The small village of D'segh is in the Armenian highlands sits on the top of a bluff that overlooks what is probably a 1,000 foot drop off into a beautifully winding mountain river and Armenia railway. The village itself has a population of around 2,600 and is a collection of small homes, shanty-type for many of the locals. The streets are all unpaved and rocky, so walking through it with Dad is slow and careful. Other than one fall in Yerevan, Dad has managed the infamous (and much warned about) uneven sidewalks and stairs of Armenia.
D'segh also boasts a huge statue of the Armenia poet, playwrite and intellectual, H. Tumanyan, whose museum in Yerevan we visited and really enjoyed. This man's legacy is the pride of this small village--knowing his impact on the whole of the country.
Our day yesterday started with an event Mary, our host, organized a clean up party the city square where this last year a grant helped build a small fountain, some paving stones and benches. This area has become a favorite hang out spot for the D'segh men--many of whom don't work, though the hope is this area could become a family park or play area for the children, too. Unemployment for men in this village is 95%. Thus, the area becomes littered with cigarette butts and other garbage that needs to be cleaned up regularly. Those who cleaned up were the children of the village--nearly 20 of them ranging from all ages, who wore their "Green Camp" tee shirts, donned aprons and gloves and worked hard in the hot morning sun picking up trash. The clean up attracted even more of the children who joined in later. Mary's hope is that this will instill a new paradigm in this village. One that values the beauty of the area, honors the young and has hope for the future. The mayor of the village came to show and share his support; and it's worth noting this mayor is a rare find in Armenia. Corruption abounds in the political scene in Armenia, and this mayor represents a positive force for honesty and truth in Armenian politics. Mary has said the reason she is signed up for another year here is directly because of this man. Pretty cool story.
After the clean up, we were able to visit the local Cultural Center to enjoy coffee and sweets at mid-day, then watched some of the local children, who were practicing a traditional Armenian dance. "Cute" does not do it justice.
After our coffee and sweets, we walked to one end of the village to see the spectacular views of the chasm below us--which did not disappoint. The rest of the afternoon we spent recovering and resting back at Mary's home.
Later that night we had another GREAT encounter with the locals of the village, with whom Mary has worked closely. We were served, Cafe-style, our three course Armenian dinner with fresh EVERYTHING! Tomatoes and cucumbers are a staple, along with potatoes and coffee (very strong--Turkish style) all day long. This family is very special to Mary and they loved serving their new American friends. In a traditional Armenian family, the family extends three generations often, with the youngest son to remain home to help the parents into the late stages of their lives. In this family, the father's mother and sister live with the rest of the family which includes five girls in addition to the parents. Though we briefly met the father, he was out working on his truck for most of the evening. The small setting of their living room served as our seating area and they constantly brought food to the table with smiles, giggles--and all were presented beautifully! Blake, you would have loved it!
We had heard the sister-in-law, Flora, was quite a musician and so we had planned that after dinner we'd break out the instruments and further enjoy the evening with song and dance (really!). Flora dug out her accordian and began to play the most soulful Armenian songs with all the passion and pride of this very rich and proud, but of- occupied and beaten down nation. She finally encouraged me to break out Margaret's guitar that she brought for just this kind of occasion. We played several songs I used to play in my classroom while Flora thumped her drum and accompanied Margaret and I on her accordian. A tremendous cultural bridge was crossed!
Heading to Georgia with Margaret tonight after two clowning performances today. More on that later.
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