AGBU Yerevan Summer Intern Program

Just almost half a year following our 5-week internship program in Armenia, I recently spent some time to look through all the pictures again I have from my second trip to Armenia. It seems as if these priceless memories were just yesterday. My first visit to Armenia in the summer of 2003 was part of an intense 2-week touring program, but was rushed and short-lived. I wasn’t able to fully enjoy the exposure to the day-to-day Armenian lifestyle because everything happened so quickly. Four years later, I’m very grateful to be sitting here typing about my second trip to the motherland…continued at AGBU Blog.

Check here to download an application to the 2008 AGBU Yerevan Summer Intern Program.

For more information, email ysip@agbu.org or visit the YSIP blog, agbu.org/ysip.

So…the first official AGBU Yerevan Summer Intern Program (YSIP) has come to a close.

On August 5, the last of our 16 interns boarded a plane at Zvartnots, and now I am an Intern Coordinator with no interns It really is sad… I grew pretty attached, and it was difficult to say goodbye to these new friends. I think many of them felt that 5 weeks in Armenia was going to be really long, but in the end, I heard more than a few of them say that they didn’t want to leave. I have to admit, that was music to my ears.

As one of the AGBU staff members that guided them through this program and as a person who loves Armenia so dearly, it makes me happy and proud to know that many of the interns left the country with such good impressions. I know that many of them will be back, maybe even one day soon, and hopefully ALL of them will look back on this experience with fond memories. I know I will.

This is not to say that there were not ups and downs. Of course, as in any first-time program and with any sizable group, there’s going to be problems, frustrations, misunderstandings, tension, etc. But in my opinion, there were plenty more moments of happiness, positive realizations, bonding, and cultural adaptation. I truly am proud of them.

I hope they feel at home here, because Armenia is their home. When I came as in intern in 2005, my entire perspective on being Armenian changed. I saw what life was like outside the diaspora, where being Armenian for me meant church and camp and a barahantes [dinner dance] here and there. Being Armenian inside Armenia is really completely different. Here we see the current struggles of our people without any filter. Many are fighting just to get by each day, without money, without opportunity and sometimes without a lot of hope.

Of course, in every place in the world there will always be people living in difficult conditions, but I think the feeling is different here because these are OUR people and this is OUR country. We have to care about it and treat it with respect and contribute to it what we can. When I finally started to feel at home here was when I was able to see both the pain and the beauty at the same time… and realize that both are part of being Armenian.

When thinking about the big picture, all the little problems that YSIP interns encountered seem pretty manageable. Sure, there were some cases of illness like pinkeye or food poisoning… also a bug-infested stay in the beautiful forest of Dilijan… an arrival at the Matenadaran only to find that it was closed… and countless other awkward situations.

But, in the end, I think we are all better people having made it through those challenges. I learned a lot from this group of people — they are bright, talented, motivated, caring and optimistic — and I will never forget our summer 2007 stay in Yerevan. I hope that if they learned anything from me, that it was just to see Armenia for what it is… the good and the bad… and love it anyway.

So for the last time… in the words of Shushanik… yerekhek, charjvenk [children, let's move]!

Garodov [With Affection],
Tamar

Regarding our five week stay in Armenia… where can I start? This was my third time in Armenia, I was also here last year and also in 2003. The country is getting better by the day! I can seriously SEE the differences. I can safely say, at least for me, that this year was my best year yet in Armenia, whether that be regarding work-placement, having fun, learning about the people/country, and any other aspects one can think of once in Armenia. The surreal moments were many, to say the very least, and I am really sad right now because I’m going to leave in 3 days

I won’t forget ANYYYY of the experiences and friends I made here, and I only hope the relationships I made, whether that be with the interns, or the citizens here in Armenia, only grow in the near future. Our experiences were many, and there were many funny/interesting/scary/exciting/astonishing moments along the way.

But I think, what’s most important out of all that I learned was that Armenia is like any other country in the world, with its share of ups and downs, good and bad things. A lot of us in the diaspora see only the negative sides of the country, or at least focus on those (at first).

I think this internship opened a lot of people’s eyes in regards to what Armenia is right now, and what direction it is headed in in the future.

I remember once I stepped foot in Armenia’s Zvartnots Airport, I was completely amazed at the reconstruction of the Airport, and how it is the first stage (a very important stage in fact) of what is to come in Armenia in the near future

I always tell everyone this is my city (Yerevan), and that this is my country, and it’s also yours as well! Guys, this is our land, yes it can be dirty, it can be sad, it can be miserable… walking and going through the city/country, but hey… after a few weeks here, you don’t mind those things, in fact… u look for those aspects wherever you go (at least for me), so I can be re-assured I’m in Armenia

I was going to a relatives house tonight, and just seeing the streets and city at night made me miss it even more. Armenia in general, this internship in general, made me not only stronger as an Armenian, but as a person. The experiences which I gained here, whether at work or not, have become an invaluable part of who I am, and what I am a part of.

Now, I am faced with getting re-acquainted with life back home :-S (bleeeeee) loool. I am already kind of used to this lifestyle, I like it already. Many people ask me if I would stay… and I always reply why not? As long as I have a good paying job and job security, why not? I definitely plan on getting “something” here one day… meaning a piece of land, a house, something that I can always have here on this land.

I am sure that everyone has benefited from this experience, and I hope this experience will last forever in all of our lives. From the bottom of my heart, I really loved it this year, everythinggggggggggg was great! Of course there were some downs (as in ups and downs–there always are…), but I think this time I didn’t hold back in anything like I did during my previous trips here. I guess people have to come here a couple of times to get acquainted with everything.

Regarding our trips out of the city, where can I start? Each one had its own special attribute and its own style. From the windy, bumpy, and daunting roads of Karabakh to Norashen… to the damp, foggy, rainy, and scary days in Dilijan… to the “happy hours” in Parvana (twice lol), to the tooti oghi [mulberry vodka] night in Shushi…and our journey through Khor Virap, Noravank, Etchmiadzin, Zvartnots, Gyumri, and the rest…

Each place, each moment of laughter…of happiness…of excitement…of astonishment…of of of of…. I will never forget. I also wanted to thank Tamara and Shushanik…both of them deserve medals of honor for putting up with us, but I think we deserve some medals too (maybe a little smaller?) looool

I think that like the other interns mentioned, each of us had our own experience throughout Armenia’s manyy manyyyy wonders, which can not always be explained, but which can surely be experienced by anyone who comes to this little piece of land on the other side of the world (at least from our home in LA)

Jerm barevnerov Hayastanic

Greg Bandikian interned at the Monetary Policy department of the Central Bank of Armenia He is 21 years old and attending California State University - Northridge (CSUN), with majors in Finance, Real Estate, and a minor in Armenian Studies.

Best Friends Forever, Keeping emotions light hearted at Noravank

Lara Golnazarians assimilating with locals - a new definition Keep reading →

Upon Graduation, last May from the University of Southern California with a major in Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, I instantaneously created a career storm that billowed into a solid year as a Healthcare Consultant at Kaiser Permanente…with one minor detail, I did not take a single day off during the given year… that was my cue to self, I automatically felt the need to get in touch with my greater purpose in life.

After one year of intensely integrating into the work force, I was reminded of my postponed self-promise since my last visit to Hayastan in 2003; To take time off post graduation to be one with the people, the people who define such a large component of myself, my belonging, my strength, my being.

I never realized how holistically encompassing this experience would be. A five-week internship which I expected would add to a warm extension as a young professional has become a journey of self- realization, ironically enough, within unfamiliar grounds. A tap on the shoulder, a whisper of realizations, “a meant to be experience” that has forced me to reassess my purpose. While visiting Armenia, I continuously experience a wide and varying range of feelings. Besides feeling happiness, joy and pride, I also felt pain, suffering and frustration. Although contrary to my initial intentions, I believe that one must feel all these emotions in order for their visit to Armenia to be more than just a superficial journey.

Arriving in Armenia, after so many years of envisioning the day that I would actually arrive, was a greatly surreal experience, for though I consciously knew I was in Armenia, I nonetheless did not quite feel as though I was actually finally in Armenia. Though I had dreamt of the day of arrival perhaps a thousand times before, the actual arrival moved me into uncharted emotions, which had not truly been felt until the moment I actually arrived.

It is a minute element to live, work and experience this once in life time opportunity with 15 other participants, together with the goal of educating ourselves about our culture and identity. Regardless of any cultural or background differences, there is one underlying similarity that bonded all of us together: our Armenian identity. Spending five weeks in Armenia is a realization of our dreams. To finally see the things and places in person of which we have heard about from stories and lessons from family members and school teachers is almost surreal. From Ararat, Massis, Garni, Geghard, Khor Virab, Noravank, Karabakh, Etchmiadzin and many others became a reality to us. Lectures by renowned intellectuals like Ashot Melkonian and Hayk Demoyan were thought provoking and eye-opening. We are learning about Armenia’s history, culture, present situation, and future. The knowledge and education we received through the program increases our appreciation for our culture and homeland.

Keep reading →

To put it simply, this weekend in Karabakh was the most eye-opening experience of my life. Luckily digital camera technology has allowed me to share highlights of what my eyes saw with all of you…

I still can’t write down my exact feelings for Karabakh and its people…but since a picture is worth 1000 words, here are some highlights from our way to and from Karabakh, and the Norashen village where we stopped to see an AGBU built school and hospital.

This photo essay is entitled “Faces of Karabakh” and is a tribute to the people we met there who greeted us with open arms and would not let us leave without bags of fresh fruit and a sample of their homemade wine which they crush with their feet…

After all, it is the people that fought and shed blood for Karabakh in the past, the people that are living off of her land today, and the people that somehow have hope in their eyes for her brighter future…

- Alexis Halejian

Men outside of church on the way to Karabakh near Turkish border.

A local woman in Areni sells her “moonshine” wine on the street for 1000 dram.

Man near the recently built AGBU hospital looks out on his land.

Woman and child in their yard in Norashen, Karabakh.

 Woman outside of home in Norashen, Karabakh.

 Above & next two photos: Man just outside of Norashen looks out on his land…he has waited 16 years for his son to join him in the village and construction of his home is just starting now…

Above & Below: Man shares his nuts and fruits from his backyard in Norashen with us.

Above & Below: Woman shares her pears with us.

Above & Below: Norashen man looks out on construction of his son’s home next door.

Slowly rebuilding the Norashen village in Karabakh’s southeast Hadrut region.

Children outside of church on the way home from Karabakh.

Alexis Halejian is a journalism major at S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, Syracuse University, NY.

I want to see, hear, smell, and taste everything that my country has to offer. Up until this point, however, I had no idea what any of that was. My sights thus far have led me from gorgeous churches, to chains of breath-taking mountains, and past picturesque landscapes I never dreamed existed. Past the lahmajun and shawerma huts and the lavash pits outside the city, I breathe in every component of the country which defines me. The signs on the roads and the sounds of conversations being held around me all lead me to one conclusion: there is more to who I am than I ever imagined.

Individually, I believe that we have each had moments of epiphany since our arrival in Armenia. I see it happening little by little, but we are each starting to come to terms with important things about this country that draw tears from our eyes. For me, this moment occurred in Karabakh this past weekend. I will admit that I had been struggling with the idea that the Armenian language, which I have been speaking my entire life, is strikingly different from the eastern dialect, which is spoken in Armenia. In my mind, if I couldn’t speak “my Armenian” in Armenia, then where would I go to speak it? At first, this discrepancy between the dialects irked me to the extent that I would rather respond in English than be laughed at for throwing a “gor” at the end of my verb conjugations.

This past Saturday, as we traveled throughout Shushi and around Stepanakert, I realized a change. While in Shushi, we met a couple of young kids who were playing around in the street. After a five to ten minutes of chatting with them, one of the interns got excited and asked me to ask the kids, on her behalf, if they would like some candy. Needless to say, the children smiled and said they would love some candy, but the most striking moment was when these children instantaneously reached into their pockets, and shared their “good” [seeds] with us. Within the next few minutes, a few of us had our hands filled with pumpkin seeds, received in depth instructions on how to shell them, and we were suddenly on our way to the championship seed-eating titles. It didn’t matter to these children how we spoke to them, or what kind of dialect we used, it just mattered that we were able to share one of the most precious bonds: our heritage (it honestly doesn’t get much more Armenian than the mutual understanding of the cultural significance of seed-eating). They asked us where we came from, took pictures with us (and of us) and hugged us good-bye! I can’t be sure that these children will ever really know the immense impact that they had on a good number of the AGBU interns, but there is no doubt in my mind that these boys will play a huge part in my memory of this country as well as my involvement in its the development. With so little to call their own and so little to give, they gave me something more than I could have ever asked for: A reason to want to help. They gave me a reason to work hard to fulfill my goals so that I can proactively contribute to the advancement of Armenia as a nation.

MY ARMENIAN INTERNSHIP

Speaking of advancement, my internship, or “practica” as they call it here, is at a Business and Legal Consulting firm that is working on formulating policy to fortify the establishment and implementation of new IT policy in Armenia.The company, which is Armenian-American, runs out of both Yerevan and New York City. As an intern, I am responsible for conducting research and formulating, translating, and helping with sociological surveys in benchmark countries in order to determine what may be the best plan for implementation domestically. It is extremely interesting to read about the technological, political, and financial climates in Armenia, and work towards improvements in those areas (though a huge undertaking for the company in general). I never imagined that I would be as interested in the development of policy, but I guess much of my intrigue with the topic emerges from my new-found attachment to this country and the prosperity of its children. With more technological advancements, the children of Armenia will be able to keep up with and have the same opportunities as children in other parts of the world.

I have found that much of my experience here revolves around inconsistencies in the country. As a result of the fact that one can never be sure whether or not the internet will work, if/when the electricity in the office will be out, the degree of severity of the stomachache that I WILL get from the food, etc…it is difficult to predict what course of actions my day will follow. For that matter, it is exceedingly difficult to be sure of any sort of functionality or punctuality. From the
conversations that I have had with some of the locals, it has become evident that although many people have the desire to see America, the majority are content with the comfortable lives they lead here. Many of the people from the sample that I met have moved in from different parts of the world and claim to have settled in Armenia for one reason, “hankisd gyank e” or ” it’s a comfortable life.” For that reason, I feel as though I have become increasingly buoyant as opposed to dependent upon a routine life-style as I am back home in the hustle-and-bustle of New York City. This too, shall be valuable to my development as a person.

This morning, my roommate and I woke up and said, “This is all going to be over in two weeks.” We came to the conclusion that as much as we miss our families, friends, beds and manicures at home, there’s going to be something important missing from our lives once we land in “Dirty Jersey.” The moments of realization that, “Wow, we are actually in Yerevan right now…as in Yerevan, Armenia!” are far more powerful than the moments of hopelessness and frustration with the lifestyle and pace of life here. Overall, I could not really imagine being anywhere else in the world right now, because I doubt that it would ever be as rewarding as my experience here in Armenia this summer.

In closing, I would like to leave you with one last story. As I walked down the Opera blasting my iPod one morning listening to my Italian playlist, Eros Ramazzotti sang, “un emozione per sempre, momenti belli che restano cosi, impressi nella mente, parole che restano cosi, nel cuore della gente.” As per my handy-dandy Italian skills, this translates to, “an emotion for always, the beautiful moments which rest here, leave lasting impressions, the beautiful words that remain in the hearts of the people.” I am relatively unsure how he so unintentionally and so accurately manages to define my Armenian experience, but much like this country in general, it still gives me the chills…

Aleen Tovmasian is interning at a legal consulting firm, Global SPC, in Yerevan, Armenia.

Courtesy Alexis Halejian

To go or not to go? I battled with this simple question for months regarding the AGBU Yerevan trip this summer. After graduating from college in May, I wanted a break before diving into the chaos and craziness of the Manhattan media scene. At the same time, I did not want to miss crucial professional opportunities that other recent grads were competing for.

Since this is clearly a blog by the interns of YSIP, I think you can figure out the choice I made…and it was certainly the right one…Barev from Hayastan!

Only three weeks into the program, my decision to postpone “the real world” has already opened my eyes to a whole new world: Armenia. This might seem surprising. For 22 years, it has been a place and a culture I thought I knew so well…a place that was Camp Nubar, family friends, church food festivals, lamajoon in the freezer at all times, hummus, and being “fashionably late” for everything…a culture that all my “odar” friends envied…they wanted to do special Armenian internship programs in the city and spend New Years and Labor Day at Armenian dances with all their best friends from around the world too.

While food, friendship, and being fashionably late will always be in our blood, being Armenian now means so much more. It is hard to put my finger on it completely at this point, but different is the best word to describe the scene here and my feelings toward the motherland.

Every single day I learn something different, something new…every single day I am surprised by our culture…every single day I am inspired to make positive change here…and unlike reading a book, or studying for a test, this type of learning goes straight to the heart…and the feet…

Yes, that’s right, the feet…in only 3 short classes the YSIP interns have learned an entire traditional Armenian dance…stay tuned, we hope to broadcast it on YOUTUBE…in the PR world we say “any publicity is good publicity”…so even if I am not the most graceful Armenian dancer there ever was, at least my “poised” self did not lead me to trip over one of my more coordinated YSIP peers…luckily we are having a basketball tournament with some Diasporans living in Yerevan next week so I will be more helpful to the group athletically…

Back to the heart thing…one of my most memorable emotional moments thus far (there are far too many to share now) took place at a church in the middle of the Dilijan woods. We hiked up a huge hill in the middle of a forest and as we approached the church, I could hear familiar church hymns.

I stood in the stone doorway, closed my eyes, and forgot where I was for a few minutes. It was like being back at St. Leons Church in New Jersey. For the first time in Armenia, I did not feel like an American-Armenian or a Diasporan, but an Armenian. One with the people- plain and simple. I realized first hand how the church kept all different Armenians from around the world united and hopeful throughout our difficult history.

Since that moment each day makes Armenia feel more like the home I want it to feel like. I see many Diasporans struggling with this issue- having an opinion of what Armenia once was and what it should be in our opinion, compared to what it is now…

In reality, it’s a home that Armenians really don’t know until they step onto her soil (no, the Marriot in Republic Square doesn’t count as soil)…a home Armenians really don’t know until they step out of Yerevan and see how our people really live on this beautiful land…a home that diasporans can’t know until they challenge themselves to step out of their own comfort level and be one with the people here…each day my feet and my heart keep leading me closer to this home.

For now, Manhattan can wait…why get a Starbucks latte for $4.50, when you can get a strong soorj [coffee] for 300 AMD (less than $1) anyway?

Alexis Halejian is interning at the Cafesjian Museum Foundation PR/Events office in Yerevan, Armenia.