Siunik Marz - 4 of 5

Siunik Marz
page 4 of 5

We set out for the southernmost tip of Armenia, to gaze of the mountain of northern Iran. We drove by the border station, then drove by and then turned around and went back to Meghri, it isn't really a place you are allowed to stop and just check out. Supposedly the American Government paying somewhere around 250 million dollars to build the border station for Armenia "to combat drug trafficing". Imagine that America probably just wanted to have a foothold in the region for their own strategic interest. Meghri is also filled with Russian military stationed to keep on eye on Iran for Moscow. It was odd seeing Iran for me, for being so close to a country whose government my government my country is trying to find an excuse to start a war with. It feels like off-limits.

We went back to Meghri, walked around to town, and then climbed up the hillsides to get a view of the town. Some people here live in small houses like this with gardens.

There were also half a dozen tall apartment buildings, an odd site in a town as small as this. But this is one of the aftermaths of Russian rule: whether it be a metro bigger than a city needs or apartment buildings in a small town, some architecture and infastructure is much larger than everything else around it.

You can see the makings of a outdoor workspace or kitchen and the everpresent persimmons dangling from windows and awnings.

Meghri is nestled in a little valley in between the mountains. The mountains are bare and rocky, but the town is lush and filled with life.

On the hill we saw these jeeps just sitting there, the path we took up was very narrow and it would seem that even a jeep wouldn't be able to make it, but I suppose I am wrong. Now at least the one without wheels is stuck up here.

I saw this bike and got excited because I was hoping I would be able to talk to another cycle-tourer. The bike was right by the ancient town church. He wasn't around, but the priest said that he had biked here from western Europe over the course of four months. He was now spending time in Meghri helping with some construction and maintenance of the church.

They used a door as part of the fence. All over Armenia people reuse everything. There are so little resources in the country and everything that is imported is so expensive that every little thing is considered valuable. This is out of neccesity, not choice, but it is still a nice contrast to the disposability of so much of America. Each object is more important and must be used.

It was then time for lunch, but it wouldn't be ready for an hour. So the football came out. The people on Birthright right now are quite a football loving crowd. Armenia itself has quite a mediocer team and no one really even notices when they play. In the five games they played and lost this fall leading up to the World Cup they only scored one or two points.

We went to east lunch but were joined by a young deer who lived in a cage by our table. The door was open and it was allowed to wander around. It wanted food but was shy and wouldn't spend much time begging before it got scared and ran back to the safety of its cage. I've never heard of a pet deer. I thought it was so strange.

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