Visitors from the East

Katie and Theo are RPCVs from the Philippines with whom I overlapped. In one of my most memorable moments there, we went for a hike towards a waterfall in Sagada on Thanksgiving Day. The rice terraces were flooded and the walls were unstable, I fell and was stuck in the mud, and Theo had to lend a hand so I could get up (I gave him permission to laugh; he was trying so hard not to). While reminiscing, we realized that we really saw quite a bit of each other while I was there. They COSed (close of service) in October and have been traveling the Silk Road ever since. Six months from the day they started, they arrived in Armenia (along with Theo’s brother William, who joined them a few weeks ago). It’s been wonderful spending time with them this past week.

Much of our conversation has consisted of tales of their trip. Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam. Two months in China, first in the not-so-visited southeast and then starting the Silk Road in Xian. In winter. Uighur “Stan” – if the British hadn’t played with the map in yet another part of the world, they might have their own former-Soviet-Union country now. Kazakhstan – the most Russian of the Stans, and the bleakest Peace Corps country they went through. Had to miss Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan – too much snow, passes closed. Uzbekistan – their favorite Central Asian country, the only one with intact Silk Road cities, and the one that sounds most intriguing to me…. Turkmenistan – had to have a driver and guide every day; only way to see the country. Ferry across the Caspian Sea. Azerbaijan – not that interesting and too expensive. Georgia – they loved it and spent three weeks there; I do think I should go for at least a couple of days before I leave the Caucasus. Next will be Turkey and then they will see how much time they have before meeting her parents in Italy and going home from there.

I greeted them on Sunday night and gave them a map and some suggestions, based on what I had heard (since I haven’t been many places myself – yet). They went up north for a few days and returned on Thursday afternoon with more tales. I found myself defending Armenia or at least telling the Armenian side of the story – for example, they had heard that the world’s oldest wine was found in Georgia, but Armenia has a claim to it, and they had heard the (Peace Corps) Azerbaijani side of that conflict….

Thursday evening we ate at an outdoor café by the Opera House (hooray for spring!) and went to hear an organ concert. I’ve looked at that organ while attending orchestra concerts and wondered what it sounds like. Well, now I know; unfortunately the concert itself left something to be desired. We then went back to the hostel where they were staying to talk some more. We did that every night, in fact – it’s the latest I’ve stayed out since being here, for several nights in a row. Hence, pent-up blog-writing demand!

Friday night I had them over to my home stay for Zina’s dolma, one of my favorite meals. We went to see “Spartacus,” the other major ballet composed by Khachaturian (we PCRVs saw “Gayane” when we first got here). It was great! Made up for the organ concert (either that or Verdi’s Requiem, which they saw on Sunday, did).

On Saturday we went to the Vernissage. As I have said, I like going with different people because I see different things. Katie bought a duduk, Armenia’s most famous traditional musical instrument (a kind of flute) and Theo bought a wood-carving. We went to the Cafesjian Museum and up the Cascade (no Ararat view, but they did get one on their way out of town). We discussed other things they had bought and somehow they had – not necessarily intentionally – bought silk in every country so far except Georgia and Armenia. We then went back to the Vernissage – in the drizzle, at the end of the day (they say that is the best time to buy) so they could get a couple of silk scarves. That night, we went to the Genocide Memorial; I’ve already talked about that and Sunday.

I treated them to a farewell breakfast at Artbridge on Monday morning; I had brought Lonely Planet with me so we could read its intro to Nagorno-Karabakh. The Azeris say that the people there are descendants of the Christian nation of Albania (not related to present-day Albania); that is the version Katie and Theo heard. The Armenians say that the people are Armenian and that Stalin handed the territory to Azerbaijan so that everyone would be loyal to the Soviet Union and not to their own territory. PCVs are not allowed to go there, but many do after their service. U.S. Government employees cannot go there. Katie and Theo thought about possibly not being able to go some other time, flipped a coin, gave William a say (but overruled him), and decided to go! The lure of another passport stamp and visa was just too much. They come back into town tomorrow – I’ll probably see them for coffee or maybe a quick dinner, hear more stories, wonder whether I too should go when I COS (or decide that I don’t need to), and then see them off on the 7:00 overnight train to Georgia (I hope they buy some silk there before heading to Turkey…). So, so glad to have them visit while I’m here!