Announcement

Collapse

Forum Rules (Everyone Must Read!!!)

1] What you CAN NOT post.

You agree, through your use of this service, that you will not use this forum to post any material which is:
- abusive
- vulgar
- hateful
- harassing
- personal attacks
- obscene

You also may not:
- post images that are too large (max is 500*500px)
- post any copyrighted material unless the copyright is owned by you or cited properly.
- post in UPPER CASE, which is considered yelling
- post messages which insult the Armenians, Armenian culture, traditions, etc
- post racist or other intentionally insensitive material that insults or attacks another culture (including Turks)

The Ankap thread is excluded from the strict rules because that place is more relaxed and you can vent and engage in light insults and humor. Notice it's not a blank ticket, but just a place to vent. If you go into the Ankap thread, you enter at your own risk of being clowned on.
What you PROBABLY SHOULD NOT post...
Do not post information that you will regret putting out in public. This site comes up on Google, is cached, and all of that, so be aware of that as you post. Do not ask the staff to go through and delete things that you regret making available on the web for all to see because we will not do it. Think before you post!


2] Use descriptive subject lines & research your post. This means use the SEARCH.

This reduces the chances of double-posting and it also makes it easier for people to see what they do/don't want to read. Using the search function will identify existing threads on the topic so we do not have multiple threads on the same topic.

3] Keep the focus.

Each forum has a focus on a certain topic. Questions outside the scope of a certain forum will either be moved to the appropriate forum, closed, or simply be deleted. Please post your topic in the most appropriate forum. Users that keep doing this will be warned, then banned.

4] Behave as you would in a public location.

This forum is no different than a public place. Behave yourself and act like a decent human being (i.e. be respectful). If you're unable to do so, you're not welcome here and will be made to leave.

5] Respect the authority of moderators/admins.

Public discussions of moderator/admin actions are not allowed on the forum. It is also prohibited to protest moderator actions in titles, avatars, and signatures. If you don't like something that a moderator did, PM or email the moderator and try your best to resolve the problem or difference in private.

6] Promotion of sites or products is not permitted.

Advertisements are not allowed in this venue. No blatant advertising or solicitations of or for business is prohibited.
This includes, but not limited to, personal resumes and links to products or
services with which the poster is affiliated, whether or not a fee is charged
for the product or service. Spamming, in which a user posts the same message repeatedly, is also prohibited.

7] We retain the right to remove any posts and/or Members for any reason, without prior notice.


- PLEASE READ -

Members are welcome to read posts and though we encourage your active participation in the forum, it is not required. If you do participate by posting, however, we expect that on the whole you contribute something to the forum. This means that the bulk of your posts should not be in "fun" threads (e.g. Ankap, Keep & Kill, This or That, etc.). Further, while occasionally it is appropriate to simply voice your agreement or approval, not all of your posts should be of this variety: "LOL Member213!" "I agree."
If it is evident that a member is simply posting for the sake of posting, they will be removed.


8] These Rules & Guidelines may be amended at any time. (last update September 17, 2009)

If you believe an individual is repeatedly breaking the rules, please report to admin/moderator.
See more
See less

ARMENIANOW.COM on TOURING in ARMENIA

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • ARMENIANOW.COM on TOURING in ARMENIA

    SUMMER'S HERE AND THE TIME IS RIGHT....

    Welcome to the first of two special editions of ArmeniaNow focusing on
    tourism in Armenia. Our reporters invite you on a virtual tour of some
    of this country's most attractive places, and also examine tourism's
    potential to become a vital source of revenue and jobs for the
    economy.

    You can climb Aragats Mountain, ride a horse, taste the delicious
    organic food of Odzun, see the Stonehenge of Sisian, walk through
    Armenia's old city of Gyumri, drink magic water from a snake's navel,
    see the ancient fortress of Pahlavouni Princess and much, much more.

    This is the third annual examination by ArmeniaNow staff of Armenia's
    tourist attractions and appeal. Past editions can be found at
    http://archive.armenianow.com/archiv...home/index.htm and


    We hope that you enjoy this year's offerings and that they provide you
    with new discoveries as well as a chance to examine familiar places in
    a different light. Above all, we want to convey a sense of Armenia's
    rich beauty so that it inspires those of you who have not yet visited
    to get on a plane and discover Armenia for yourselves.

    Whether its Armenia's history as a cradle of civilization that appeals
    or the desire to join in Yerevan's very modern caf� culture, we
    hope ArmeniaNow's selection persuades you to pack your bags and spend
    some time. Visit online next week too for more tourism related
    stories.

    The Editors


    Last edited by Siggie; 06-27-2005, 06:16 PM.
    What if I find someone else when looking for you? My soul shivers as the idea invades my mind.

  • #2
    GREEN POWER: NATURE RESERVE SAVED AS GOVERNMENT RETHINKS ROUTE OF KEY
    STRATEGIC ROAD

    By Suren Deheryan
    ArmeniaNow Reporter

    Environmental organizations that had protested for more than a month
    against construction of an interstate highway through the Shikahogh
    nature reserve celebrated a victory today.

    The Minister of Transport and Communications Andranik Manukyan, who
    had been invited to a discussion of the issue at the American
    University of Armenia, announced that the highway would now be routed
    around the reserve to preserve its unique character.

    Environmentalists had been angered by the fact that a 17-kilometer
    section of the new 90-kilometer road between Kapan and Meghri would
    run through Shikahogh, which is the most unspoilt of Armenia's three
    nature reserves. The road is intended to be an alternative strategic
    link between Armenia and Iran.

    Protestors estimated that more than 14,000 mature trees would have
    been destroyed, and the reserve's unique fauna put at risk, if the
    project had gone ahead as originally planned. (see Paving Paradise for
    details.)

    However, according to Manukyan and Minister of Nature Protection
    Vardan Ayvazyan, during the Thursday discussion at President Robert
    Kocharyan's office, the old plan was reconsidered and a new route was
    chosen.

    `The new variant will bypass the Shikahogh preserve and no tree will
    be felled,' Manukyan announced. `The President gave instructions to
    submit a feasibility study of that road section within a week, and
    today (Friday) a corresponding commission was set up on the Prime
    Minister's order.'

    The minister said preliminary data showed that bypassing the nature
    reserve would lengthen the highway by seven kilometers and cause the
    route to run 150 meters higher than before. The government promised to
    send a plan of the route to NGO representatives within a week.

    The original route caused representatives of NGOs involved in other
    fields as well as residents of villages near Shikahogh to join
    environmentalists in the protests. Nora Hakobyan, chairwoman of the
    Republican Women's Council of Armenia, said that Armenia would have
    lost a very important resource if environmental groups had not
    launched a campaign to save Shikahogh.

    During the discussion at AUA, she asked: `If there had not been active
    discussion by ecological organizations, wouldn't Shikahogh have
    disappeared? Who bears responsibility for failing to make an analysis
    before taking a decision about such a state program?'

    Manukyan answered: `Without diminishing the NGOs, I can say that their
    role n the change of this project was zero. It was the Government's
    decision to change it and not the result of NGO pressure; simply the
    possibilities of further maintenance and operation of the road and its
    strategic importance had been studied in detail.'

    Read ArmeniaNow's next Tourism issue for more details about
    Shikahogh's unique flora and fauna.

    What if I find someone else when looking for you? My soul shivers as the idea invades my mind.

    Comment


    • #3
      SCALING THE HEIGHTS: ARMENIA'S MOUNTAINS AWAIT DISCOVERY

      By Suren Deheryan
      ArmeniaNow Reporter

      Local and foreign tourists have shown great interest towards hiking
      tourism in Armenia lately. It is no surprise as this `mountainous
      island' is an irresistible country for those who like conquering
      natural heights.

      The mountains of Armenia, which have not been discovered yet by many
      people, appear as a petit Alps by their peaks that scrape the sky yet
      can be conquered by any healthy person, as mountain climbers insist.

      >From north to south and east to west, Armenia is simply bound by
      chains of mountains. Azhdahak and Hadis, and the mountains of Geghama,
      Vardenis, Zangezur, Meghri and Barbushat, situated between 900 and
      3,597 meters above sea-level, are good for hiking tours.

      Mount Aragats, considered the highest peak in the South Caucasus at
      4,091 meters, has become a permanent home for mountaineers. With its
      unique nature, this mountain has sub-alpine and alpine zones as well
      as four peaks and one of the biggest craters in the world, created by
      a volcano eruption in the distant past.

      `Hiking is a lifestyle,' says Ashot Levonyan, the director of Apaga
      Tour Company and an experienced mountaineer. `When I am asked how it
      is possible to climb the same mountain I always answer that it is
      possible because every time you get new impressions. It is the only
      sport where there is no contest among participants. The only contest
      in the mountains is for friendship.'

      Last week marked the beginning of such a friendship between Levonyan
      and two Armenian colleagues and four Turkish and one Iranian
      mountaineers who climbed Mount Aragats together. As the mountaineers
      from neighboring countries said, this visit pursued professional
      interests: they wanted to make friends with their Armenian
      counterparts and climb the highest mountain in this country.

      `Before coming here we found all the necessary data about Aragats
      online and after searching for about eight months we got in touch with
      Armenian mountaineers,' says the head of the Turkish mountaineering
      group Omer Gulsen.

      After a night camping near Karalich Lake on Aragats, the eight-member
      group climbed two peaks of the mountain: the southern peak of 3,878
      meters and the western peak of 4,080 meters.

      The members of the Turkish mountaineering club Todosk, impressed by
      the reception of their Armenian colleagues, say that it couldn't be
      otherwise. Says Gulsen: `Sport is universal and the Armenian
      mountaineers received us well just like our friends in other
      countries.'

      `Our tour proves that mountaineering does not divide people by
      religion and nationality. There is no border and competition in the
      mountains. I am sure that thousands of mountaineers will come to
      discover Armenia,' says fellow Turkish mountaineer Cenqiz Incensu.

      `I always wondered how Ararat looks like from the Armenian side and at
      last we saw its beauty from the peak of Mt. Aragats.'

      The Turkish mountaineers promised to lobby the Mountaineering
      Federation of Turkey upon their return home for permission to
      accompany Armenian mountaineers to the peak of Mt. Ararat. Gulsen
      says: `If we receive a positive response we plan to make a similar
      tour at the end of July or in August.'

      The Avarayr Tour Company, which has 11 years' experience in this
      business, also offers tourists trips to Aragats, the Geghama mountain
      range and several other destinations.

      `In Armenia the notion of extreme tourism is still in its infancy This
      is a kind of tourism when people can just backpack in the mountains
      carrying their rucksacks, meet people who live in the mountains and
      camp in village or tent conditions,' says the company's president
      Arkady Sahakyan.

      According to Sahakyan, the routes developed by the company allow any
      participant to turn back at any time and, if necessary, receive first
      aid. As mountaineers say, the goal of such tours is not only to reach
      the summit.

      `It is the whole way in which you pass mountainous rivers, lakes,
      canyons, caves, volcanic tectonic monuments. It is the study of flora
      and fauna, among which endemic species constitute a significant part,'
      says Sahakyan.

      `It is also possible to see pre-Christian monuments, many rock
      paintings as well as dragon-stones, fish-stones (rocks molded by
      nature and people) and celestial maps. In short, the choice is wide,
      whatever you want.'

      To walk such a historical-geographic road, you first have to pay. A
      three-day tour to Mt. Aragats or Geghama mountains, for example, costs
      $200-300 per person. Professional rock climber can cost three times as
      much for rock climbing.




      What if I find someone else when looking for you? My soul shivers as the idea invades my mind.

      Comment


      • #4
        SISIAN ON SHOW: HISTORY AND NATURE OFFER INSPIRING VIEWS

        By Arpi Harutyunyan
        ArmeniaNow Reporter

        `Sisian is a provincial town surrounded by `beauties' representing the
        history and culture of the area,' says Ashot Avagyan, a 47-year-old
        artist who has lived in the town since birth and believes Sisian has
        the potential to be a world-class tourist resort.

        Sisian, in Syunik marz, is 217 kilometers from Yerevan, 7 kilometers
        south of the Yerevan-Stepanakert highway. The town's population is
        close to 15,000 and it has been inhabited for more than 2,000 years.

        In the early Middle Ages it was known as the fortress settlement of
        Syunik. From 1st Century BC to the 9th Century the fortress served as
        the capital of an oldest Armenian princely dynasty of Sunis.

        This fact is evidence of the historical richness of the locale and
        tourists need at least a week's stay to commit all of the `beauties'
        of the region to memory.

        The climate and countryside are equal to the wealth of Sisian's
        cultural heritage. Summers are cool and mild and the Armenian heat
        does not threaten tourists here.

        Irving Massey, an 80-year-old New Yorker, is on vacation in Armenia
        with his wife Ann Colley. They learnt about Armenia through an
        Armenian friend who advised them to travel to the republic this year.

        `I am really enchanted by Armenia, especially Sisian. It is really
        very beautiful. There are many attractive sightseeing places. Besides,
        the people are very nice and welcoming to guests, ready to help in any
        matter,' he says.

        Ann Coley first of all mentions the comfort of the hotels and the
        healthiness of the food. And assures there is no lack of either in
        Sisian.

        `It is amazing, but there are almost all the conditions of a resort in
        this far-away town - clean comfortable hotel rooms, tasty food, clear
        air. The fruits and vegetables here are very tasty, because they are
        fresh and natural. We have already bought honey from Sisian and are
        going to take fruits with us.

        `Indeed we are impressed. If there is possibility we would like to
        come to Armenia once again to see all the historical riches of this
        country,' she says.

        Some kilometers to the north of Sisian are the Zorats (Warriors')
        stones, their history dating back 4,000 years. People say they are
        called Zorats for the stone sequence resembles a military
        unit. According to scientific hypothesis the ancient area of the
        Zorats stones once served as an observatory: people have followed the
        movement of the celestial bodies through its hand made
        holes. Scientist Paris Herouni, who has studied the area, calls it
        Armenia's Stonehenge.

        Ancient settlement walls, ancient mausoleums - dolmens and menhirs,
        are still there. According to legend, military chiefs and warriors are
        buried under the stone piles. There are traces of temples where
        sacrifices were once made.

        Close to Sisian are the picturesque views of Armenia's highest
        waterfall. The 18-meter Shaki waterfall has evolved from the flow of
        the River Vorotan.

        The Mount Ukhtasar (Place of Pilgrimage) famous for its petroglyphs is
        in this region too. Artistic works represent the life and the beliefs
        of farmers and cattle-breeders from the 5th to 2nd Milleniums
        BC. Local sculptors, artists, and silver craftsmen depict these
        ancient compositions in their works today.

        St. Vardan Church in Angeghakot 15 kilometers from Sisian is also
        worth a visit. Every year during the Vardavar festival, people make a
        pilgrimage to celebrate the day of General Vardan Mamikonyan, who died
        in 451 in the famous Vardanants war and is said to be buried here.

        On the edge of the Vorotan River gorge 10 kilometers east of Sisian is
        Vorotnavank, founded in the 4th Century by the first Catholicos Grigor
        the Illuminator. This place of worship has drawn believers since
        ancient times and it is said that those bitten by poisonous snakes can
        be healed by entering the temple.

        Portacar is also an ancient pilgrimage spot, some 13 kilometers from
        Sisian. It is a round basalt stone buried in the ground, with a
        conical center. In past times barren women were taken there and laid
        down on the stone to try to become fertile.

        The local waters are considered healthy too. People emphasize
        especially the hot mineral water streaming from below the naturally
        built Satan's Bridge (at 26 deg C).

        `Compared to other towns, Sisian has a big potential for tourism:
        numerous ancient places and historical buildings are not far away. The
        locale is noted also for its unique nature,' says Karen Hovhannisyan,
        head of the business and tourism center at the Sisian Municipality.

        Similar centers exist in 12 towns in Armenia with the aim of boosting
        tourism in the communities. The center has already prepared a CD about
        Sisian and there are plans to make a film on the sights and hotels of
        the region, as well as an internet site.

        The Sisian tourism information center was founded in October 2004 by
        the International Executive Service Center (IESC)
        organization. Explains information center officer Naira Sahakyan:
        `This center is created to serve those who want to travel the Sisian
        region and need to get answers to a number of questions beforehand:
        where to go, where to stay, where to eat, what to eat, etc.'

        The center has produced several information leaflets for tourists. It
        also sells pictures of the area, tapestry, terracotta jugs, small
        sculptures, and silver jewelry with petroglyphic images.

        Today, three hotels function in Sisian, ranging in price from $5 to
        $30 a night. Another will open in the coming months. Besides, there
        are houses with accommodation for rent, where tourists are given the
        most comfortable rooms including fresh, home-made breakfast.

        Meals typical to the Sisian region are served in the hotels and
        restaurants - paskatan (Armenian soup), fried asparagus,
        mushrooms. The method of service is also distinctive - food is
        presented by waiters dressed in national costumes accompanied by
        relevant music.

        `The town of Sisian, besides its goods and history, also has a unique
        energy. All the tourists feel it, especially when they get on top of
        the mountains, breathe clean air and enjoy the hot mineral water on
        their bodies,' explains Avagyan, the artist.

        For further information about Sisian contact the Tourism and Business
        centre of the Municipality of Sisian. Phone: (+374 2830) 33 30, Cell:
        (091) 20 17 31, [email protected]




        What if I find someone else when looking for you? My soul shivers as the idea invades my mind.

        Comment


        • #5
          NATURAL HIGH: ODZUN MARRIES BEAUTY AND HISTORY IN SPECTACULAR FASHION

          By Gayane Mkrtchyan
          ArmeniaNow Reporter

          To feel the Lori area in your palm, to merge with its sky and nature
          one should go up to the village of Odzun, 1,150 meters above the sea
          level, off the highway running from Vanadzor to Alaverdi.

          Ashot Dzavaryan, who drives a minibus between Odzun and Yerevan, says:
          `Those visiting the village for the first time always have a question
          - What were the people thinking when they decided to settle down here?
          But they answer it themselves when they look around: here is a wonder
          of the world!'

          Odzun is situated on a high plateau near the ravine on the left bank
          of the river Debed. In front of it are the Chatin Dagh mountains
          (meaning Difficult Mountains) while above Odzun are the mountains of
          Tsengo, Salart and Golurt covered with virgin forests. To the right of
          the village is the well-known Mount Lalvar, which means the flower
          mountain.

          `I would go to other countries only to be able to compare them with
          our nature and countryside. Ours is the best,' says 65-year-old
          locksmith from Odzun Seyran Hovasapyan.

          One of his ancestors, priest Hovasap, was a builder of Odzun's domed
          basilica church (6th Century). His ashes are located near the northern
          gate.

          Construction of the church was started by the Zakaryan rulers, who are
          considered Odzun's first residents. Seyran says that the village
          consisted of 30 tribes, of which only 7 or 8 remain now. During the
          Russian-Persian war in 1765, some people from Karabakh settled in
          Odzun.

          Today, 5,000 people live here. Villagers say that Odzun's name means
          `to consecrate or sanctify'. A villager, Arsen Titanyan, says it was
          also called Uzunlar.

          `The houses were built in a direct line to the edge of the ravine,
          like a string,' he says.

          Seyran says that life here warms up in summer as the village fills
          with tourists. During Soviet years, they exceeded the local population
          by 1.5 times. Now again, tourists visit often and pay to stay
          overnight in villagers' houses. Many prefer to stay in the Odzun
          guest house two kilometers from the village near a forest. From there,
          guests have a full view over the village.

          `The guests of our village are reluctant to leave. The local
          mountains, countryside, waters, air - it's a different world!' says
          the minibus driver.

          Monuments from different ages can be seen everywhere in Odzun and
          surrounding areas. A sculpture to Smbat Bagratuni stands in the center
          of the village near the church, and there are two medieval cemeteries
          with numerous tombstones and khachkars.

          One of Odzun's treasures is its life-giving waters. One source is in
          the forest in front of the holiday hotel. Hotel worker Andranik says
          that many sick people come here and recover with the aid of these
          waters. Seyran says people from as far as America and Australia come
          for the water and take it home in vessels.

          Still today clay pipes are preserved in the village through which
          centuries ago the people of Odzun channeled the water from the
          mountains to the village. They discovered its curative properties in
          this way:

          `Sixteen hundred years ago, Queen Parandzem was passing by with a
          large army. The army made a stopover in Odzun and an epidemic broke
          out. They began to drink water from Odzun's springs and the epidemic
          stopped. Queen Parandzem prayed and said: `Thanks God, you have
          bestowed life-giving water on us.'

          The guest house's 42-year-old chef Geghetsik Hovhannisyan says that
          besides water the area is rich in various useful herbs - thyme, mint,
          cat thyme, motherwort, milfoil.

          `We always treat our guests to Odzun's famous thyme khashlama. It was
          handed down to us by our forefathers. It is best made of lamb. We cut
          it into pieces, pour cold water on it and put it on the fire. Then we
          add tomato and pepper. Five or ten minutes before taking it off the
          fire, we add thyme,' explains Geghetsik.

          She gets down to her job and cooks meals from clean natural rural
          products. Butter, eggs, matsun, vegetables, cheese, sour cream - all
          this is purchased from the village. Many tourists come to buy things
          from villagers.

          Home-baked bread is sold everywhere in Odzun. Unlike other regions of
          Armenia, lavash is not baked here. Shop assistant Lusik explains:
          `This bread is baked in special bakeries made of bricks. Every house
          has a `bakery'. They bake 15 bread loafs at a time and eat them for
          several days.'

          The gate of Odzun's domed church is closed. The watchman, 50-year-old
          Garnik Davtyan, comes out of the house next door and unlocks the
          gate. He also acts as a guide.

          `The church was reconstructed in the 8th Century by Hovhan Odznetsi,
          and during the Soviet times it was turned into a storehouse. My mother
          worked as the manager of that storehouse. I remember I was a little
          kid and they took out the parchments and burned them in the yard,'
          says Garnik.

          Generally, the church is open on Sundays when a priest comes from
          Alaverdi. Garnik says it has a secret tunnel, used to protect priests
          against enemies.

          The secret 1.5-kilometer path towards the south-east of the village
          leads to the Surb Nshan Church on the plane near the ravine. Arsen,
          standing at the edge of the ravine, points to numerous holes in the
          rocks. He says that descending the ravine is dangerous, but there are
          special village guides who serve tourists.

          Garnik recalls that last year a group of tourists wanted to go through
          one of the openings, but after 30 or 40 meters they backed off as the
          way was closed.

          Surb Nshan's day is marked on the first Sunday of November, when
          people come on a pilgrimage and at night make 15 to 20 fires. Seyran
          says that Surb Nshan was a brave warlord and that it was in honor of
          his victories that the church in his name was built in the ravine. The
          monastery of Horomair was built later in the upper parts of the
          ravine.

          `They were built in places difficult of access, even when you look at
          them from a distance you become terrified. But it was done for a
          reason, to characterize the dauntless spirit of our people,' says
          Seyran.

          The Chatin Dagh mountain range in front of the monastery where there
          is Kuletavank monastery. Seyran says that it is difficult to go up
          there, but during the medieval wars they communicated from Kuletavank
          with Surb Nshan using colored flags.

          Besides forests the surroundings here are covered with motley carpets
          of flowers. White ox-eye daisies add splashes of white under the sun
          and it looks as if snow fell in certain places on the slopes of Lori
          mountains.

          >From the heights of the holiday hotel, one can watch the sunset
          falling on the village, mountains, and forest. The perfect combination
          of nature is divine.

          Geghetsik says: `Early in the morning and in the evening the air
          become twice as clear. The air here is very sharp; we have villagers
          who cannot stay at this height.'

          White clouds gather on Lalvar. They say here that Stepanavan's airport
          decides on flights according to the weather on the mountain.

          It begins to rain, but the sunset proudly continues to preserve its
          colors. Silence falls, colors become denser, only the outlines of
          mountains and clouds embracing each other are visible. Somewhere in
          the distance a cuckoo continues its call unabated.

          `Every day here is different. It is a fairytale which ends and begins
          anew,' says Geghetsik.




          What if I find someone else when looking for you? My soul shivers as the idea invades my mind.

          Comment


          • #6
            DRINKING WITH LEGENDS: WATERS OF ARDVI FLOW WITH HISTORY

            By Gayane Mkrtchyan
            ArmeniaNow Reporter

            Ardvi...

            >From the Odzun upland there is a view of different forest paths that
            seem to go all the way up and disappear in the blue sky. People in
            Odzun readily explain which of them goes where.

            `Tourists come, leave their things here, only taking one rucksack and
            go up, often they camp there for the night in the open air. But I'll
            say that everybody first of all hurries to the neighboring village to
            see the famous `Odzi Port' (Snake's Navel) of Ardvi,' explains
            30-year-old Andranik from Odzun.

            Ardvi is 5-6 kilometers away from Odzun and 9 kilometers from
            Alaverdi. Like other villages in Lori, it is surrounded with
            mountainous woods and multicolored flowers. Single-story houses with
            tiled roofs stand in a small plain. The village seems uninhabited and
            it is difficult to find anyone who will talk about it.

            Someone riding a bicycle appears and says: `Go to that house, Gevorg
            Kalantaryan lives there, he knows everything.'

            Grandfather Gevorg, 78, seems to have been waiting for guests. He
            readily starts to describe and show us the noteworthy places of the
            village. He says that in the past the village was called Melikagyugh
            or Melikakyand. However, a legend has it that when Catholicos Hovhan
            of Odzun (Odznetsi) left the village of Odzun (he was the only
            Armenian Catholicos who handed over his throne to someone else during
            his tenure and moved on to construction work) he damned this village
            and after coming to the village of Melik said: `Artvi' - meaning: `I
            have traded Odzun for Melik.'

            Hovhan Odznetsi built a hermitage and a church in Ardvi in 718-728, a
            little way from the village. The monastery named in honor of Surb
            Hovhannes or Hovhan Odznetsi is built of large, irregular
            stones. There is a belfry near the church. It is here that Hovhan
            Odzneti's stone sarcophagus is situated. The monastic complex nearby
            silently overlooks the princely dynastic cemetery of the Kalantaryans.

            `The gravestones are quite valuable, it is clear that rich people of
            their time are buried here. One of the gravestones was brought here by
            a well-known philanthropist Alexander Mantashov for one of the
            Kalantaryans,' grandfather Gevorg says with pride.

            In 1902, Melik Kalantaryan repaired the church built by Hovhan
            Odznetsi, planting pear trees around it. Of all the grandchildren and
            great grandchildren of the three brothers - Melik, Yegor and Kalantar
            Kalantaryan of princely dynasty, only Gevorg remains in the village
            today. He is one of the last great grandsons of Kalantar Kalantaryan.
            Today he lives in his tumbledown ancestral house.

            `In 1937 (during a period of Stalinist terror) some of our dynasty
            were exiled and the rest were gunned down. Ardvi was also an estate of
            Loris-Melikyans, one of Lori's meliks,' he says.

            The Melikyans turned the hillsides near Ardvi into steppes (to
            facilitate cultivation of land) and it was later called the Melikyan
            orchard. The Hoveyans also lived here. Grandfather Gevorg points out
            the Hoveyan orchards on the opposite hillside, next to the
            Kalantaryans'. During Soviet times, all of their property was
            confiscated as they were considered to be kulaks.

            The village of Ardvi, which has just 180 residents, surprises an
            outsider with its five separate cemeteries. Grandfather Gevorg says
            that it is a tradition since ancient times that each family here has a
            separate cemetery.

            Then gradually our guide leads us to Odzi Port.

            `It is famous Vishapadzor, Odzi Port is here,' he says and points at
            the dark layer that originated inside the rocks, with water flowing
            from beneath them.

            The image of a famous snake is seen at once. Grandfather Gevorg
            expands his explanations, showing the two heads of the snake and its
            tail. Drinking water from the spring for a moment you suddenly shiver
            as you feel the gaze of this wise creature very close to you.

            The snake's story is connected with a legend that comes from times
            immemorial, and about which almost every Ardvi villager speaks with
            pride.

            They say that a woman was crying for help after meeting dragon
            snakes. Hovhan Odznetsi sent his disciples to rescue her. But the
            seven of them went and did not come back. Hovhan Odznetsi went
            himself. He was a man of God and smote the snake with a stick, saying:
            `Let medicinal water come out of your navel, and you, snake, become a
            stone.'

            And so it happened, but the woman turned to stone, too. Gevorg says:
            `The image of the woman on those rocks was once clearly seen, but in
            1939 the villagers destroyed it and built cattle-sheds using the
            stones.'

            He believes that Odzi Port is a volcanic mystery. It was Hovhan
            Odznetsi who carried out large-scale earth-moving work near the
            spring, clearing it of big stones. The Geological Institute of Yerevan
            has confirmed that the water flowing from Odzi Port, which covers a
            space of five hectares, contains gold and silver.

            `Many come and take this water for health reasons. One of my relatives
            from Sisian, who had been sick for 13 years with a skin disease,
            stayed here for a month, drank the water, took baths, and recovered
            fully,' says Gevorg.

            But he complains that people come to the village, look around and
            leave, unaware of its rich history and beautiful legends.

            `You are the first person who approached me and I feel very
            flattered,' he says.

            There are many springs in Ardvi, the most famous of them being Shek,
            Totkajur and Tsnkoyaglukh. However, the old village was much lower
            than today's Ardvi, where the ruined Karmir Monastery stands. Gevorg
            says that there is no cross in that monastery, which he says
            originated during pagan times.

            Those leaving Ardvi cannot but return. This village draws people back
            with magnetic force.

            `Those who drink the Odzi Port water are tempted for good, and they
            keep coming back. One can see the same tourists here the next year,'
            says grandfather Gevorg.




            What if I find someone else when looking for you? My soul shivers as the idea invades my mind.

            Comment


            • #7
              RIDING THE RANGE: HORSE CLUB OFFERS RELAXATION AND CHALLENGE

              By Marianna Grigoryan
              ArmeniaNow Reporter

              The woman strokes the horses then dons her riding uniform and
              hat. Soon the clatter rings out of horse, human and nature united.

              `Here I get everything that I can't find anywhere else,' Diana
              Khopshanosova, a 38-year-old architect, says with girlish
              enthusiasm. `I have found a place where wonderful people work and
              where I can fully enjoy my rest.'

              Khopshanosova has been coming to Ayrudzi with her children for four
              summers already and says she has found a place of true rest.

              `I have loved horses since childhood and this club gives me the
              opportunity to feel the harmony between nature, animals and people, to
              love and to be close to animals,' she says, stroking one of the huge
              dogs that also live at the club, as it stands on its hind legs and
              stretches its snout to her.

              The rhythmic pace of Zhenshen, Malibu, Khalif and other noble horses
              spreads like music inside the riding circle. A bit further, the breeze
              carries their neighing to the caf� set under a mulberry tree whose
              ink-dark berries drop down one by one.

              The Ayrudzi riders' club summer camp opens its doors to visitors each
              July (until September) as the mulberries ripen and the summer heat in
              Yerevan heads towards the unbearable. Based in Ashtarak some 20
              kilometers from Yerevan, the club marks its 25th anniversary this
              year.

              It was founded in 1980 by a group of students and professors from
              Yerevan State Polytechnic Institute to preserve and restore Armenian
              traditions of horseback riding, riding games, songs and dances. It was
              named Ayrudzi after the Armenian cavalry that existed in past times.

              According to Gagik Paradyan, Ayrudzi's president, the club did not
              have its own horses in the beginning and the group of 25 riders
              wandered through the villages with zourna (Armenian national wood-wind
              musical instrument similar to flute) and dhol (Armenian drum) giving
              spontaneous performances on horses rented from the Ddmashen stud-farm.

              `Wherever Ayrudzi went the riders would change the monotonous life of
              the villagers with their performances, putting them in a holiday mood
              and raising their interest towards our national culture and horses,'
              says Paradyan setting his trademark cowboy hat straight, a hat that
              always completes his appearance.

              Today Ayrudzi already has its own tradition and history, decorating
              many cultural events. It has also partly turned into a pedigree
              stud-farm; it is home to more than 20 noble horses.

              Each valuable horse at the club has its pedigree certificate - a
              passport that includes its name, age, sex, participation in
              competitions and the prizes won.

              The club is decorated with various facilities of horse-back riding,
              photos of the past and present.

              `In 1989 we moved to this relatively comfortable place in Ashtarak. In
              those years this place was a rocky steppe,' says Paradyan, showing
              with pride the results of long years of efforts in this tiny and
              verdant resort where there are apricot, apple, cherry trees and other
              fruit and decorative plants in a territory surrounded by bushes.

              He says: `Heaven on Earth is on the back of the horse, and the rest is
              here.'

              If, in choosing a resort to hide from the summer heat, you prefer
              comfort and luxury, then Ayrudzi is not for you. This is a place
              where people visit to actively relax, admire nature, and enjoy
              conversations with like-minded people while enjoying the pleasure of
              riding horses.

              Visitors to Ayrudzi represent various social groups. The club's photo
              and letter album tells the story of visits by famous artists and
              intellectuals, and ordinary people.

              `Visitors come from different places,' says its financial director
              Anna Paradyan, Gagik's wife. `Our guests come not only from Armenia,
              but also from Japan, Germany, Austria, Sweden and other countries.'

              A one day stay in the club costs 75$ (including the so-called Radial
              March).

              For an overnight stay visitors are offered lodgings in small houses at
              the left edge of the club. In the middle is the stud with a ring
              provided for horse riding. On the right are the caf� and a
              discoth�que.

              Food is also environmentally clean. The provider of milk is Tunjik,
              the club's only cow.

              Ayrudzi offers various activities to guests. They can learn the
              techniques of horse riding, enjoy a rest under the trees, eat and
              drink in the caf�, swim in the pool, dance at the disco, or choose
              another more challenging program.

              This `challenging program' is horse riding that lasts for two to three
              hours and is called `Radial March'. Seven riders trek from the club,
              cross the Karmravor Church, pass the old bridge, go through the Kasakh
              gorge, then pass the old bath-house, and ride along stretches of the
              River Kasakh, before returning by the same route.

              A second riding tour, lasting 3-5 hours, includes the new bridge in
              Ashtarak, the Kasakh gorge, the village of Karbi with its church and
              the church in Mughni. Visitors are given riding kit and lessons on how
              to treat horses gently.

              `Many visitors express a willingness to take part in rides lasting
              several hours or even days, but horse riding tours are not an easy
              thing and many can not stand it. That is why we have chosen an average
              tour lasting 1-3 or 3-5 hours,' says Paradyan. `We have several types
              of tours and visitors can make their own suggestions too.'



              What if I find someone else when looking for you? My soul shivers as the idea invades my mind.

              Comment


              • #8
                FUTURE HOTSPOT?: ARMENIA 2020 ANALYSIS PREDICTS BRIGHT FUTURE FOR
                TOURISM IF THE RIGHT DECISIONS ARE MADE

                By Julia Hakobyan
                ArmeniaNow Reporter

                What are the chances that Armenia will become an attractive tourism
                destination with over million visitors per year? According to
                research by the Armenia 2020 Project, they are pretty high.

                Armenia 2020 is a scenario building-initiative about the country's
                possible future development funded privately by a group of Armenian
                businessmen around the world. Early this year, it inaugurated its
                project on `Armenian tourism sector growth potential and required
                action'.

                This research was conducted by McKinsey & Company, one of the world's
                leading strategic management consultancies. Its findings were
                presented to government, public policymakers, non-governmental
                organizations, tour agencies and the private sector.

                The 99-paragraph study embraced a detailed analysis of Armenia's
                existing tourism capacity and made 12 key recommendations for action
                up to 2020. (The report can be read at
                http://www.armenia2020.org/index.php...ies/researches)

                Armenia 2020 suggests that the strategy, if implemented, could
                increase tourism's total contribution to the country's GDP three-fold
                by 2010 to $500 million. By 2020, tourism could account for 10 per
                cent of Armenia's economy, making it one of the largest sectors and a
                significant source of foreign income.

                The research predicts that in the absence of active policy Armenia's
                tourism market will stagnate after 2010, and travelers will be mainly
                exotica-seekers and Diaspora visitors. To avoid this outcome, the
                Government should conduct an aggressive marketing policy.

                The recommendations suggest several priorities for development of the
                sphere, including recognizing tourism as one of the state's key
                economic priorities, improving access to the country, and better
                hospitality labor training.

                The experts say that Armenia is off the global tourism map at present,
                with a majority of tourists associating the country with insecurity in
                the Caucasus region. Their report recommends that the Government spend
                between 1 and 1.5 per cent of expected income from next year's
                predicted visitors on promoting Armenia's image internationally.

                They argue that Armenia fits into eight major categories of tourism,
                such as religion, nature, history/culture, urban culture, health, sun
                and beach, mountain skiing and adventure. But a priorization of assets
                in relation to their significance for foreign tourists is necessary,
                since it is not economically feasible to develop them simultaneously.

                `We have to realize that some places even believed by people to be
                tourism destinations will never drastically attract visitors,' says
                Artashes Kazakhetsyan, the Armenia2020 Project Director in
                Yerevan. `Tsakhkadsor will never be regarded as the best
                mountain-skiing area in the world, because people who go to mountains
                want to see pure nature and will find cement factories emitting smoke
                there.

                `Sevan basin, despite its marvelous beauty, is not a proper place for
                sun and beach travelers, even if Armenians are fond of spending
                summers there and more luxurious hotels will be built. We have to take
                account of Sevan's cold water and short sunny season which in no way
                can promote the development of sun and beach tourism there.'

                By 2020, historical and cultural themes are predicted to attract the
                greatest number of tourists, some 500,000 annually. Nature and
                adventure holidays will draw 100,000 visitors per year, while health
                and urban culture trips have the potential to attract some 70,000
                annually. Religious holidays, though very attractive, will remain a
                niche market bringing Armenia perhaps 25,000 tourists.

                Diaspora Armenians today make up over 80 percent of tourists to the
                country. By 2020, Armenia should become a preferred destination for
                European, Russian and East Asian tourists interested in history,
                religion and nature.

                In 2004, some 268,000 people visited Armenia. The average tourist
                stayed for 10 days. A factor influenced by the large number of ethnic
                travelers who visit relatives and tend to stay for a long period.

                By comparison, in 2002, an average tourist stayed in Croatia 5.7 days,
                in Czech Republic 3.2 and in Lebanon only 2.6. The scenario says that
                increasing the proportion of non-Diaspora visitors to Armenia will
                result in a declining length of stay.

                The research calls attention to the need for easier access to
                Armenia. Lebanon and Israel, Armenia's direct competitors in the
                history and culture market, provide much better access for western
                tourists. Access from Western Europe and the Middle East must become
                cheaper and more frequent if Armenia is to compete for mainstream
                tourists.

                Average daily spending is low in Armenia, at $68, reflecting again the
                large proportion of travelers who stay with relatives. In Czech
                Republic the average tourist spends $200 per day, and in Syria $166.

                By 2020, average spending is expected to increase significantly with
                the growing number of non-Diaspora leisure tourists. If a million
                people visit Armenia by then for an average stay of five days, daily
                spending will reach $108.

                For an effective increase in tourism by 2020, Armenia needs to invest
                some $2.4 billion in the sector, or $150 million per year. The
                investments should focus heavily on accommodation and other
                infrastructure.

                `The government's policy on tourism development is like a multi-story
                construction site which works without a plan,' says
                Kazakhetsyan. `Someone puts stones, others make cement mortar, but the
                work is not effective because it is disorganized.

                `What we suggest is a proper study of the tourism sector, with clear
                guidance on the work, what should be done and by whom. We believe that
                it can promote the country's economic prosperity.'

                Kazakhetsyan says that international recognition of Armenia as a
                country of tourism requires the best marketing strategies in the
                world's most prominent magazines and TV companies.

                `When I see the tourism ads of some countries, like `Malaysia- Truly
                Asia' or `Bulgaria- Fun and Sun', I think that Armenia can also have
                its tourism brand, for example `Come to a different place'. We should
                not undervalue the effect of these methods, besides it will correspond
                to reality because Armenia is really different.'

                The Armenia2020 Project describes the country as the first Christian
                state, with monuments dating back to Neolithic times, three UNESCO
                world heritage sites, a unique nature and architectural monuments.

                It hopes that the right state strategy based on their research will
                create the opportunity for a million people to verify that.



                What if I find someone else when looking for you? My soul shivers as the idea invades my mind.

                Comment


                • #9
                  PROUD PAST: GYUMRI DEFIES TIME AND TRAGEDY TO PRESERVE ITS HERITAGE

                  By Gayane Abrahamyan
                  ArmeniaNow Reporter

                  `If it were not for the sense of humor and honor of the people of
                  Gyumri our town would never recover,' says stonemason Margar proudly
                  as he lays another paving slab on the street just as, a century ago,
                  his ancestors used to repair the streets of Gyumri with tufa and
                  basalt.

                  Margar, 63, says it the same sense of pride that has given Gyumri six
                  renovated museums even though many people continue to live in
                  temporary `domiks'.

                  `It is the history of our city, our pride, we should keep our Kumayri
                  the way it was,' he says.

                  The old city of Alexandropol, that in the 19th Century was the
                  wealthiest and most beautiful city in the Caucasus after Tbilisi, has
                  preserved some of its beauty even today. The central part of Gyumri,
                  the old Kumayri, is the only city in Armenia that has preserved a
                  truly Armenian character, a complete historical city from the 18th and
                  19th Centuries.

                  The part of the town called the Kumayri Historical Preserve would be
                  better named `a museum under the open sky'. Historical Kumayri is a
                  territory of nearly 1,000 hectares with more than 1,600 historic
                  buildings, luxurious villas of Gyumri's wealthy people and four
                  churches.

                  These charming buildings that stretch across narrow streets, their
                  windows carrying sculptured decorations and cornices, stood against
                  the devastating earthquakes of 1926 and of course 1988.

                  `They have dismantled all the old buildings in Yerevan, deleted the
                  whole history, but we will keep every stone with our blood and pass
                  them to the next generation,' says Vladimir Simonyan, a historian from
                  Gyumri.

                  Two or three stories high, made of black Artik tufa stone with
                  gorgeous gates and facades, each of these buildings has its unique
                  history, for example the first restaurant of Gyumri, located just at
                  the center of old Kumayri, with arched ceilings and wooden decorated
                  balconies.

                  `My grandpa used to say that this restaurant was not for everyone. To
                  enter it you should gain special honor and respect in the city, he
                  said everything was brought from Europe to this restaurant beginning
                  from the table cloth to the table sets, they wouldn't even allow
                  carriages to stop by the building, only the gorgeous phaetons were
                  allowed in this part of the street,' says 60-years-old Arshavir
                  Grigoryan.

                  This place, so honored in recent times, became a slaughterhouse and
                  prison in Soviet times. Grigoryan remembers that in those days people
                  avoided passing by the building of the restaurant: `We were children
                  and were afraid of the building; we were told the rich people -
                  dispossessed kulaks - were killed here and their souls were in this
                  building and wandered like ghosts, crying in the night.'

                  The Varpetats Street, renamed in 2003, is one of the favorite streets
                  of the old city, where the house-museums of the two great Armenian
                  writers Hovhannes Shiraz and Avetik Isahakyan stand next to each
                  other; a bit farther away, actor Mher Mkrtchyan's museum will open
                  soon and on the parallel street is the museum of arts of the
                  Aslamazyan sisters.

                  Every Armenian should see the gorgeous house where Isahakyan lived,
                  should see the fireplace by which he was born, the wooden decorated
                  lullaby and the table where his poems were first born.

                  The house-museum is decorated just as it looked when Isahakyan lived
                  there. Like sacred relics almost everything is kept here, starting
                  from an embroidered table cloth and pillow case to the writer's
                  favorite coffee maker and the huge European-style mirror with its
                  two-meter high wooden sculptures that reflected the face of the
                  popular writer.

                  `The building, from 1828, suffered a lot from the earthquake and
                  everything was miraculously saved. In 2002 the museum was
                  reconstructed and reopened with financing from the state budget,' says
                  Susanna Mnatsakanyan, the director.

                  >From the house-museum of Isahakyan the steps take you to the Shiraz
                  museum. Shiraz did not live in this luxurious building, made from red
                  and black tufa stone in 1868. For an orphan, who lost his mother on
                  the roads of refuge, this street became only a place for begging for
                  bread.

                  `When Shiraz came to Gyumri to take part in the opening of the
                  house-museum of Ishakyan he said smiling `When I die, will you open a
                  museum for me too? If you open, let my museum be in this house, I have
                  dreamt a lot to live in this house in my childhood,' says Hasmik
                  Gyadukyan, director of the memorial museum of Shiraz.

                  Upon the decision of the government, families living in this building
                  were moved into another place and the house was converted into a
                  museum of the writer.

                  The art and craft railing and the iron gates are especially noticeable
                  in the rich buildings of the decorated villas in the Kumayri
                  Preserve. Most are handmade by master Onik, the city's famous
                  blacksmith.

                  Master Onik made household equipment, gates, chandeliers and candle
                  holders in the houses of rich people. His candelabrum for 60 candles
                  made in a unique style with Armenian decoration is included in the
                  permanent exhibition of the Yerevan Museum of People's Art. His sons
                  Mkrtich and Samvel continue his work.

                  `We try to keep his style and fame, we also work with new ideas to
                  gain a place for our works alongside Onik's in the city,' says Samvel.

                  The brothers have recently made a huge chandelier for the Hakob
                  Mtsbinetsi newly built church in Gyumri. In their dark, smoky forge
                  shop the sketches of the wonderful chandelier are stuck on the wall
                  with the `I confirm' signature of His Holiness Catholicos Garegin the
                  Second.

                  The fame of this small forge shop spread outside the city long ago and
                  now master Onik's heirs receive orders from Moscow and abroad, as well
                  as cooperating with the Tufenkyan Company.

                  `It is inherited, it's in the blood, we have grown up forging metal
                  and the education of professional artists has increased our work to a
                  higher level,' says Samvel as the formless piece of iron is turned
                  into a twisted and flexible decoration in his thin, sinewy hands.

                  Gyumri's people are noted not only for their cute humor, love of art
                  and honor, but also for their delicious cuisine. It is only here that
                  one will be served eggs roasted om charcoals, harisa made in the
                  fireplace, or a Gyumri summer Chanakh (a bean dish with beef and
                  vegetables) beside meat and vegetable barbeques. (Besides meat and
                  vegetable barbeques the visitors can only taste a special barbeque

                  The people of Gyumri are known also for their sweet bakery -
                  shakar-lokhum and pakhlava with 40 or 80 layers. Today the most famous
                  shaker-lokhum maker in the city is Tereza Grigoryan, who says the most
                  important thing is to do everything with your soul and success will
                  follow.

                  `If you work unenthusiastically, the dough will not be good. For me,
                  to host guests is not to buy something from the shop to put on the
                  table. You need to spend effort and make it yourself and that is the
                  respect and value of hosting.'

                  If important and honorable guests are expected in the city, people ask
                  Tereza at once to make the traditional shaker- lokhum of Gyumri.

                  Traditional Gyumri cuisine can be tried in an appropriate atmosphere
                  in the `Phaeton Alec' restaurant on the ground floor of the Gyumri
                  Museum of People's Architecture and Lifestyle, in the old kitchen of
                  the house that once belonged to the Dzitoghtsyans - one of the richest
                  families of the 19th Century city.

                  An 18th century carriage with a phaeton driver meets the guests by the
                  door of the restaurant-museum; inside is the arch like salon with tufa
                  walls, and old-style chairs decorated with century old pitchers. The
                  glass surface of the tables reveals the household facilities of
                  18th-19th century Gyumri, embroidered table covers and chased forks
                  and knives.

                  `Phaeton Alec' has hosted the President of the Republic of Armenia and
                  other high ranking guests. Chef Ashkharbek Yedigaryan says the most
                  pleasant visit was by the singer Charles Aznavour.

                  A vivid evidence of the Gyumri hospitability is an invitation to
                  dinner from 1904 kept in the museum in Dzitoghtsyans' house, where the
                  menu is set out in every detail with a postscript `come without a
                  present'.

                  Gyumri is especially crowded on August 15th, Assumption Day, when
                  numerous pilgrims from various regions of Armenia and particularly
                  Javakhk come to the Astvatsatsin Church to see and pray before the
                  ancient icon of the the Virgin Mary.

                  Father Tatul Hakobyan says the icon of the Virgin Mary, according to
                  records, was painted in year 34 AD by Luke the Evangelist and brought
                  to Gyumri in 1830.

                  `The icon is the guardian of our city and of the whole Shirak region,
                  we have been saved from so many tragedies by praying to this
                  image. Many, many pilgrimages have been made to the power of this
                  icon; it is this very power that helped people in Gyumri to withstand
                  sorrow and to smile and create again today,' says Father Hakobyan.

                  For further information about Gyumri contact the Shirak
                  Competitiveness Center Fund of Gyumri at (+ 374 312) 2 16 48,
                  [email protected] , www.shirakinfo.com



                  What if I find someone else when looking for you? My soul shivers as the idea invades my mind.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    SHOWING YOU AROUND: YOUNG MANAGERS TRAIN TO LEAD ARMENIA'S TOURISM
                    REVOLUTION

                    By Mariam Badalyan
                    ArmeniaNow Reporter

                    Arpi Dallakian, a third year student at the Armenian Institute of
                    Tourism, feels a heavy responsibility towards her profession, because
                    she believes it is the key to Armenia's future prosperity.

                    Arpi had already graduated from nursing college when, in 2002, she was
                    attracted to the idea of a career as a tourism manager.

                    `I had no idea there could be a specialized institution in tourism,'
                    she says. `I could have ended up choosing to study economics at
                    university, but I was lucky to come across a newspaper ad for the
                    institute and decided to try.'

                    In 2002 there were three institutions offering degrees in tourism and
                    services management -Moscow State University of Services, the Armenian
                    Slavic University and the newly opened Armenian Institute of Tourism,
                    all three being joint ventures between Armenia and Russia.

                    Two years ago another university - the European Regional Academy of
                    Armenia - opened a faculty offering a degree in tourism management.

                    `Being a small country with a shortage of minerals Armenia has but one
                    choice for developing its economy,' says Mushegh Asoyan, rector of the
                    Moscow State University of Services in Armenia. `That choice is the
                    development of a tourism industry, for which qualified specialists in
                    the field of services are critical.'

                    The Moscow University of Service was the first to offer a degree in
                    tourism management and related services. So far, it and the Armenian
                    Slavic University have produced a combined total of 79 graduates.

                    Currently, 750 students are enrolled in tourism management and related
                    courses at all four institutions.

                    `Today there is a shortage of human resources in the tourism
                    business,' says Robert Minasyan, rector of the Armenian Institute of
                    Tourism. `Existing specialists are mostly self-taught with an outdated
                    Soviet approach. No sphere will develop without a continuous supply of
                    young specialists.'

                    `The best indicator of demand is that most of our graduates have
                    already found jobs, `Asoyan says. `Even our graduate students get jobs
                    during their internship at different tour companies.'

                    Often agencies themselves apply to the universities with an offer to
                    take students for internships with a view to keeping one or two in
                    permanent positions.

                    The courses at all four universities have been developed to fit the
                    Armenian tourism environment. Along with general courses on marketing,
                    management, economics and a great deal of internship, the future
                    managers of tourism get specialized knowledge: 3-4 languages, history
                    of Armenia, hotel and restaurant business, transportation management,
                    geography of international tour centers, professional ethics, guiding
                    and organizing tour services. There is even a course at the Moscow
                    University of Services on valeology - a science on health care and
                    first aid. Students write a diploma paper and pass internship
                    according to the narrow specialization they have chosen.

                    The universities do their best to stimulate enthusiasm in students
                    through various competitions. This summer, those with excellent
                    knowledge will be rewarded with an internship of two to three weeks
                    with tour companies abroad.

                    Although optimistic about the education they offer, the rectors are
                    critical of state policy towards the tourism industry. Asoyan says
                    educating specialists is the priority, but there must also be
                    well-preserved historical monuments, and a network of good quality
                    roads served by petrol stations and food points. All of this would
                    enable tour firms to operate freely and bring money to the country.

                    `The Government declared tourism a top priority for Armenia,' Asoyan
                    says. `However, no program for developing the sphere has been drawn
                    up. Today we have enough luxurious business class hotels yet continue
                    to build more. But tourists are not interested in expensive lodgings
                    and we will lose them unless they find something suited to their
                    pockets.'

                    Minasyan says Armenia has potential for developing tourism types
                    beyond the simple historical-cultural tours.

                    `Ecotourism, health tourism, wine tours may well be established in
                    Armenia. However, these potential markets may remain untapped unless
                    the Government targets them in a unified program,' he says.

                    `The State's wrong approach can be observed in the recent law on
                    licensing tour guides. According to that law, tour- guides must pass a
                    written test to get a license for the rest of their lives.

                    `Neither their specialized education, nor abilities in foreign
                    languages, nor even their presentation skills are considered. This
                    means that we may deal with a tour-guide who speaks no foreign
                    language, who cannot present the material yet claims to have a
                    license.'

                    Araik Vardanyan, head of the Union of Incoming Tour Operators of
                    Armenia, thinks tourism education needs a systematic approach, just
                    like the industry.

                    `It is good that we now have a choice in tourism education, which
                    provides the sphere with young and promising specialists and creates
                    competition among them,' he says. `However, there is no unified
                    education program developed by the state to show its targeted approach
                    towards the tourism industry.'

                    Irrespective of the present situation, Arpi Dallakyan looks forward to
                    her future career with enthusiasm. She has decided to concentrate on
                    ecotourism and hopes she will be able to open her own firm to
                    represent her country to visitors in the way that she imagines best.



                    What if I find someone else when looking for you? My soul shivers as the idea invades my mind.

                    Comment

                    Working...
                    X