Martiros Saryan--Great Armenian Artist and my trip to the USSR plus Djivan Gasparyan

The first time I traveled outside the US, it was to the USSR, a few years after I graduated from college. Most of the time I was in Russia, but I spent about a week in the Southern republics, including Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Eastern Ukraine, namely Donetsk. Originally the tour included Kiev, but travelers then were noticeably leery of being anywhere near Chernobyl.

Having studied Russian language and culture in college, I had an idea of what Moscow and Leningrad would be like, but these republics to the south were a revelation, uncharted territory. And I really enjoyed my time in Georgia and Armenia, aside from certain problems with my digestive system.

Yerevan with a backdrop of Ararat. It really is there.

After visiting Moscow, Yerevan was another world, more like the Middle East. I had some trepidation--I knew I wasn't in Kansas anymore. 95 degrees every day,  but no humidity. Believe me if all you know about Armenia is Kardashians hawking diet pills, you are only scratching the tip of the iceberg. I was introduced to a very interesting and unique culture back then. They struck me as sharp industrious proud people, who at that time were making the best of a bad situation. I eventually figured out that was a place where men don't wear shorts, no matter how hot it gets. Yerevan was a big city that seemed to spring up fast and unfortunately there were all too many of the typical high rise flats constructed soviet style there. Because of industrial pollution I could not see Mt Ararat in the distance. I remember fountains being all over the place, and I was told that was an important symbol to the culture. I absolutely loved the food there, the lavash flatbread, the stuffed vegetables, the licorice made of walnuts and grape juice, the best melon I've ever eaten and the insanely delicious hot dog shaped grilled lamb burgers.

Probably the place that affected me the most was the Armenian Genocide Memorial, with the music of the Armenian composer Komitas Vardapet playing as we stood within in the Modernist structure. The man was a witness to this shameful tragedy and lost his sanity. There simply are no words, you blank out in such a setting. I remember that an elderly woman was following us during the tour. At some point she came over and detailed to us how during World War II her children starved to death (all of them) because all the food from Armenia was being confiscated and sent to the troops. These are things that a lot of us simply do not know about.

Tragic but Resilient

Yerevan definitely had some good museums. I'm pretty sure we saw the national gallery and also a museum of modern art. Americans are very familiar with works like The Book of Kells from Ireland, but I would bet that most people do not know that Armenia has an equally rich tradition of illuminated manuscripts going back to ancient times, which I was fortunate enough to see. But I was most impressed with the Modern Art. There was a painting that will forever be in my consciousness--it was a picture of proud painting of an Armenian man. With an actual bullet hole through the forehead. I mean literally, a bullet hole in the canvas. It was so blunt and shocking, and I can never forget it. But I don't recall who the artist was.

I do remember the name of Martiros Saryan (1880-1972) however, for his vivid use of color and distinctive style. I bought a thin book of his artwork in the Victor Kamkin store in NYC a few years later. When I see his paintings I feel like I am back in Armenia once again breathing the dry air and feeling the sunshine. Here's a nice quote from him I saw on wikipedia.

Life is an island. People come out of the sea, cross the island, and return to the sea. But this short life is long and beautiful. In getting to know nature man exalts the wonder and beauty of life.

Nice quote. I couldn't resist.

Finding the unexpected (in a good way) is one of my favorite experiences of traveling. Certainly there are reasons why we decide to visit some places and not others. But for me it is more than merely striking things off of a checklist. And I visited Armenia without a checklist at all. Going to Geghard and visiting the church carved out of the side of a mountain and then actually witnessing an heady incense filled mass with singing was very special to me, as was swimming in the buoyant waters of Lake Sevan. I can't believe how fortunate I was to visit there for a while.

Here's a little Duduk music to wrap thing up from the master himself, Djivan Gasparyan.