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A Hiking We'll Go...


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#1 man

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Posted 11 June 2013 - 03:50 PM

It has been a week that some 12 bravehearts began their Border2Border hike for this year of 2013 in Armenia. A hike that gets completed in 20 days and during the hike they stop in some villages and towns to teach Armenian kids about values in health and good excersice with some games to lift up the spirits. Their adventures during 20 days, with photos of Armenian landscapes, can be followed at the blog:

http://walkacrossarm....wordpress.com/

One of the south team have left the following postcard note in the blog:

"They tell me we’ve gotten through the roughest patch of our journey—climbing up from what could have been the Chihuahua Desert, dropping down into what could have been the Tennessee/Georgia border, nestling into the Soviet-era architecture of what could have been any town from that day. I’m not thinking about that too much. I’m thinking more about where in the world we’ll be next."

While one of the south team left the following:

“You know you’re in Armenia when…”
  • … you see two turkeys mating in front of the school yard.
  • … the local store lady sits you down, brings you free coffee, and talks to you as if you’re the guest she’s been waiting for.
  • … one minute it’s hot and you’re shedding all your clothes and the next minute it’s pouring down rain and your shoes and pack are getting completely soaked.
  • … you come to an Armenian household and they have prepared a feast for you when you’ve never even met them before and while you’re eating, they have you say hello to their relatives in Russia via Skype. Their hospitality is TREMENDOUS, and the thought they put into every detail is so generous.
She was not kidding, there is posted a photo of 2 turkeyes mating..
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#2 man

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Posted 13 June 2013 - 09:26 PM

Correction: "while one of the NORTH team left the following". In place of "south" it should have been "north".

When a car honks at you in Armenia SMILE :thumbsup: !

You know you're in Armenia when "...cars are constantly honking at you when you’re walking on the side of the road just so they can get acknowledged that you notice them. All they want is a friendly hello and a wave of the hand! Honking in Armenia is used in such a different way than in America. What seems to be a negative thing in America is considered to be positive and almost “brotherly” here in Armenia.

#3 man

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Posted 18 June 2013 - 09:17 PM

The hike of the North Team goes on:

"On Day 7 we started off teaching at Margahovit’s Cultural Center where we met a big groups of enthusiastic, ready-to-learn children with great English language skills. Later we had the pleasure of watching two 9-year-old boys present a full conversation to us in English with each other, and we were in awe at how comfortable they were in their foreign language....They have great kids and employees at the cultural center, some warm welcoming families that have hosted Americans, recycling bins all throughout the village, and gorgeous views of mountains all around."

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Village of Margahovit (the red dot in the middle of map) is located between Vanadzor and Dilijan, next after comes the village of Russians.

"Being on this trip has given me the opportunity to see Armenia on a whole different level and has made me realize that I HAVE TO BACKPACK MORE OFTEN! As a kid I never enjoyed camping or hiking and never really understood the beauty of nature, but now I can’t wait to go back home to my family and friends and explore all kinds of new places with them (and slightly show-off what I’ve learned on this trip as well, hehe)!" Andrea Lu

“You know you’re in Armenia when…"
-a nice man sees you on the side of the road, turns around, and hands you a dozen apricots while saying “Welcome to Armenia. Here are some Armenian apricots.” We were all so overwhelmed with joy we couldn’t stop laughing and smiling even after he left!

It looks now is apricot season in Armenia! There are some good photos of nature posted from this section of the trip in the same blog, clicks on a photo make it go larger:
http://walkacrossarm...d-8-north-team/
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P.S. It looks Armenia is changing for the better with each passing year: recycling bins in Margahovit? Who would believe it!
First time I went to Vanadzor the Marshrutni left me near the state Soviet era bus station; I needed to urinate so I found the urinary at the station, it was smelling so bad I had to turn my head toward the door to get some fresh air or else I would have fainted from the bad smell. Getting out I was confronted by a woman with angry face (she did know I was from spurk or else she would have smiled) asking me for 5 pennies as a fee for using the Uniroyal. Instead I gave her some Armenian literature I had with me to educate her. I would gladly had given the poor women a $5 note if she just was good-mannered but her behavior repelled me.
I hope by now everything have changed and they have a clean and nice smelling uniroyal in Vanadzor.

#4 man

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Posted 18 June 2013 - 09:33 PM

made a mistake again: "she did know I was from spur" should be "she did NOT know I was from spurk" She did not realize I was from spurk as they treat those from spurk nicely in Armenia, so be sure to tell them you are from spurk when traveling in Armenia.

#5 man

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Posted 19 June 2013 - 09:50 AM

The South Team goes thru the roughest part of their trail and greatest welcome.
http://walkacrossarm...-end-of-week-1/


"At the school in Syunik village outside of Kapan, the Southern B2B team was greeted by a welcome ceremony. 35 Students, several staff members, and a girl dressed like an Armenian princess welcomed us with ritual and song. The little Armenian princess came forward as we approached and offered us a circular loaf of pretzel bread with dipping salt in the middle. Tradition required us each to break off a small piece of this bread and dip it into the salt to commemorate our arrival. The children then sang a song and danced for us later as well. Needless to say, this was the greatest welcome we have received so far."

"The journey to Tatev was a long but gorgeous one. Deciduous North-American-like forests led us through 24 kilometers to the legendary, hillside monastery in Tatev, where the group was extremely happy to find a restaurant and some space to get off our feet."


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"The Monastery of Tatev has played a significant role in history as the center of economical, political, spiritual and cultural activity in the southern region of Armenia since the 4th century. Considering the cultural significance of this national monument, it washard to believe that some Armenians told us to camp in the grass right beside the monastery. Nevertheless, we parked there and slept [inside our tents] beneath the stars, overlooking the majestic monument and its gorge"


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"In the morning we taught in Tatev village and ended our lessons with a slightly chaotic but entertaining game of ultimate Frisbee [bringing JOY to children]. After teaching we took the Tatev cable car (the longest non-stop double track cable car in the world) through the gorge on the way to Shinuhayr village. Inside the cable car, we were all reminded of and reinvigorated by the beauty of Armenia"

Edited by man, 19 June 2013 - 09:57 AM.


#6 man

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Posted 20 June 2013 - 09:56 PM

The North Team has been traveling from Dillijan to Sevan and they give us some good photos. the most beautiful was of Lake Sevan:
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“You know you’re in Armenia when…”
  • … you are offered a shot of vodka with purchase of an ear of corn on the side of the road.
  • … you pass countless fishmongers along Lake Sevan who stand up and signal whether they are selling fish or crawfish based on the number of fingers they hold up.
This week we have selected the woodsmen we met alongside the road near Semyonovka as our MVPs. It was our first night camping, and we were all excited to build a campfire and make some s’mores with the marshmallows we had been carrying with us for the past 10 days. We saw a truck slowly approaching and decided to ask the riders where we could get some wood for a campfire. As the truck came up to our campsite, we realized that it was full of wood! The driver said that there were no places to buy wood in the village, but with that classic Armenian hospitality, they gave us a few pieces for free and welcomed us to their country. As they rode off, they waved goodbye with sweet smiles on their faces. We ended up having a great fire to keep us warm, some amazing s’mores, and really REALLY happy campers!
http://walkacrossarm...-11-north-team/

#7 man

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Posted 25 June 2013 - 10:00 AM

This is report from the South Team:
On our way out of town [of Sisian], we stopped by to view the Sisian Stonehenge, “Zorats Karrer.”

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During our 25K hike to Sarnakunk (“Cold Spring”), we ran into some light sun showers and had to stop a few times wherever shelter appeared. Our slow hike that day came to an eventual end in a gas station in Sarnakunk, where we feasted on some peroshkis (potato-filled fried dough), which at that point had never tasted so good.

Our respite was followed by severe thunderstorms, which drove us quickly into a nearby abandoned building on top of a hill where we pitched our tents for the night.

The night was long, loud, wet and windy but we managed to make it through with a good sense of humor and a few well-deserved rounds of Bananagrams.

We arrived at our next teaching site in Vayk to a throng of 51 children who were eager to meet us.

This was one of our highest turn-outs so far, most of whom were older students. The community center staff was extremely helpful and assisted with gathering the children for our lessons.

Afterwards, we went for a delicious meal at a local restaurant before continuing on to Malishka to reunite with our teammate, Carolyn.
Upon arriving in Malishka, our gracious host Carolyn provided us a wonderful meal and comfortable places to sleep.

We spent most of the following day swimming in a nearby river with some village kids who knew the best spots to swim.


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We had a high turn-out in Malishka as well: 51 children showed up ready to learn, play, and build plastic-bottle gardens."

After Malishka the final destination Yeghegnadzor is only few steps away and by now they should be celebrating, hopefully with the North Team, their cultural backpack adventure and getting certificates of achievement by the mayor of Yeghegnadzor. Next June another 12 brave-hearts will try to do the same hiking.

Walkers of the Day:
"The best feeling at the end of a long and tiring walk on sun-beaten day is to have a swarm of children welcome you to their village. They are filled with curiosity and questions of where we’ve come from. They giggle in delight to hear Americans speaking their native tongue, and they listen eagerly to our lessons, only interrupting occasionally to ask if we will join them later for a swim in the river or a walk to the village church. The children’s energy is invigorating and infectious, even for a group of hungry and tired Peace Corps volunteers who have walked a long way. As much as our team jokes about “what B2B is all about” (using the same knife to treat blisters and slice bread, cuddling in a tent under a leaky roof of an abandoned building), for me, it’s the children we meet all along the way. They truly are what B2B is all about." Meewa Mull

"After walking more than 190km on mostly rural pothole strewn roadways and meeting so many wonderful Armenians along the way, I rediscovered my love for this country. The unwavering hospitality of Armenians toward total strangers still amazes me. The countless offers for rides, cups of coffee and invitations to homes are all simply a small part of the overwhelmingly generous hearts of the people here. We walked and walked… and walked some more, and through it all this odd collection of individuals became a team that helped, supported and encouraged each other to the end. Whether it was the exhaustively steep climb out of Meghri, the taming of wild children after a 6-hour grueling hike or helping deal with the plague of perpetual blisters we worked as a team, as friends. The vistas were gorgeous and green, the days were long and hot but I couldn’t have asked for better people to share this incredible adventure with." Kevin Gurtowski

"Trail mix. Sheep parades. Three people in two-person tents. Sunburns. Blisters. Early mornings. Switchbacks. Rice balls. Excited children. Inside jokes. Bananagrams. Delirious laughter. Disney sing-alongs. Welcoming communities. Gorts Na Gorts [a kind of local Armenian game for children]. Ridiculous tan lines. Snickers Bars. Becoming a “family.” These are my memories from B2B and, as Kevin Gurtowski, who just used hand sanitizer for the first time yesterday, says, “Memories are all that you’ll take with you.” Branwen Gallagher


More photos & info are posted in their blog:
http://walkacrossarm....wordpress.com/

Edited by man, 25 June 2013 - 10:10 AM.


#8 man

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Posted 02 July 2013 - 11:13 PM

Some more pictures of "Border2Border 2013" Armenia:
http://andreaarmenia...ts-been-so.html




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