  Soujoukh is made by stringing walnuts and then dipping it in grape juice.  When the juice hardens, it creates this sweet, creamy coating.   I’ve had soujoukh before, and I was never a fan, because I always found it too chewy.  But this one melted in my mouth.  It is hands down the best I have ever had.  My friend’s family in Ashtarak was kind enough to send a string home with me. What a treat!  As an aside, when I returned to Yerevan and offered some to a friend, I didn’t tell him it was “special.”  When he tasted it, he paused, said “mmmm” and asked me where I bought it.   It’s that good!

Of course, no sweet table is complete without baked goods.  There was the usual stuff, like gata (which I confirmed is also called nazoog) and a delicious cake with layers of condensed milk.  These were all perfect.  But the real standout of the bunch was the baklava.  The baklava was made with honey instead of syrup.  But the flavor of the honey was so smooth and sweet.  It complemented the walnut perfectly.  So simple, yet so delicious.  It was one of those desserts that you eat slowly to savor every last bite. 

Later in the afternoon, we left my friend’s mom’s house and went to her sister’s home that is also in Ashtarak.  I hadn’t realized we were going to be going to 2 homes!  It turns out it was her nephew’s birthday.  My friend’s sister also lives in a large home.  It’s definitely different than Yerevan where it seems most people live in apartments. 

When we arrived, there were introductions made and wishes expressed for 2011.  It was a very warm family atmosphere.  Again, I felt right at home.  When I looked over, I saw the dinner table was set. I was afraid to ask if we were going to eat again.  I secretly hoped that perhaps the table was set for some occasion other than supper, but it wasn’t.  How was I going to eat again?

The table was covered in food, and this was not, by any means, a small table.  There was meat, fish, chicken, potatoes, pickles, coldcuts, cheeses, etc.  They offered me something called tooti oghi (some kind of extremely powerful flavored vodka).  That stuff is so strong, that you feel every drop going down your throat!  I can’t even begin to imagine the potential hangover from drinking too much of this stuff!  There was also sweet homemade wine. 

There was one delicious grain mix called something like “aghast” that they told me is used to celebrate Trndez.  This holiday is celebrated on February 14^th, 40 days after Jesus’ birth.  It has Pagan origins and was originally related to fire worship.  Today’s celebrations still center around the fire.  The priest blesses the fire, and people take the wood home.  It appears to be the Armenian equivalent of Valentine’s Day as Trndez is a celebration of love and often involves the active participation of those who are engaged to be married.  There is a website that provides more details about this holiday.  I am pasting the link below.  Please take a look!

I couldn’t eat much, because I was already full.  But I did eat some really spicy peppers!  I mentioned that I was having trouble finding spicy peppers in Armenia, so our hostess brought out the tiniest red peppers.  They were so strong that I felt the burn just by touching the tip of my tongue!  I had missed that feeling.

After supper came a visit to the cellar.  Like the family in the village near Armavir where we spent some time this summer, this family keeps a cellar full of preserved foods.  There was the homemade wine, basterma (a spicy cold cut), soujoukhs (sweet kind), jars of preserved veggies, and of course, lavash (Armenian flat bread).  They kept the lavash in a special wooden cupboard to preserve the bread.  The bread was very hard.  I think they might wet it to moisten it and bring it back to life, so to speak. 

The best part of this evening was the atmosphere.  People from the community came and went.  And as they arrived, we all made room for them at the table.  In true Armenian style, there were endless toasts to everything good – the New Year, the elder man at the table, all Armenians around the world, etc.  This is one of the joys of the Armenian table.  There is always something to toast to.  In my opinion, the best ones are the ones that go so long that someone has to remind the speaker that everyone wants to drink!  This inevitably leads to giggles and a brief plea from the speaker to allow him or her to finish the thought. 

To my surprise, I followed the conversation at the table with ease despite having forgotten my dictionary.  Either my Eastern Armenian is improving or they were speaking slowly and clearly.   

My hosts in Ashtarak all made me feel so welcome.  I never for a moment felt like an outsider.  I want to extend my warmest thanks to all of those who welcomed me into their homes.  Thank you for the fantastic food, but most of all, thank you for sharing your day with me.  Finally, a special thanks to KS for allowing me a chance to peek into her world.  It was truly memorable.  I will treasure the memories for ever. 

 

About the Trndez Holiday

Soujoukh hanging from the ceiling to dry.

Homemade wine

Basterma

Lavash bread

Ashtarak: Part 1

When I first came to Armenia, one of my new colleagues told me she was from a town called Ashtarak, right outside of Yerevan.  She invited me to visit her family’s home.  An opportunity to meet with a local family?  Wonderful!  I am in! 

We finally made it to Ashtarak yesterday.  It was probably one of the coldest days of the winter so far.  The sign said -9C.  I know the Canadians will see that temperature and laugh, but that’s pretty cold for this ex-Montrealer!  Anyway, I took the #88 marshrutka to my friend’s side of town.  From there, we took a taxi to the neighboring town of Ashtarak.

I can’t describe Ashtarak as either a city or a village.  It’s really a quaint and quiet town that is home to about 20,000 people.  It is the administrative center of Aragatsotn Marz (Aragatsotn Province) and is located at about 15-20 km from Yerevan, right off the highway to everywhere.  It seems the road passing through the town takes you to Lori Marz (Lori Province in northern Armenia), through Tiblisi, and even all the way up to Moscow.  

Ashtarak is built around a magnificent gorge.  Part of the town’s history can be told through its churches.  Once upon a time, there were three sisters who were all in love with the same man – Prince Sargis.  When they found out they had feelings for the same man, the two oldest sisters committed suicide by jumping into the gorge in order to give their youngest sibling a chance at love.  But when the younger sister found out why her older sisters had taken their lives, she killed herself as well.  Each sister wore a different colored dress: red, white and apricot.  Three churches were built in honor of the sisters, each one named after the different color of dress: Garmeravor (reddish), Spitakavor (whitish) and Tziranavor (apricot-colored).  Today, only the Garmeravor church survives.  The white and apricot are either in ruins or disrepair.

As for Prince Sargis, he became a hermit after hearing about the suicides.  There is now a church named Sourp Sargis (Saint Sargis).  Sourp Sargis is said to be the one lovers pray to.  As such, many couples wishing to get married, but whose families oppose the union, often come and pray at Sourp Sargis Church. 

When we arrived, I saw a couple of boys walking up the side of the road with their sleds.  It was truly a picturesque street.  We pulled up in front of my friend’s childhood home, a large stone building, where her mother and aunt still reside. We went through a gate and walked into the ground floor.  It reminded me a lot of the home I had visited in a village near Armavir on my last trip.  We climbed up the stairs into the living room.  I couldn’t help but notice how cold it was.  In fact, steam was coming out of my mouth when I spoke.  There was no heat.

I met my friend’s mom, and we exchanged wishes for the New Year.  She then took us into another room, which had a gas fireplace and was much warmer.  Nevertheless, they kindly gave me a wool vest to help keep me warm.  It was nice.

The table was set, and it was time to eat (of course).  They told me they were preparing keufte (ground beef).  The smell was so good.  I was getting hungry!  When she brought out the keufte, I was intrigued.  It was steaming, and it looked like it had been boiled.  Sure enough, that’s how it had been cooked. 

I followed their lead and spread butter on the meat and sprinkled a little black pepper.  It was delicious and very unique!  It seems there are different varieties of boiled keufte across the various provinces.  The beef for this one is mixed with egg and vodka, among other things.  This was Asktarak-style keufte.  They told me the meat was beaten, I suppose to improve the quality and tenderness. 

She also brought out some turkey and blinchigs.  Both were also delicious.  But the keufte was something really different for me.  As a bonus, the lavash (Armenian flat bread) was the best I have ever had.  It was homemade.  I had had homemade lavash before.  But this one tasted outstanding.  It was so soft and had such flavor!

My friend gave me tour of the home.  It was an older home that needed repair.  But walking through it, I could see its beauty.  I could just visualize parties with children playing and adults eating, drinking and laughing.  There was a magnificent veranda that reminded me a bit of Charleston homes since it seemed to run alongside the entire 2^nd floor.  Of course, it is probably more user-friendly when the weather is warmer. 

On the main floor, there was a formal living room and dining room, the kitchen, the room where we were sitting, and 2 other bedrooms.  One of the bedrooms had this wonderful small wood-burning stove.  Later in the day, we lit a fire and sat around its intense heat.  It was so hot and cozy. 

I was told there was a top floor as well, but that it was empty.  The downstairs appeared empty as well, except for the bathroom.  It was very cold downstairs, and when I had to use the facilities, my friend told me to wait until she got some water.  At first, I thought maybe it was to wash my hands.  But I then realized it was to flush.  I’ve had to do this before in Armenia! 

To wash our hands, we warmed up some water and poured it over our hands in the sink.  It reminded me of my aunt in Split, Croatia who didn’t have hot water in the kitchen, so she boiled water every day to do the dishes.  In fact, I thought a lot about our family in Croatia while I was in Ashtarak.  My friend’s dad had apparently built the house himself years earlier.  I couldn’t help but remember my grandmother’s brother in Šolta, who also built his home with his bare hands.  When I visited in 2004, the home in Croatia still had a dirt floor for a living room, because it wasn’t completed!  Both homes certainly had a lot of character.  I can’t imagine the stories they would tell if they could speak. 

After lunch, my friend and I went to visit the churches (it’s what you do when you come to Armenia) and the old bridge.  The first Church was Sourp Sargis.  This was the lovers’ church.  It was a tiny little church overlooking the magnificent gorge.  The view was incredible, especially since the air was filled with a slight fog from the cold.  From there, we could see the Garmeravor, Spitakavor and Tziranavor churches.  We could also see the old bridge going across the river below. 

Next, we drove down a narrow mountain road and over the old bridge itself since it is still in use.  It’s a neat design because the arches are three different sizes.  I am so used to seeing equal sized arches on this type of bridge.   Next to the bridge is the water mill they used to crush wheat. 

The view here was incredible.  If you stand next to the bridge and look all the way up, you see Sourp Sargis church.  The bridge is essentially built over the river at the bottom of the gorge.  The river was rolling healthily and steadily and much of the grass on the sides had turned into icicles.  The best part was that it was relatively garbage-free!  I was so impressed.  After seeing all that garbage in Aghveran on my last trip, I was so happy to find a spot of such natural beauty. 

Our next stop was Garmeravor (reddish) Church, which I believe was built somewhere in the 5-7^th centuries.  This church was named for the sister who wore the red dress on the day of her death.  The thing that makes this church so different is that it had a red barrel tile dome.  I hadn’t seen any red barrel tiles in Armenia.  So it had a little European flair.  Like Sourp Sargis, this church was very small.  Unfortunately, it was closed, so we couldn’t go inside.

Our next stop was Sourp Marianeh church.  This was a much “younger” church than Garmeravor.  Much of the building was in disrepair and closed off.  I noticed that it was longer than most Armenian churches.  It would have been interesting to see the entire thing.

As for Tziranavor and Spitakavor churches, we didn’t see those because they are apparently in ruins.  Instead, we returned to my friend’s mother’s home for dessert.  

To be continued...

Streets of Ashtarak - boys with sleds in the background

Streets of Ashtarak

Streets of Ashtarak - chickens on the left

View of the misty gorge from Sourp Sargis Church

Remnants of a fortress of some sort hidden in the hillside

The old bridge with the 3 arches

The gorge behind me

At the bottom of the gorge - near the bridge

The water mill

Water Mill

Water Mill

River

The bridge from down below

View of Sourp Sargis from below

Garmeravor Church with the red barrel tile dome

New Year's Day with the Syrian-Armenians

Not long ago, one of my aunts suggested I get in touch with a former Montrealer, now living in Armenia, who happens to be the brother of a family friend.  He called me on the 31^st and invited me to join him on New Year’s Day for what he called “madzoonov keufte” (ground beef with yogurt).  I had no concrete plans, and the idea of meeting more people sounded good.  So I agreed.  Luckily, I had stocked up on non-perishables and alcohol, so I had something to bring with me!

On the morning of the 1st, the snow turned to rain.  It was pretty awful weather, but at least it wasn’t too cold.  The host family didn’t live far from me, so I walked.  The streets of Yerevan were deserted but for a few people hurrying to their destinations.  However, I noticed that all of the major 24-hour grocery chains were open!  I couldn’t believe it.  I peeked in and saw that the shelves were full of food!  I am not sure why people had warned me to stock up beforehand.  Perhaps the empty shelves were a reality of a few years ago.  But it seems that in 2011, there is no shortage of food in supermarkets.  Then again, it’s only the 1st of the year.  Maybe by the 10th, it will be a different story. 

When I walked into the home of my host family, a familiar scene greeted me.  Grandma, dressed in her Sunday best, was sitting on the couch with the kids watching TV.  Adults were chatting and laughing. And the smell coming from the kitchen prevented me from focusing on anyone’s name during introductions! 

The host family was Syrian-Armenian and had been living in Armenia for about 8 or 9 years.  They all agreed that life in Armenia was great.  They own a shop that sells Middle Eastern foods and spices.  They promised me they had crushed red pepper that was actually spicy!  I will have to make my way over there when they re-open on the 7th. 

Our host wife had prepared 3 different kinds of madzoon aboor (yogurt soup).  She told me that madzoon aboor is the perfect food the day after a big meal, because the yogurt helps with digestion.  So chances are, if you overate the day before, you won't feel sick after eating again!  Maybe that's why the Yerevantsi family had made madzoon aboor.  It wasn't served on New Year's Eve.  Perhaps they were going to be serving it on New Year's day.  The one I had had at the Yerevantsi family’s home had no meat.  But the soups on New Year's Day were full of keufte (ground beef) prepared in different ways.  The broth is the same for all of them.  In fact, it’s the same broth as the soup from Yerevantsi family.  It’s yogurt-based.

The first soup had simple, bite-sized keufte balls.  The second soup had some kind of oval-shaped keufte that I think had a bulghur (a type of wheat) crust.  I believe this type of keufe it’s called kibbeh.  It is usually served deep fried, and it is so delicious. 

Finally, the third soup was the masterpiece (in my opinion), because it was the yughov keufte (ground beef with oil/fat).  Essentially, a meatball is shaped around a small piece of solid fat.  When the meatball is cooked, the fat liquefies.  That liquid then explodes in your mouth when you bite into the meatball.  I had previously had this with butter.  But my hosts told me that this was a special solid fat that comes from the belly of the cow.  It had a flavor all its own, and it was heavenly. 

I spent a few hours with them eating and laughing. It was very comforting to be in an environment where people were speaking the Western Armenian dialect.  I was so tired from the long night before and feeling down because I was so far from my family.  And whether I like it or not, Eastern Armenian is still sometimes difficult for me to understand.  Here, there was no need for me to make any effort to follow the conversation, so it was nice to be able to relax. 

Also, the family reminded me of my own.  There were inside jokes that I didn’t understand, but that was still great.  The sense of humor, the topics of conversation, the relationships were familiar.  Unlike the celebrations on the 31st, this was all very informal.  It was just a group of friends together after a long night, eating, laughing, and recovering.  My family often gathers in such an informal way the day following a formal event.  So it was just what I needed in my homesick state.   

Thanks again to my wonderful hosts for a perfect afternoon.

Shenorhavor Nor Dari Yev Sourp Dzenount – Happy New Year and Merry Christmas

New Years and Christmas in Armenia are a huge deal.  Armenians celebrate Christmas on January 5^th and 6^th.   So the entire country shuts down on December 31^st for about 10 days.   

These celebrations are serious business.  I keep hearing how so many people get into debt by buying and cooking food for New Year celebrations.  I am not sure if there is any kind of underlying superstition attached to this tradition.  Perhaps they think that if they have enough food on the family table to feed the entire country, they will have prosperity all year.  But is it really necessary to go into debt for these celebrations?  

These 10 days are official holidays. I was told many things about this holiday season.  For example, I was told that Armenians spend the first week of the New Year going from home to home, visiting family and friends, and eating and drinking and eating and drinking.   I was also told that most stores, museums, offices, etc are closed.  I heard that 24-hour grocery stores remain open.  However, since deliveries stop, the stores’ shelves would be empty.  This remains to be seen.

In preparation for the holidays, I stocked up on non-perishables and alcohol just to be safe.  This way, if someone knocks on the door, I am not caught with my pants down.  I also have something to bring with me in case of a last-minute invitiation. 

Some people told me they don’t like this time of year because everything is done in excess.  But I think it will be interesting.   I think it’s great that people have 10 days to share with their loved ones.   I just hope it doesn’t turn out to be one of those things where it’s not really about spending time with loved ones but about trying to outdo each other with the size of the table.  I suppose it depends on the person and the family. 

New Years Eve

I was fortunate enough to spend New Year’s Eve with a Yerevantsi (from Yerevan) family.   They were incredible hosts.  I have spent a good amount of time with this family before.  They now tell me that I am their daughter/granddaughter.  With that said, they said I should come and help with the preparations.  Of course, I wasn’t going to pass up the chance to see how things work behind the scenes. 

I arrived at my host family’s home around 3 pm on NYE.  The men were either at work our out running errands.  The women – the host wife, host daughter-in-law, and host sister-in-law – were in the kitchen.  It was organized chaos.  There was a lot of work to be done; the guests were arriving at 10pm.  I helped them peel, chop, cut, decorate, etc.   Later, the men came home and put up decorations, changed light bulbs, took out trash, and fixed things. 

In Armenia, living arrangements are very different than what we are accustomed to in the United States.  Children live with their parents until they are married.  And newlyweds often live with the husband’s family.  For example, today’s host family has two sons.  When the oldest son married, he and his wife lived with the host family.  But apparently, the youngest son traditionally has the “right” to live with the parents.  So when the youngest son married, the older son and his family had to move out so the younger son and his wife could stay there.  The younger son, his wife, and their 2-year old daughter now live in the home. 

The host daughter-in-law is a very nice, quiet, young girl.  She bathed, fed and put her 2-year-old daughter to bed.  She then joined us in the kitchen.  She didn’t stop.  She did everything her mother-in-law asked.  When we had a moment alone, I started speaking to her.  I knew her parents weren’t on the guest list, and I thought it was a bit odd, because the apartment was big enough to accommodate more people.  I asked her if her parents are from Yerevan, and she said yes.  I asked her if they were coming.  She said “no, this is what happens when you marry.  You go with your husband’s family.  We will see my parents, but not tonight.”

I couldn’t tell if she was upset that she wasn’t with her own family.  But she seemed to accept that this is how things work.  When I told her that my family just invites the in-laws over for New Years, and that there are often 40 or 50 people for the party, she seemed shocked.   

Oh… the food!  Part 1: Daytime

I think it goes without saying that there was a lot of good food on the 31^st.   The host wife and host daughter-in-law had prepared all the food.  Everything was home-made.  They had been preparing for a long time.  For example, they were pickling the vegetables a few weeks earlier during my first visit. 

The minute I got there, they fed me a giant bowl of harissa.  Harissa, also called keshkeg, tastes amazing but unfortunately looks like goo (I am being nice).  In essence, it is made up of chicken and wheat.  But the chicken is cooked so long that it practically melts and makes the meal look like a “liquidy” oatmeal.  But you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.  Harissa is delicious, and this was no exception.  Though I will give credit where credit is due, and I have to say that my mom’s is better. 

As the day went by, we tasted everything we were preparing or arranging, including the different types of desserts.  We also ate bread and cheese, which is always a favorite.  Later in the afternoon, we all ate madzoon aboor (also called spas or tan aboor).  Madzoon aboor translates to “yogurt soup.”  It’s made with chicken broth and warmed up yogurt, butter, dried mint and wheat.  This madzoon aboor tasted like my grandmother’s. Unfortunately, Medz Mama took the recipe with her to the other side.  So I got the recipe from the host wife:

Equal parts yogurt and chicken broth

Sour cream

1 onion (quartered)

1 tsp flour

1 egg (tempered)

Butter

Wheat (boiled separately at first)

Mint

As we were working in the afternoon, the host wife brought an Armenian coffee cup with a clear liquid with stuff floating in it to the table where I was sitting.  She said “this is for you” like she was giving me a gift.  When she realized I was confused, she told me that it’s vodka with garlic chopped into it.  Apparently, if you sit near it, you won’t catch a cold.  I don’t know if I was going to be catching a cold that day, but it has been 2 days, and I am not sick.  So I think it worked J

The Celebration

It started to snow a bit before midnight, so we ended up having the white New Year I wanted!  I was so excited.  It was so beautiful watching to snow fall with the street lights lighting up the flakes.  The two dinner tables were set and ready to go.  The host family’s grandkids had put up the Christmas tree the day before.  The scene was perfect, with one exception.  The guests were late. 

This is the Armenian way, of course.  Instead of arriving at 10pm, they arrived at 11.50.  I can’t make this up.  We said our hellos as Karekin II (the Catholicos of the Armenian Church) and Serzh Sargsyan (the President of the Republic of Armenia) each wished everyone a happy 2011 on TV.  This was followed by a funny cartoon clock that struck 12.  Then, there was a toast by the host husband, followed by hugs and kisses, vodka drinking, Armenian dancing, and Skypeing with overseas relatives.  It was good. 

Interestingly, at midnight in Armenia, the phone lines “explode.”  So making a call for the first 2 to 3 hours of the New Year is practically impossible. So if you are ever in Armenia for New Year’s, and you need to make plans, you should make them beforehand.

Time to eat.  It’s after 1am.  We are all hungry.

Oh… the food!  Part 2: Nighttime

When we sat for dinner, the food was brought out almost all at the same time.  There was no first or second course.  There was not an inch to spare on the table.  There were a few varieties of salads, including a chicken salad, a beet salad, and an eggplant salad (made by yours truly).  There were also olives and the other usual suspects like basterma, cheese, etc. 

The table had a variety of meats, mostly from the pork and cow families.  There was ham and some kind of other meat product that comes from the pig.  I was told that it’s pure fat and apparently very healthy.  It seems this part of the pig saves people in Siberia from starving or freezing to death.  I’ll keep that in mind on my next trip to Siberia. 

There was also some kind of meatball with onions.  It reminded me of dolma stuffing.  For those who don’t know, “dolma” is any kind of stuffed food (like vine leaves or veggies).  Usually, you can have cold dolma (made with rice, onions, and olive oil) or hot dolma (made with meat and onions).  This dish reminded me of the stuffing of warm dolma.

The wife had also made blinchigs from scratch.  These blinchigs were phenomenal!  They were so good, that I really wished she had sent some home with me.  Blinghigs are made of a thin, crepe-like dough stuffed with spiced ground beef.  She had baked them in the oven, and when they were almost ready, their smell filled the entire house.  Let’s just say it took a lot of self-control on my part when we were waiting for the family who was running late.  

Supper was roast pork. This was brought out separately.  It was delicious, tender and seasoned to perfection.  I am not a big meat eater, so I was kind of disappointed there wasn’t a side dish like a potato or rice or something.  A few weeks ago, when I was discussing the menu with the host wife, and I mentioned that I make an incredible mashed potato, she looked appalled.  She was almost insulted, and I felt horrible.  I tried to explain that in the US, mashed potatoes are common during the holidays.  But in Armenia, potatoes are inexpensive, and I guess people eat them a lot.  So to have such an ordinary dish on such a special day was not acceptable.  I still wish I would have made it.  It would have been good with the meat. 

On the tables around the house were dishes full of walnuts, almonds, peanuts, cashews, raisins, dried plums, dried apricots, dried figs, and other types of dried fruits I didn’t know.  This really reminded my of the holidays because the Armenians I know always have a table with nuts, dried fruits, and candies for Christmas.  The quality of the dried fruit was out of this world.  In fact, if I could relive the whole night over again, I would just eat the blinchigs and the dried fruits.  They were my two favourite things.

For dessert, they had made 4 different kinds of sweets.  Anyone who knows me knows that, despite loving chocolate, I generally prefer non-chocolate desserts.  But there was this one amazing chocolate cake, and it was really something.  It wasn’t very chocolaty, and it had layers.  It was so simple, yet so flavorful.  There was also a coffee cake that looked better than it tasted and a bakhlava that tasted better than it looked. 

Last, but not least, there was one heavenly desert.  HOLY *#@%^&(...  it was amazing.  I really think I said the F-word out loud when I tasted it.  It was that good.  Unfortunately, I cannot recall the name.  When they first took it out of the fridge to cut it up, it looked beautiful and light.  It was layers of thin dough covered in powdered sugar.  The wife told me that the recipe for the dough had been in her family for generations and had been passed down from woman to woman.  It tasted a lot like a desert in Armenia they call gata (which, in my opinion, also tastes like nazoog).  I honestly don’t know how to describe this flavor to non-Armenians.  This desert was basically thin layers of dough, and within the lawyers of dough, was thin layers of this thick, hard, sweet cream.  The inside cream is so thick, it was like a layer of dough. In fact, you could crumble the thick cream with your fork.  This cream is what gave the cake it’s gata-like flavor.  It was perfect: light and not too sweet. 

Aside from the deserts, there were chocolate covered figs, plums, and apricots from Grand Candy, Armenia’s famous candy shop.  There were also bowls of other candies from Grand Candy.  Of course, there was fresh fruit including – oranges, grapefruits, kiwis, apples, bananas, pomegranates, and some odd apple-looking fruit that tastes deliciously sweet when you first bite into it, but then gives you cotton-mouth.  No one ate fruit. 

Missing from the meal was anoosh aboor (“sweet soup”).  Anoosh aboor is a traditional Armenian New Year dessert made with sugar, wheat, dried fruits, nuts, and cinnamon.  I love anoosh aboor and was curious to see how the Yerevantsi version compared with my mom’s.  But the host wife confessed to me that she didn’t have a good recipe, so she preferred not to make it.  So I will send her my mom’s!  I think she will be happy.

At the end of the night, the days of hard work turned into a delicious meal that everyone enjoyed.  But I can’t help but wonder if it was really all worth it.  My host wife and host daughter-in-law slaved for days over a meal that lasted about 2 hours.  I certainly enjoyed it.  But part of me felt bad for them.  These women are not housewives, they both work!  I suppose it gave them a sense of pride to put together this special meal on this special day for the special people that had gathered.  And they should be proud.  It was outstanding. 

Tserkernit talar host wife and host daughter-in-law!  Thank you for allowing me to share this special day with your family and for treating me as one of your own. 

I wish you all a happy, healthy, prosperous 2011. 

This is my contribution to the New Year meal.  It's fried eggplant, covered in yogurt seasoned with garlic, and crushed walnuts.  The crushed walnuts are a new addition to the recipe.  I picked it up in Armenia. 

Here is a shot of one of the tables as we are bringing the food out.

This is the hallway table with the nuts and dried fruit.  There is also a three-layer dish with sweets on it.  Finally, the separate plate with the golden, flaky stuff with the powdered sugar is my favorite dessert.

Here is a close-up of some of the food.  On the right, the brown things are the blinchigs from heaven.  To the left, the whitish strips are the Siberian pork fat things.  To the left of that is the salad with beets (it was beautifully decorated).   Toward the center is my eggplant dish.

This is the other table.

White New Year as seen from my kitchen window.