So, since before the new year, my water pipes have been frozen meaning I have had no source of water for about 3 weeks. I started to melt snow to use for my toilet and have been buying jugs of water from the local store to get by. But, after three weeks, the dishes started to pile up and the snow started to melt, so I finally told my counterpart that I needed a plumber to come. Frozen pipes are really common in Armenia and I have gone for some time without water, but after trying to heat my pipes with my small PC issued heater and a hair dryer to no avail, it was time to bring in an expert. For three hours, the plumber, his son, and my director cut pipes until they finally got my toilet working and then they gave up, to be continued at another time, which was fine, the toilet was important. The only pipe hooked up and working in my bathroom was the direct line to the toilet. One morning, I was lying in bed and heard the gushing sound of water coming from my bathroom. I ran from my room and discovered that the pipe had popped off the toilet and was flooding my bathroom, but I also realized that meant I now had a reliable source of water! After spending two hours mopping, cleaning, and filling up every bucket, water jug, and plastic bottle I had accumulated over the last three weeks, I finally felt I had enough water to last for a while, so I turned off my water and started boiling water to clean the ridiculous pile of dishes that were starting to take over my kitchen and I was happy. My apartment was finally starting to look clean and organized again, though my ability to take showers was and continues to be non-existent. (thankfully Yerevan is only an hour and a half away and full of wonderful places with hot showers:) It's pretty cold so I haven't given into bucket baths just yet. Fast forward to yesterday morning..I went to the bathroom and in my slumber, forgot my pipe was broken, so I reached back and turned on the water. The pressure from the water shooting out of the pipe was so strong it knocked me off the toilet and drenched me with freezing cold water. Second time I flooded my bathroom this week, can't say this hasn't be an entertaining experience:) So that's a little taste of life in Armenia during winter.
A lot of other things have happened since I last wrote so I will try to focus on the big things and sorry for slacking so much on this blog! I celebrated my last birthday in Armenia and was treated to two cakes, one from the HIV and AIDS TOT participants I was with and one from the wonderful ladies at Envoy Hostel in Yerevan which is basically my second home. Then, we held a Halloween party for the Caritas kids, the first of its kind for many of them an they had an absolute blast. We played pin the mouth on the pumpkin, bobbing for pears( switching it up from apples), made masks for costumes, and had a dance party.
I finally made the 8 hour trek to Meghri, located just about the Iranian border in Southern Armenia, to celebrate an amazing Thanksgiving weekend with some of my dearest friends here. We had an delicious spread for dinner and a very classy masquerade cocktail hour.
We successfully completed our first two groups of trainings for our SPA grant and will be starting with the second group at the beginning of February. The trainings have gone so well, that Ambassador John Heffern, the US Ambassador for Armenia, will coming to see our center, meet our parents, and learn more about the work we are doing in the middle of February. This is really exciting for my NGO and for the people in my community and his support of our project will mean so much to our parents and kids!
The celebrations of Christmas and New Years were really amazing here and I am so glad I was here to ring in the New Year. To get in the holiday spirit, some of the volunteers an I sang Christmas carols at the American Corners in Yerevan and had a blast doing it. We handed out lyrics so everyone could sing along and one of the girls from Envoy sang a beautiful rendition of Hallelujah and led everyone in Armenian Christmas songs, it was a huge success.
Several volunteers were in country for New Years Eve, so we all went to dinner, to Republic Square for the countdown and lots of dancing, then a few of us went to Reincarnation a very popular Armenian reggae band, it was the best way to ring in 2014 in Armenia!
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| PCV New Years Dinner |
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| Reincarnation |
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| Fireworks in Republic Square
I also was here to celebrate Nor Tari. Armenia's celebration of New Years or Nor Tari is the country's biggest celebration of the year. For several days, family members, neighbors, and friends visit each other's homes and eat together, drink together, and celebrate the new year together. After being at site for a little over a year, I have developed very strong relationships and friendships with many of the people in my community, so my site mates and I felt it was out turn to host a Nor Tari party with a little bit of an American twist. We invited our counterparts and closest friends, made some of our favorite American dishes, created some of the cocktails which were popular in our home towns and created a playlist of music. Many of our Armenian friends came over and the party turned out to be one of the most memorable experiences I have had in country so far. Our Armenian friends tried the food and drinks, some of which they liked, others they tolerated for our enjoyment, we spent hours dancing, we Americans taught them the Electric Slide, did the limbo and the Macarena and our Armenian friends taught us some Armenian dance steps, we did some arts and crafts, and we all just laughed and fully enjoyed our afternoon together. It was during this time that I realized how integrated into Gavar I had become, these people who I had been working alongside and getting to know over the last year and a half had truly become my friends. It was at this party that I realized how little time I had left with them and that I truly had to take advantage of my remaining time in Armenia. What made the party even more special and memorable is how many of my friends came up to me and thanked me for what they called an unforgettable afternoon.
 
Then yesterday, the kids from Caritas and I celebrated International Day of Hugs. I wasn't sure how our celebration of International Day of Hugs would go, especially after one of our kids immediately wiped out in a puddle and was covered in mud, but it was a huge success. Our kids ran up and hugged everyone they saw and I saw more people smile and heard more people laugh then I would have ever expected. Hug someone today, it's amazing what it can do for the soul:)
 
So that's a quick update of some of the things happening here in Armenia! My big news is that I will be taking off for Ghana in a week!! My friend Gary is a Peace Corps Volunteer there so I am going on vacation:) I imagine it is going to be the trip of a lifetime so I will be sure to post pictures and stories from my trip when I get back. Hope you all stay warm, sending love from Gavar!
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| View from my window the day we got 3 feet of snow! |
