May 30, 2011
Today we had a nice morning breakfast. We were ready to depart at 9:30.We hopped on the bus and we traveled for about 35 minutes to the Monastery of Geghard. Geghard is a church that is built in the mountain. It was built around the fourth century. It took 10 years to be made. The name Geghard means the point of the spear that was used to stab Christ. There is running water coming though the walls and running though the church. They say that the water is like holy water. People used to come to drink the water if they needed healing or if they wanted eternal life. The church was very big. I thought that the church was very beautiful. When were leaving, in the parking lot there were women selling Geghard bread. It’s a round sweet bread that is very tasty. Everyone bought a loaf or two and ate it on the bus. They were also selling fruit rollups which they call lavash.
The next place we went was the Temple of Garni. The Temple of Garni was built in the first century (70 BC). They call it the house of coolness because it is always cool outside. It was built on top of a ledge on a mountain top. Mountains surround Garni and the view is awesome. In the middle of the temple there is a big hole in the ground. Most of us were able to get into the hole. This hole was used as storage for the king that lived there for the summer. It held water or wheat depending on what needed to be stored.
Around the corner we stopped for lunch and saw how women made lavash bread in a hole in the ground. There were two women that were also in a hole making the lavash. One was rolling the dough and the other woman stretched the dough on a board and placed it in the wall of the hole. It took about 1minute to cook and serve. It was delicious.
The English learning center was our next stop. We met about 7 kids ages 5-12 years old. We played musical chairs, charades, and we danced together. We had fun time. They were happy to see us.
The last stop before dinner was Lake Sevan. We first climbed up 230 steps to the top and reached Soorp Arakelotz and Soorp Garabed. The view of Lake Sevan was spectacular! We finally went down all the steps and it was time to put our feet in the water. Everyone took off there shoes, rolled up their pants and jumped in! The water was freezing! Some of us got really wet and got soaked. We collected rocks and some water. Everyone enjoyed it!
We had a very busy day and its not over yet. We are on our way to dinner at Taboule. It was a really awesome day!
By Sena Changelian