May 23, 2010
Today was our first exciting day sightseeing!
We woke up at 8:00 am, had a delicious breakfast at 9:00 am, and got on the bus at 10:00 am. We had to wait for some people and finally hit the road at 10:10. We were going to go to The Mother Cathedral of Echmiadzin built in 301-303; the oldest Armenian church. On the way to Echmiadzin, we saw the statue of Mousa Ler, we saw Ararat and Arakadz.
When we got to Echmiadzin, the first real sight was the beautiful open Alter. Later, we went behind the church and saw one of the Armenian Genocide Memorials. After that we heard the sweet bells of Echmidzin ringing, and saw the Gatorigos and his Processionals walking toward the Cathedral. Then we took part in the mass for 15-20 minutes.
After visiting the gift shop, we hit the road again for Oshagan, where Mesrob Mashdots is buried. During the trip we saw Ara Ler and lots of green. Lucky for us, once we arrived at the church, people were going to sing. After the third song, we went downstairs to see Mesrob Mashdots’s grave, which was covered with flowers. We left the grave and took pictures in front of his statue, with the first graders of an Armenian village. Then we went to Dareri Aiki, where there was each Armenian letter in khatchkar form. We finished taking pictures and left for Ashdaragi Tsor, which was a wonderful restaurant.
Last we drove to Arakadz to get to Ambpert. By the time we got there, it was really cold, and it started to rain. So, we got back on the bus, to wait for the rain to stop, while our tour guide, Mariam, told us interesting legends and stories about the fortress, which is called Ambpert for its elevation. It means Amberoo mech pert with an elevation of 2,300 kilometers. The rain stopped and we went to explore the pretty place. We saw a church in the back, a ruined castle in the front, and a visible rainbow in the far back.
When we left the fortress everyone wanted to go to the Armenian alphabet statues. Everyone’s shoes were muddy because it rained there. When we went on the bus everyone had to take of their shoes and walk barefoot. When we left there we were going to go to a resteruant named Hin Yerevan. Everyone dance very joyfully and happily. After dancing we celebrated Daron’s birthday. We had a blast and came home very tired.
Today was an extremely exciting day, and we hope everyday will be like this!
By Garo Bazarbashian and Joseph Hajjar