Taipei Times, Taiwan
April 14 2006

Globe trotting ?? Armenia

Famous for its hospitality, Armenia is a unique nation at the
crossroads of Europe and Asia. Some even speculate the Garden of Eden
was located here. Come take a closer look at Armenia.

A closer look 說?Ã`_?¡

Armenia is a land-locked country located in Eurasia’s Southern
Caucasus mountain range. The terrain is mountainous, summers are hot
and dry (reaching 36oC) and winters are snowy and as cold as -10oC.
The long autumns are marked by colorful foliage.

Armenia has been a center of civilization since antiquity, and people
have been living there and trading tools and metals since at least
6,000BC. The Armenian Empire was one of the strongest in the region
during it’s heyday around 50BC, but the country has also been invaded
and conquered by Greeks, Romans, the Ottoman Turks, Russia and
others.

Christianity is central to the country’s identity (over 93 percent
are church members). Armenia was the first nation to make
Christianity the state religion in 301, and legend holds that an
early Armenian leader, Hayk, was a great great grandson of Noah.

Ottoman Turkey ruled Armenia until the end of World War One, when the
victors drew new borders. Turkey rejected Armenian borders and fought
the Turkish-Armenian War in 1920, taking half of the territory. The
Soviet Union invaded what was left and Armenia did not regain
independence until 1991.

Since independence, Armenia has switched to a market economy and
seeks parliamentary style democracy, but elections are not yet
considered fair by international observers.

Favorite Armenian sports include soccer, chess, boxing and hockey.
The cuisine, influenced heavily by Russia and the Middle East,
features stews, breads, fish, grilled meat and pastries.

A LOOK AT CONTEXT
1. The foliage on the trees in autumn is bright orange, yellow, brown
and green though simply green in the summer.
Foliage means . . .
a. tree branches.
b. tree roots
c. plant or tree leaves.
d. tree trunks.

2. Since antiquity, Daoism has been a strong influence in China.
Antiquity means . . .
a. the modern era.
b. ancient times.
c. any time period.
d. a future era.

3. You cannot bring plants, wild animals or soil across the border
into another country.
A border is …
a. the line that divides two countries.
b. a line that cuts through a capital city.
c. something illegal to carry.
d. a kind of wild animal.

4. The government used to own all companies, but now we have a market
economy and the companies are privately owned.
A market economy is . . .
a. an economy where the government runs industry.
b. an industry which the government
takes taxes from.
c. a company with close a relationship
to the government.
d. an economy where private individuals
run industry.
ANSWERS: 1. c 2. b 3. a 4 . d

WHO KNEW 你’m`¹嗎
Armenian weddings have some unique practices. The process starts when
the man and his family visit the woman’s house to ask her father’s
permission to wed. If the father agrees, the man gives his future
bride a promise ring and her family begins planning for the
engagement party, which her family must organize and pay for. The two
families will then celebrate with a bottle of Armenian cognac. At the
engagement party, a priest prays with the couple and blesses them,
and the couple exchanges wedding rings that are worn on the right
hand. After about one year, the formal wedding takes place, where the
rings are switched to the left hand. Planning and paying for the
wedding is the groom’s responsibility, unlike traditions in most
European countries.

WHAT TIME ?»?Ý`ß – ¡?ôêy
The time in Armenia is currently three hours behind Taiwan. If it is
3:15pm in Taipei, it is 12:15pm in Yerevan.

ABOUT ARMENIA
Size: 29,800 km2; or about 80 percent of Taiwan’s size
Location: Eurasia
Border countries: Turkey, Georgia, Azerbaijan and Iran
Capital: Yerevan
Population: Around 3.2 million
Languages: Armenian
Government: Unitary republic
Currency: Armenian Drams; NT$1 = about 11 Armenian Drams

FLAG ? ?ø

The Armenian constitution says that the red sybolizes the Armenian
Highland, the peoples’ struggle for survival, maintaining the
Christian faith and Armenia’s independence and freedom. The blue
represents the will to live under peaceful skies. The orange
represents the talent and hard-working nature of the people.

ives/2007/04/14/2003356662