Intriguing Glimpses Into Life in My Armenian Town

When a place is brand new, there are a lot of fascinating sights for the first-time viewer. I don’t have full stories for the following pictures, but the little I can tell you is bound to arouse your interest and be momentarily captivating! If there are any further details you would like to know, please leave a comment below.

: Laura and I were directed by her host mom into her flower garden for this lovely picture.

: The elaborately hand-painted ceilings in my house. Seems to be very common in this part of Armenia, stemming from the Soviet days.

: The first pie I made in country. Cherry, w/ lattice top crust in a spring-form pan — the only thing I could find.

: There is a huge shuka (or market) held every week in my town. People come from all the neighboring villages to shop here.

: Vehicles come for the market, loaded to the brim with produce and other goods.

: They make bricks out of dried cow patties, and use them for fuel in the winter.

: This gold mine employs a lot of people in my area.

: This is the train that carries gold to be processed.

: Little prayer places like this can be found everywhere.

: All of this is being dried in the sun for winter: cherries, apples, matsun (like sour yogurt), grain, and weeds (?)

: We pick and prepare tons of berries to get us through winter. Here are red currents and sour cherries.

: Before winter comes, while the weather is still nice, we air out all the bedding and mattresses for a day.

: This is a really really old run-down church we went to, located in a village of about 100 people. The coolest, most historic, and non-touristy place I’ve ever seen.