ARMENIANOW.COM on TOURING in ARMENIA
Administration Address: 26 Parpetsi St., No 9
Phone: +(374 1) 532422
Email: info@armenianow.com
Internet:
Technical Assistance: (For technical assistance please contact to
Babken Juharyan)
Email: babken@armenianow.com
ICQ#: 97152052
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
and
e13/home/index.htm
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 café 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
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.
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.
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.
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, infcent@yahoo.com
NATURAL HIGH: ODZUN MARRIES BEAUTY AND HISTORY IN SPECTACULAR FASHION
By Gayane Lazarian
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.
DRINKING WITH LEGENDS: WATERS OF ARDVI FLOW WITH HISTORY
By Gayane Lazarian
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.
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 café 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 café and a
discothèque.
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 café, 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.’
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
)
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.
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 Lazarian’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,
scc@shirakinfo.com ,
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.
UNITED WE STAND: A SOCCER CLUB DRUMS UP FAN SUPPORT
By Suren Musayelyan
ArmeniaNow Reporter
A First Division football club is set to break stereotypes in Armenian
football and show that it can win a large following with showbiz as
well as soccer skills.
Yerevan United FC, a newcomer in the country’s lower league, is
continuing its successful performances before a growing number of
spectators attending their home matches.
The club’s Australian-Armenian founding president Dikran Hovivian says
they are pioneers in football business in Armenia and adds that he
sees a great potential for this business locally given the great
number of football fans in Armenia and the Diaspora.
The 45-year-old football marketing specialist from Sydney adds: `We
are taking one step at a time. Now our goal is promotion to the
Premier League, but most importantly we are trying to play good
football before our spectators.’
Yerevan United FC was founded last year and is the only club in
Armenia that has its mascot – a 220cm-tall Aryuts Mher especially
loved by kids – and cheerleaders entertaining spectators before and
after the matches and also during the interval.
Each goal scored by the home side is the cue for special
celebration. Food and drinks are available in the stadium and fans can
buy the club’s merchandise.
According to Hovivian, up to 2,000 people come to the stadium to watch
Yerevan United play.
About half of the spectators are teenagers under 16 for whom tickets
are free. Tickets are available for 400, 600, 1,000 and 2,500 drams
and there are also 60,000-dram tickets for corporate boxes for 12
people, with food and drinks included.
`It is my joy to see people coming to the stadium, sometimes with
their families, and simply having a good time,’ says Hovivian, adding
that they also have many visitors from abroad, including foreign
tourists and Diaspora Armenians visiting their homeland.
At half time Aryuts Mher picks the most fervent supporter and presents
him with a special award. Also the lion mascot draws a lucky ticket
number that can win one of the fans a prize like a TV-set.
`It is the second time I have attended a Yerevan United match,’ says
21-year-old Ashot from Yerevan, who came to the stadium with his three
friends. `The atmosphere here is great and I will definitely come
again to support this team.’ On the pitch Yerevan United FC were
meeting the expectations of fans like Ashot by beating the visitors
from Vanadzor 7-1. After Tuesday’s win the team continues to top
Division One and is well on the road to win promotion this season.
`We want to make Yerevan United a visiting card not only for Armenia
but for the whole Diaspora,’ says Hovivian. `We have Yerevan in our
name, and it is already obliging.’
Hovivian conceived the idea of Yerevan United FC in 2001. During a
three-week trip in early 2004 he saw an opening in the football
industry in Armenia and returned to Australia with a dream to
revolutionize the entire football industry here.
In October last year, Hovivian returned to Yerevan with a five-year
plan for the club.
Here, he says, he was assisted by well-known football commentator and
expert Rudik Barseghyan and met the current head coach Albert Sargsyan
and team manager Sevak Makaryan.
Three months of regular communications with his two employees in
Yerevan resulted in the recruitment of a team of 21 footballers,
including two international players – one from Cameroon and the other
from Nigeria. They launched pre- season training on December 20.
Dikran returned to live in Armenia in February with his wife Rose-Leah
and two young children Nune, 4, and Haroutig, 2, and to be
instrumental in the running and success of the club.
He is the club’s major shareholder and there are 42 others in
Australia including six Australians (non-Armenians). Today, YUFC
employs and provides income to over 70 families in Armenia including
players, coaching staff, entertainers, office administration,
marketing and PR department, catering and customer service staff. More
than $120,000 has already been invested in the club mostly by Hovivian
and according to the club’s president more money is being invested
every day.
Hovivian says the team consists mostly of young players, though three
are over 30. The average wages of footballers at YUFC is $200 a month
(in a range between $80 and $300).
Yerevan United is the only football club in Armenia whose players have
their names on the back of their jerseys. They celebrate every goal
scored with appeals to their fans and also thank their fans after each
match for coming to the stadium to support them.
Hovivian believes that just like any great change, Armenian football
requires faith and patience.
`As Yerevan United FC is a brand new football club, it is literally
history in the making,’ he says.
He says their website () has more than 2,000
visitors every week. The club’s fans are not only based in Armenia,
but also in North America, Europe, Latin America, and Australia. An
online shop with YUFC’s merchandise will be available soon.
Hovivian also believes in developing young players for which he plans
to invest in infrastructure and a sport base for youth. By 2010, he
sees a whole complex developing where for a membership fee a YUFC fan
will be able to come and enjoy the club’s services.
Tickets for Yerevan United’s matches are available also in Artbridge,
a favorite bookstore café of foreigners and some locals in central
Yerevan. Shakeh Havan, the owner of Artbridge, says that they sell up
to 10 tickets for each game, which, although not many, shows people’s
growing interest in the project.
`Those who buy tickets are mostly students and young people among whom
there are also some foreigners and Diaspora Armenians visiting the
country as tourists,’ says Havan. `Dikran is doing a new thing in
Armenia. No one has done it here before, and I think he is on the
right way.’