Getting Ready

I was talking to a friend the other day who wanted to read more of my blogs- so, if you are reading this - this one is for you!!

Has anyone ever bought a Visa prior to arriving in Armenia? I just found out about this and I am wondering about the legitimacy of the purchase.
Anyway, I was reading through past blogs with another friend the other day, and we both came to the conclusion that the controversies over what really makes someone an Armenian( or more Armenian) is so ridiculous! In reflection, I am wondering why our Christian heritage does not make us more accepting and non-judgmental?

On a positive note, I raised about 500.00 dollars for a camp at Lake Sevan. The camp is organized by Pyunic and is for children with special needs. I received an e-mail from the camp director the other day. He asked for 300.00 for t-shirts. I am so excited because I literally just started calling people and raised more than I expected. Some people still haven't gotten back to me. Well - about fifteen days and counting!

Armenia Trip Thus Far- Bits and Pieces

I have been in Armenia since June 10. Because I have not been able to connect my PowerBook to an internet connection, my detailed journal and blogs won't make it to the Cilicia.com airwaves. But, I will try to condence my experience thus far halfway through my trip.

Let's get some things out of the way first. The heat is hitting about 95-100 degrees on a daily basis and it has made things a bit uncomfortable. Without air conditioning, the nights are pretty rough. Buying a fan will help, but, ultimately, I may need to move to a place with AC. That being said, during the day when it is scorching hot, there are some options to hit a swimming pool. There is the Congress Hotel which sells daily passes for $20, weekly passes for about $40, and monthly passes for about $120. The problem there is that the passes are usually all sold out. Another place is the Golden Tulip Yerevan Hotel which has the same general prices. The Congress is generally considered a better and bigger pool on the ground level, where the Golden Tulip is on the 6th floor. You can get passes at the Tulip easliy. The last two places include Water World which is a water theme park. That costs about $7 a day. There is the Vahakni Country Club (Hovnanian) for $20 a day for a country club and pool experience about 15 minutes outside of Yerevan. Lastly, there is Lake Sevan which is generally free, but, rentals of boats are extra, etc. As the heat rises in Yerevan, people flock to cooler places in the country as well as swimming pools. I agree with Raffi Kojian that a series of Park District type of free public swimming pools should be planned and offered to Armenians.

The next issue for me that has preoccupied my time besides work is the CD shops here in Yerevan. It's been touched upon here many times. However, it does literally floor me how CD's are freely copied and sold at most record shops in town. Out of professional respect to artists and labels, I have resisted the temptation to purchase any CD's that are copied. The prices range from 1500 drams ($4) to 2500 drams for MP3 collections. Again, the problem remains that either the original copies are too expensive to import and purchase for the general public, thus a black market is created selling these things. Only, the black market is legalized and encouraged by the Armenian government by not cracking down on the piracy. For labels such as Pomegranate, we have chosen to create legitimate simple CD's for a local price of 4000 Drams ($10) and we'll see how it goes. Right now, I am working on a deal with Nina Hovnanian's Treasures of Armenia store on Abovian to have them be our exclusive original CD outlet, with less expensive copies in the general stores. Thus, there is a two tier product and pricing issue. My request from Diasporans visiting Armenia is the boycott purchasing copied CD's so as not to enable the illegal piracy that is seemingly supported by the Armenian government. Otherwise, the CD shops would be shut down, right?

After working hours for YerazArt, I have been spending time with Lilit Pipoyan and family. They are kind of my Armenian family here in Yerevan. We are hard at work producing her next album which has taken about 7 months thus far to record. I am pulling Arsineh Khachikian into the mix for design ideas as well as photography from acclaimed Armenian photographer Zaven Khachikyan (no relation to Arsineh). I would have gone with Onnik Krikorian if Lilit had not had a previous working relationship with Zaven. I like Onnik's style as well and hopefully he can work again with Pomegranate and YerazArt. There have been trips to the VEM studio to work on the mixing. I sit and watch the process and let Sergey and Lilit do their thing. Yet, the challenge now is to craft an image and style for Lilit to be able to market the album to a global community.

I have run into many people during my stay here. However, the one I am thrilled about is my old Camp Hayastan camper Sonya Varoujian. She was always musically talented and even had a semi-popular NYC band called "7". She moved to London and has been in Yerevan now for three months cutting a record. She will be performing her new Armenian works at Naregatsi Art Institute on Tuesday at 8pm. It's great to see Diasporans who had been out of touch with their Armenian side suddenly blossom and feel connected to Armenia just by being here. I hope more do the same. With that said, I have seen tons of people here touring in Armenia with most flights and hotels booked. It is incredible. The streets look clean and neat, with some minor eyesores such as Northern BLVD. I hate the look and how there was an semi-illegal landgrab to obtain the property from ordinary citizens.

Natacha and I did the typical tourist thing by using two services. The first was Hyur Service and the second was Satie Travel. I recommend them both. The prices were perfect and both tours included lunch. The gals that were our tour guides work 7 days a week with no breaks during the week. Many have second jobs. They earn about $200-$350 per month. Natacha and I became close with one of our tour guides, Rima, who is originally from Gyrumri. A graduate of the Brusov Institute, she is one of the most polished people we have met thus far. As prices are rising drastically in Yerevan and with the dollar falling, her and others like her face an uphill battle to pay the rent and put food on the table. I have heard and seen the sob stories- real and fake many times here in Yerevan. But, for the working class in Yerevan, it is amazing how they can get by for so little. There is a small lower middle class developing, but, slowly and so few in numbers.

Yerevan oddities:
1. Businesses watering their sidewalks three times a day. Apparenty, shopkeepers are obsessed with keeping their sidewalks clean and dust-free.
2. Obtaining change from businesses- If you walk into a store and pay for an item and have a large bill, the cashier will shift the burden to provide exact change. Sometimes, they will not sell you an item if you don't have change. Or, in the case of an internet cafe I use, they will just let you use it for free.
3. Yerevan drivers- The cars still have the right of way. They will not stop for you.
4. Women dancing in front of mirrors in clubs- Yup, it still happens.
5. Kids out at 1am with families- This is such as family friendly and safe city, you would not be able to compare it to any city in the US.
6 Soccer fever- Every cafe and restaurant has big screen TV's showing the world cup soccer matches. Armenians tend to like Brazil.
7. Cafe Culture- Granted, I have been to a few like Santa Fe and Jazzve and enjoyed it. But, really, there are so many in town and ill placed at locations such as the Opera House that is really looks ugly at times. Plus, who knows who own those things and whose money our money is going into.
8. Yerevan Fashion- Look, I am married. But, both my wife and I think the women are really fashionable and good looking here. If you are a single man, this is the place to be in the summer.
9. Armenian Men- Lots of them just standing around seemingly doing nothing.
10. Stray dogs- I was coming out of the Caucasus Restaurant with Natacha and Josh and 3am one morning and we were almost attacked by a pack of 16 stray dogs on Hanrapetetyun. We jumped into a cab just in the nick of time and howled with laughter as we escaped the CUJO's.

That's it for now, more on the way. Hopefully, I can get my pics uploaded.

Armenia TV's Hotline Interview with Nina Hovnanian

Lot's to tell during my 13 day stay so far in Armenia, with another 18 days to go. Natacha went back to Boston after a very happy and incident free trip. Today was spend over in Davidashen at the Armenia TV headquarters for an interview for their "Hotline" TV program. I was interviewed for the show by Nina Hovnanian for the 30 minute segment and shared my thoughts on stuff I have blogged about here. Very nice experience.

Met with our potential YerazArt country coordinator in the afternoon at the Komitas Chamber Hall. All good stuff.

In the evening, I had dinner at the Tufenkian Avan Villa Hotel restaurant where we had a chance encounter with James Tufenkian himself having dinner there. He has 4 more hotels planned in the next 4 years. Very interesting as he was playing our Iakovos Kolanian CD for dinner.

Late at night, we headed to the Stop Club to see a Avant Garde German eletronic music band and we ran into Onnik Krikorian doing his photos there. The band was OK, but the scene was great. Headed off to Cheers to have a Cilicia with Dave and Chris and them headed home to say bye to Aram and Marianna to wish them well on their Honeymoon.

Tomorrow, I have been invited to be the guest of Bayrur and Sussana Hayregyan at their summer house in Davidashen. Have known them for about 10 years since the days when Mr. Hayregian would come to Boston. The weather is warm and will probably take my first swim at their place.

Next week will continue with YerazArt work. Also, after work, I will spend time with Lilit Pipoyan in the studio to finish our album due out in September. I have booked her on the Armenian Heritage Cruise for Jan 14-21. Should be nice exposure for the label and her. Let's see what happens...

More details when I get more internet access...Pictures on the way...

Re: ????

I really do not know what to title this one. I have not written in so long- solely because I did not know if I was going to be able to get to Armenia this summer, but, it looks like I am. So I apologize to all the new bloggers - welcome! Although it will only be for two weeks, it will be well worth the trip. I am sooo excited to get back. It was so hard to write on this blog because I did not even want to think about not going this summer - well, now I can think about going and continue writing on cilicia.com.

I have decided to join the ANC PN group. This should be interesting because last summer I traveled sola! However, I will have the flexibility of joining the tours when I want or meeting some other contacts that I have been working on some projects with!! At this point I am just happy that I am going to be in Armenia!

A short introduction

Parev polorin,

Raffi K. was kind enough to add me as the new Montreal voice of the cilicia blogs, so I believe some introductions are in order.

Ooremn, my name is Vrouyr. I was born in Haleb in 1986 (which makes me 19), and have been a Montrealer since 1991. I attended Alex Manoogian varjaran until Sec. 2, and then went to a private French high school. I did Law and Society at Vanier College (for those of you who know how our Québécois CEGEP system works), and just finished my first year of Law school at McGill University.

I am rather active in the Armenian community, being involved in scouting since forever. I am currently a cub scout leader at the A.G.B.U., and a member of the A.G.B.U. Venturers who are organizing a working visit to Armenia in July (you can expect much more details about that soon). Incidentally, Raffi N. from the repat blog was my former cub leader, and just like I have followed into his footsteps to become a cub leader myself, I shall follow into his footsteps all the way to Armenia too!
Adgé zad, I am a member of the Garni Dance Ensemble in Montreal (if you will pardon the shameless promotion: www.garnidance.com), and am enjoying every moment of it.

To give you a glimpse of what you can expect from my blogs..
I will be in Armenia from July 8 to August 26, first in Kotayk (with the AGBU venturers), and then at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs where I will be interning. So I guess I'll be starting off my blogging career with a bang.

Some of the issues I am rather obsessed with, and with which I will most likely "artoogel" your "klookhs":
- The quality of schools/agoomps in the diaspora, and general criticisms of our community's leadership
- Armenian music and dance
- Human rights and democracy in Armenia (this is the topic around which I would like to center my career)

I can be too honest in my critcisms at times, but am generally an optimist, with a deep belief that we, as a nation, can't go anywhere else but up. My criticisms, therefore, are meant to be constructive, and I try to accompany them with possible solutions.

Himagoo hima ayschap,
Pari getsek!
Vrouyr

Arrival

Woke up at 3pm today. Natacha and I landed last night in Yerevan. Everything went smoothly. I will blog in detail our experiences as we move forward. Yerevan is hot and hopping. Preparing for a trip to Sisian tomorrow with a well known photographer for a long day trip. I will try to accompany my text with pictures as well.

Bonjour ! & Back to the Roots

Hello Ladies and Gentlemen,

My name’s Jilda and it’s my first log here ! I know cilicia.com and this blog since 2001 but never really had the idea of blogging myself until recently, and the happening of little funny coincidences, so looks like I’ll be practicing my english a little more… First I confess that i’ve never been to GB or USA or any other english spoken country, so please forgive my mistakes and possible strange formulations : I’m from France (booo!), what might explain it ;)
About me quickly : I was born in 1978, finished law studies in 2001, and work since 2002 near Paris, for the town hall of Clamart (little city of 50 000 hab), in the town planning department. Although I’ve always run away from jobs in burocracy, this is exactly the place where I landed ! Must be one of the fate’s gadag. No complain though : good bosses, and I rather assume this « mission of public service ». Ok, administration may often squeeze people’s head – and mine too – but the intentions are supposed to be good… at least in the beginning !

Just to situate my french environment : links between France and Armenians has been very usual since, let’s say at least the end of the 19th century. So that France became a rather natural land for « welcoming » more or less willingly, some of the apatrides created by the 1915-1920’s. There has been other flows of Armenians’ arrival during the following decades till now.
As far as I know, my great grand parents are from Kastamonu (north of Turkey, west of Sinope and Samsun) where they lived in a village full of Armenians. They moved to the big city of Bolis before the 1950’s after a dark episode of violent racket. My parents and I had born there (bolsohye, yes) and like many others we came here in 1980 when life of Armenians in Turkey was again troubled. And now, like everywhere, most of the Armenians who arrive since the 1990’s come from Armenia.
Anyway, as a result today, it is generally said that we are 350 000 in the 60 million population of France. You can find Armenians in many different places but their presence if really noticeable in the cosmopolite Marseille under the great sun of Méditerranée, in the center of France with the big city of Lyon and its little neighbour Valence, Paris of course and some suburb cities of it like Alfortville (where you’ll most feel like in little Armenia in the street), Issy-les-Moulineaux and its neighbour Clamart, my beloved town :)

Instead of talking about the last bone of contention linked to Armenians’ issues in France, I’d like to speak about a more delighting point that occured to me last 24th april. In Paris the usual tsuyts began – as it now became a tradition – on a lovely side of the Seine, place du Canada, just in front of a statue full of symbols : Komitas.
As the great politicians, representative of nearly all colours, were following each other at the tribune put there, saying their demagogic blabla to support us, I ended raising my nose to look at the sky for a change. From the place where I was, I saw something that would have been a nice picture : the lines of Komitas’ head, seen from ¾ behind, on a scenery composed by blue sky, green trees and the just renewed elegant roof of glass of the Petit Palais : Komitas in Paris, simply.
The statue has been put here in 2003, although the not so interesting effect given by the photos often shew on it, it’s a beautiful statue that expresses much. The statue is eriged for Komitas of course, but also to the memory of the victims of armenian genocide, and of all genocides.
When I noticed this special "mind photo", i suddenly adored the fact that this man of arts (and what an art !), whose work distinguish so exactly all the rich originality of our culture, is celebrated there. Silently but firmly – almost indestructible – he’s standing right on our heads in this pretty place to remind not only what Armenians endured, but mostly what Armenians are, just by themselves : a people with a culture able of such a deeply touching art, that delighted people of nations beyond borders. Something that can’t be broken of forgiven, even if scattered, that is still inspiring us today and for long time again.

I know it can much sound as a common place, but well, no harm by reminding it again… to jump then higher with this impulse !

See you !

Armenian Record Industry- Misconceptions and Realities

I was planning on writing my next log from Armenia, but, I though in light of an issue on the other side of our blog, I would write a little about the Armenian Music industry and the Parseghian/Der Hova/HAYQ issue. Maybe I can shed some light from my experience.

The Armenian music industry does not comply with current international standards when it comes to record deals, copyrights, and royalties. The downside of our small little niche market is that there is a limited market from which to play with. In most cases, it is restricted to Armenia itself and the Diaspora. In rare cases, Armenian music products will cross over into the world music genre or the classical market. It's rare, but, it can happen. In my opinion, it is all a matter of marketing and production values with talent assumed. The other obvious downside to the Armenian recording industry is the issue of pirated music. It happens all over the world, even in the US. With the advancement of technology, I dare say it is unstoppable if there are no laws or enforcement of laws prohibiting theft of music.

In the case of the Armenian market, it is a fairly simple process. In Armenia, there are a few large CD plants, and more in Russia and Eastern Europe who press illegal CD's of popular titles. The CD's are either shipped to Yerevan, or produced in the country. Once they are pressed, the CD's are sold to distributors. The distributors either sell direct to people like you and me at the Vernisage and in some stores, or on the street. Those cheap CD's you all buy for $3 or $4 is actually feeding the problem of ripping off artists. It's tempting to see the cheap price and buy it, but, in reality, the purchase is actually enabling corrupt entities who make thousands off of illegal pirating. The bad part there is that the artists, and record companies who legitimately pay thousands of dollars in studio time and production costs lose out big time. The end result is that the artists and labels stop recording since they know it is pointless to put in the time and money to make a CD project. Therefore, you have a lack of diverse culture and music to choose from.

Yours truly has gone to the Vernisage and seen at least three of my titles that were pirated. Now, my titles don't have a large demand since they are more esoteric recordings and not pop music. Still, it makes your pissed to see others making money off of the hard work of artists who usually don't make much, and labels like mine who have to save money from my work paycheck in order to create a project. So, i just learned to consider it free advertising. For now.

The other side of the coin is that it takes two to tango. Usually how record deals are done within this market are that an artist either has a master copy they sell to the record label for varied prices. The label prints about 2000 CD's and gives the artist about 100 free plus an option to buy more CD's at around $7. If an artist is unknown, they sell it for short money in order to establish their career. Obviously, the label takes a low cost gamble.

Most companies like Parseghian operate this way. And, in most cases, although people may say they have a "copyright", they usually don't. You have to file that in whatever jurisdiction you are based. For example, for any CD's Pomegranate obtains copyrights for, I file to the US Copyrights Office in DC. You fill out a form, put the music on a CD-R, send a check for $35, and you get a certificate in the mail in about a year. Sometimes, you have to show them the signed contract that gives the label, or artists the right to obtain copyrights.

I started Pomegranate as a direct response to the low-cost/low quality Parseghian business model. That is, I hated it and felt it was insulting to the consumer to get such a shoddy product. Hey, to them, it's mostly business. To labels like my own, it's more than business, it's an artform. I can't completely fault Parseghian Records without faulting the artists. They sign the deals and know what they are getting into. Usually, they take the quick cash, sign away their rights, and are very shortsighted with their art/career. Many artists actually view their music as a business. There is no right/wrong answer here. It is just the way it is.

In Harout's (Der Hova) situation, you have a case of blatent stealing. Here http://www.armenianmusic.com/view.cfm?pid=1869&CFID=4719332&CFTOKEN=38289326 is the link to the CD that used HAYQ's song illegally, I presume. Parseghian has a compilation of Armenian songs out that actually features HAYQ's hit single. Unfortunately for Der Hova and Company, they are getting screwed big time due to a leak of that song (who leaked it?), someone offering the song to Parseghian (and other outlets, I might add), and the profits going to everyone except the band and the producer for them to continue their music. While Der Hova could have immedately made the song available in some format (CD's, MP3 downloads) quicker and thus thwarted the effect of the pirating, the timing of the release is their right, not the pirates.

I think this example not only reflects poorly on the Armenian recording industry, but on the Diasporan company that broke the law and did not request permission from the artists/producer in pressing their compilation disc. Also, for those who don't think twice before buying $3 obviously pirated CD's at the Vernisage or CD stores, you are enabling the corrupt system. Other bloggers have said the same thing with regards to certain cafes and business that are run by "oligarchs".

What is clear is that the artists in Armenia have to create a music union that combats illegal piracy. And, in cases where Diasporan companies break the law, we shoudl publicize it and boycott purchasing their products until there is an improvement in business practices. As for the thieves in Armenia itself, well, that is another story altogether. Some say the corruption is a remnant of the Soviet Era. And for others, they say it is plain old greed and a lack of self respect or pride in their country. Whichever it is, what is clear is that aside from everyone agreeing that piracy is wrong and criminal according to certain laws, and ethically speaking, Armenians in Armenia have to wake up and do something about it through action. "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em" doesn't pay in the long run.

This issue of the music industry and pirating also crossed over into many other elements of modern Armenian thinking. I suppose we can either lament this fact, or, for those who are affected/sympathetic, form an action plan to minimize the phenominon.

---
Random Thoughts 1: Where are all of the Diasporan Bloggers? I'm getting a little lonely here...

Random Thoughts 2: Narek from Young "Bambir" emailed me to let me know the band will be in the US starting in LA and then going to NYC and Rhode Island. I will meet with them in Armenia before they shove off to the US and hope to get them a Boston gig.

Random Thoughts 3: Pomegranate Music has moved up our date to release rockers Lav Eli's "Notes from Vanadzor: Urban Armenian Rock" to the end of July. A local pressing is being discuss by the band for Armenia, and Pomegranate will take care of worldwide. This is Mher Manoukian and Gor Mkhitarian's old band that was recorded during the Yerevan Pomegranate sessions with Gor that produced "Yeraz" and "Godfather Tom" for the label. It goes to print at the factory tomorrow. This could be our biggest hit CD yet.

Next blog from Armenia...

Fresh blood

Parev to the readers out in the Diaspora... with the recent move of Arsineh to Armenia (and thus the Repat logs :-), it would be nice to get one or two new people on this log. Whether you are from D.C., Moscow, Sydney, Detroit or Isfahan, let me hear from you and let's hear about your community! email raffi at cilicia dot com

Diaspora, Comparison Shopping, and YerazArt

Last weekend, my wife and I decided to take a trip to the NY/NJ area to visit some of her Haitian relatives who were having a family gathering. I was the only non-Hatian, and certainly the only "white" person there. Aside from the normal "getting to know you" stage between me and my new family, there were some observations I came away with during our trip. First, immersing myself in a non-Armenian Diaspora to see how they live life in America while having a strong tie to their homeland, Haiti, was fascinating. I kept thinking back to these blogs and all of the things we bitch out here as Armenians, and it is pretty much the same with the Haitians. Corrupt government, a dire need to maintain tradition while being here in America, parents who emphasize education and family, and a preoccupation with food and hospitality. While most of my new family members are immigrants with a strong work ethic, it was again facsinating to see how their offspring, 1st generation kids approached their parents Haitian ties to the land they left. It is all eerily similar. Having an opportunity to talk in detail with some of my wife's relatives about the similarities and differences between the two cultures has given me a better perspective on the challenges and triumphs of Diasporan people. And for the record, most people are alike all over.

In preparation for our Armenia trip that begins on Saturday June 10, I've had to make some adjustments in accomidations in Armenia. Because we want to be closer to City Center in Yerevan, Natacha and I have decided to rent an apartment in Opera Square rather than stay with our original plans of being in a hotel in Nork Marash. It was a tough decision, but, practicality and budget drove the decision. In any case, I am please to say that I started from scratch in looking for an apartment in a prime part of town. There are several services out there. However, the one I ended up using was a company called Hyur Service (Guest Service). www.hyurservice.com. I looked on www.yerevanrentals.com as well. However given the inventory and pictures on Hyur Service, I went with them. We are renting a 3 bedroom place for about 10 days. I will have to stay on for an extra three weeks on business while she goes back to Boston. However, the good news is that Hyur Service has thus far answered by questions in a very timely manner via phone and internet, provided me with options of services at a very reasonable rate, and did all of this with a great service attitude. Let's see what the place looks like before I go on with the praise, but, in general for people who want to rent place without paying over $150 a night in hotel fees, this is a great option. I think our total came out to around $50-$60 per night. Can't beat that. Given that the person I stay with in Yerevan is getting married, this will be my first extensive stay in a non-home situation.

After my one week vacation in Yerevan, I will begin work in Armenia for about 3 weeks on behalf of YerazArt. I've held the position of Executive Director since February and this will be my first time in Armenia with responsibilities in running a non-profit organization. The first order of business will be to establish our presense in Armenia and look for willing and able volunteers in the Diaspora to help our mission of supporting talented musicians in Armenia who are between the ages of 8 and 17. Support includes paying them a monthly stipend, buying or donating quality instruments, acting as a liason between Armenia and the professional music world and prestigious conservatories, and raising general awareness of the plight and needs of young musicians in Armenia. If anyone is willing to become a volunteer for YerazArt, please contact me at yerazart at gmail dot com.

Lastly, in Pomegranate news, Iakovos Kolanian's "Bohemio" album recently was printed and we are preparing for our CD release in the coming months. Also, Lilit Pipoyan and I will be meeting to conclude negotiations in Yerevan for her upcoming CD release on my label. And, Gor Mkhitarian and Mher Manoukyan's old band from Vanazor, LAV ELI, makes its CD release sometime at the end of July. Busy times.

Festivities...New Arm. Passport / Countdown

Well this year's May 28 Festival in Little Armenia was GREAT! It was very well organized (by the AYF), and unlike other May 28-s it was a beautiful day in Southern California to take a stroll down Hollywood Blvd. and grab some kebab or soujoukh! :) They had various bands playing, but the highlight had to be when Paul B. (not a fan of this guy) sang while Mayor Villaragosa danced shoorch-bar, after which Paul said, "Bravo Mayor, aga" hahahaha But seriously, it was a great day, with Armenian food, Armenian ice cream, Armenian art, the HyeRiders, a petting zoo and pony ride corner, etc..... fun for the whole family! I hope they continue this tradition. :)

So, I don't know if I wrote about how my purse was stolen in Hayasdan while I was there in the winter. It just so happened on the day that I had my passports in my purse (both US and Armenian residency). Now, replacing the US one was not a big deal really. The "excitement" came when I called the Consulate in LA and asked how one would go about replacing a stolen Armenian residency passport. Did you guess what they said yet? Ya.... I need to start the whole process all over again. (How does that make sense???) So I asked Baron Hagop, "So I need to pay another $300?", and he said... "No..." - so I thought, oh ok, good so THERE ISSSSSS a replacement of some sorts, but then he continued with.. "...now the price is $400". haha... there goes that thought! I guess I will take care of this at Ovir (my oh-so-favorite place) when I get to Yerevan, because even if I apply now, it'll get to L.A. asdvadz kideh when... since apparently, the consulate doesn't make shipments when there aren't "enough" applicants.

The whole phone call and no replacement issue reminded me of how things are done in Armenia. Such a twisted logic, or atleast it seems that way to me. They just have a different style of doing things... (like the construction workers who INSIST you need to put the light switch of YOUR bathroom on the outside, even if you are paying him to put it on the inside). haha

The countdown has already started... 24 days left. I'm very excited. This year, I'm renting an apartment close to Cascade.... should be nice. I'll see if I can find some pics from the Festival...

TSUH! :)~