ARS Students in Armenia: The Adventures Continue

Friday was our second day of excursions and the kids were awake bright and early. The kids were energized and ready to start their adventure.

First we visited Charentzi Gamar. This is where the great poet Yeghishe Charentz would write poetry. On a clear day, one would have a picturesque view of Ararat which is perfectly framed by the arch. The students remembered one of their favorite poems "Yes im anoush Hayasdani". They sang and recited the poem together with their teachers. The students are yet to see a clear image of Ararat, let us hope the Armenian saying, "oosh lini, anoush lini" will ring true.

The second stop was the Keghart Monastery. The drive was filled with beautiful scenery of Armenia's snow covered mountains and valleys which inspired our students to sing various Armenian songs they had learned at our school.

Keghart, a fourth century monastery, was founded by Soorp Kirkor Lousavoritch and is best known for housing the spearhead (Keghart) used on Jesus during his crucifixion. The site is one of great mystery. The cold and the ice covered ground didn't stop our students from exploring. They climbed and hiked and reached heights which took them to a cave on a cliff where they had a breathtaking view.

The students marveled at the architecture and the fact that a portion of the church was chiseled by hand inside the body of a mountain and cave. Holy water from the Azad River flows through the dark naturally lit interior of Keghart giving those inside a tranquil experience especially during prayer and the acoustics are such that the sound released lingers for moments.

The students explored, lit candles together and prayed for their families and friends. They drank the holy water flowing through the church with strong faith and listened to our guide Gadar sing several verses of Aravod Louso. Each note echoed through the church and touch our hearts.

Credits for this video go to our student Areg Nazarians

Next stop was Karni, the ancient Armenian pagan temple, the only one still standing. It is unique in its fusion of both Hellenic and Armenian characteristics. It was destroyed by an earthquake twice and now restored with 80 percent of its original stones, thus considered a UNESCO World Heritage site along with Keghart. They have also uncovered a church along with an ancient bathhouse dedicated to the goddess of the sea and water on the same site. 50% of ancient structures at the Karni excavation site still remaining unexplored. The students wondered what other treasures are hidden under the very ground they stood on at the site. We left with hopes of hearing about new discoveries in the near future.

Our stay at Karni ended with a feast to say the least. Here, they then ate khorovadz, potatoes made in the tonir, more cheese and more lavash.

We ended Thursday by attending the excellent Bari Bedagan Ensamble's show followed with some gelato and coffee.

On Saturday we had the opportunity to visit the Madenataran, which houses more than 17,000 Armenian and foreign manuscripts. The students saw various preserved hand-written and printed Armenian books by Ananya Shiragatzi, Yeghishe, Movses Khorenatzi, Sayat Nova, etc. They also saw the well preserved and beautiful miniature art in various books by famous Armenian miniature artists. They learned about how these were drawn, where the ink came from and why the drawings have survived for centuries.

Հայ լեզուն տունն է հայուն աշխարհիս չորս ծագերուն,
Ուր կը մտնէ ամեն հայ իբրեւ տանտէր հարազատ...

We took a trip to Grand Candy before our next stop and the students had a chance to purchase some sweets and get their bonjig fix.

We then visited Charentz's home and museum where the students learned further details about the poet's life and work. This was followed by a visit to the National Museum of History.