Areni Wine Festival

Last weekend was the annual wine festival in the village of Areni, just 15 minutes down the road from Yeghegnadzor. The village also shares its name with the grape, a species endemic to Armenia. I shared the day with some of my closest friends. The sun was shining, we sipped on dry wine, enjoyed Khorovats, danced and laughed the day away. Sirum em Hayastan!

Makin Moonshine : Step 1

As my little cottage is almost completely covered in grape vines and many a Khorovats I have enjoyed my landlord's homemade grape vodka, I have been interested in seeing the process of making the jet-fuel like drink.

After picking the grapes, both from our shared patio and some from a nearby village, Samvel let the grapes sit for several days in buckets. He says you must let them sit so the skins break easier when you crush them.

After loading small batches of grapes into a bucket

smash them until all individual fruits have burst.

This is the most time consuming step in the process.

I, of course, had to take a shot at smashing the grapes. Samvel, in true form, had to give me a hard time about how I was doing it all wrong. Its all fun and games.

Samvel and the bounty.

Pour the smashed grapes into another bucket, cover and allow to sit for several days. After this, majakh (new wine) is made. More photos and process to follow soon...

The Essentials

A typical Armenian scene. Coffee, cigarettes, cell phone and a quick game of Nardi.

Herik and the fall harvest

Lately the weather has been changing. I love the fall when the sun dips lower on the horizon, the air becomes crisp, the sky takes on an impossible shade of blue and the fruits of the summer's labor are all just at their peak. My landlady Herik everyday has been out in the garden gathering the last of the tomatoes, eggplants, cucumbers, peppers and beans. The sound of the gas roaring on the patio and the large pot of water in a boil filled to the brim with jars upon jars of the fall bounty are music to my ears.

She always complains that the work is so hard, but I can see in her eyes that this time of year she, like me, treasures most. It is still sunny enough to sit out in the evenings and talk. There is still work to keep her busy and out of the house for most of the day, and the light is just perfect!

Though Herik is just a small woman I am constantly impressed at the amount of work she can do every day. When I am just getting up in the morning I can already hear the sweep of her broom on my doorstep and she is muttering to herself, "Emily, Emily, Emily, you keep you place so dirty."

Herik and Samvel were married later that most Armenian couples. Samvel had been married before and had two children from that marriage. Herik and Samvel were married when they were both 30 and had two more children, Artush and Geretsik. They met when they were both working in a textiles factory during soviet times. Herik said the first time she saw Samvel, she fell in love. I notice that these two are still very much in love. Whenever Samvel is working on something outside, Herik brings whatever she is working and will sit next to him. I appreciate their dedication to each other and the respect they have for each other.

Ellena!

Just down the hill from my place is a tiny vegetable store. As I walk by every day the storekeeper calls out my name. But, instead of calling me Emily, which a lot of people seem to have trouble saying here, she calls "Ellena!!" I've told her I don't know how many times that's not my name, but now it is just a joke. But the bigger joke is on me. Its been a year now since I've lived on this road, and I still don't know her name! I'm not sure if she ever actually introduced herself to me, but now its just too late and embarrassing to ask!

When I first moved to this side of town her son Artur was running the shop. We would exchange hello's everyday, talk about something that happened that day and he'd give me the brotherly, "if anyone ever gives you any trouble you just tell me." Then her daughter was running the place for a while. Everyday she would ask me to give her English lessons. When she finally started coming to work in the store everyday, I really started to stop in more just for a rest and conversation. In the extreme heat of the summer I would walk in and sit on a bag of flour in the corner and we would talk about America and Armenia. There was always another tatik sitting in the shop and I would always get the usual run around. Are you married? Why aren't you married? Marry an Armenian man and stay in Armenia!

It takes a while to finally realize that people in your community know you. When I leave for a few days at a time, I always have to walk by this store. She always asks me where I am going and when I will be home. If by chance I don't see her one day the next I have to hear about how much she missed me. I'll always treasure the friendships I have made here. I think I might even ask her name today!

*Her name is Anahit. Nice to know you Anahit!

Women's Photo project to be shown in the U.S. Embasssy

I am happy to announce that the Women in Armenia photo project will be housed in the U.S. Embassy in Yerevan from Oct. 18-22. Unfortunately, only U.S. Embassy employees can see the exhibit, but we are excited to have it shown there!

As for next year's Women's Day, I am already planning a new exhibition and hopefully a craft show as well.

Media Center on UM's Beyond our Borders Blog

Thanks to my former professor, Clem, for asking me to write a small piece about my Media Center project. Check it out!