the Janapar Trail, Shushi, Elections
I'm back from a week in Karabakh. I was there on some Janapar trail related business, and think the trip was very fruitful overall. First, I met with HALO Trust, to discuss safety issues on the trail. They were reassuring that the area which the Janapar will transverse does not include minefields, which is nice to hear :-) They were extremely helpful and generous with their time and advice, and the operation was very professional. They have been clearing mines in Karabakh for a long time, and their record is impressive. They gave me materials on the dangers which you can come across anywhere in Karabakh, primarily UXO (Unexploded Ordinance), which will go on the website.
I met with many others while I was there as well, in search of some good workers for the project, and think that at the last minute I found just who I needed... though time will tell if it was the right decision. Finding workers in a land with employment issues can be much harder than you'd imagine, but this guy comes well recommended, and gave a very good impression in the three conversations we had, so we will have a trial run with him.
Another chance meeting was with Nareg at the Naregatsi Art Institute in Shushi. I knew it was there, and decided to pop in, and was, like at HALO, extremely impressed with what I saw. Normally, walking through Shushi, with the majority of the buildings/apartments still in ruins, you don't feel like the city is really alive. You see people, homes, etc, but... it just feels more abandoned than breathing. The Naregatsi center was the first time I felt the place to be alive, it was a beehive of activity with countless kids in room after room, doing arts and crafts on their summer break, getting a good lunch, playing, etc. The parents must absolutely love this free day camp of sorts. A friend also happened to visit after me, and came out with the same exact impression. The place is not even completely finished yet, and after bumping into Nareg, he gave me a tour of the parts still under work. It will be a focal point of life in Shushi.
As you know, while I was there the Karabakh Presidential Elections were held. Bako did indeed win by a landslide, over 80% of the vote. It was interesting in that people didn't seem terribly excited either way (his main opponent was Masis), and a number of stores even were happy enough to display both main candidates posters in their windows, but in any case, people seem hopeful that Bako will lead them in the right direction. I had kind of realized the elections were taking place while I was there, but didn't realize how many people were involved in the elections, especially the people I needed to talk to. It certainly slowed things down for me, with Thursday being a down day. Luckily, I had access to "My Brother's Road", the book Monte Melkonian's brother wrote about him. So I spent election day in Shushi reading that... I'll write a seperate blog about that now.
Meanwhile, some PICTURES!
I met with many others while I was there as well, in search of some good workers for the project, and think that at the last minute I found just who I needed... though time will tell if it was the right decision. Finding workers in a land with employment issues can be much harder than you'd imagine, but this guy comes well recommended, and gave a very good impression in the three conversations we had, so we will have a trial run with him.
Another chance meeting was with Nareg at the Naregatsi Art Institute in Shushi. I knew it was there, and decided to pop in, and was, like at HALO, extremely impressed with what I saw. Normally, walking through Shushi, with the majority of the buildings/apartments still in ruins, you don't feel like the city is really alive. You see people, homes, etc, but... it just feels more abandoned than breathing. The Naregatsi center was the first time I felt the place to be alive, it was a beehive of activity with countless kids in room after room, doing arts and crafts on their summer break, getting a good lunch, playing, etc. The parents must absolutely love this free day camp of sorts. A friend also happened to visit after me, and came out with the same exact impression. The place is not even completely finished yet, and after bumping into Nareg, he gave me a tour of the parts still under work. It will be a focal point of life in Shushi.
As you know, while I was there the Karabakh Presidential Elections were held. Bako did indeed win by a landslide, over 80% of the vote. It was interesting in that people didn't seem terribly excited either way (his main opponent was Masis), and a number of stores even were happy enough to display both main candidates posters in their windows, but in any case, people seem hopeful that Bako will lead them in the right direction. I had kind of realized the elections were taking place while I was there, but didn't realize how many people were involved in the elections, especially the people I needed to talk to. It certainly slowed things down for me, with Thursday being a down day. Luckily, I had access to "My Brother's Road", the book Monte Melkonian's brother wrote about him. So I spent election day in Shushi reading that... I'll write a seperate blog about that now.
Meanwhile, some PICTURES!
posted by Raffi K. at 11:42 AM
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