I had heard about Yerevan and the surrounding areas before coming to Armenia. For example, I had seen pictures of Mount Ararat, churches, Sevan Lake. But it’s one thing to see pictures, and another thing to see it all in person. I must confess that a year ago, I didn’t even know where Armenia was on the map. I had never had any contact with the country. You don’t really hear anything about Armenia in the German presses. I just knew that there was a country called Armenia. I found out about Armenia from Enrico and we decided to pay a visit,” says German student Beanne Schlot.
Beanne Schlot and Enrico Dicks are German students and they have come to Armenia to take the GTZ course, part of the German Technology Cooperation project. The GTZ is a governmental project, which works with the Ministry of Justice of Armenia with the purpose of improving legality in Armenia. Beanne and Enrico study at the law faculty of the Yena University. They are writing a paper on “Administrative Law”.
It’s obvious that Beanne’s first impression of Armenia began at the airport.
– The first impression that I got of Armenia was at the “Zvartnots” airport-it was complete chaos. People were standing everywhere, talking, shouting. Armenians have different temperaments. Everyone was with their luggage. When we arrived, it was scorching hot. Well, the first thing that any passenger wants to do once getting off the plane is sleep. The line wasn’t that long either. I don’t know why it took so long to check our passports…well, that’s fine, that’s not the important thing. The first place I visited here was Khor Virap. It was beautiful. We witnessed an Armenian church ritual, the priest in his traditional clothing, people lighting candles. I had never seen such a thing.”
– You have been in Armenia for two weeks now. What can you tell the German citizen about Armenian youth?
– In contrast to us Germans, Armenian youth is much more people-orientated. For example, we went to a club and some people came up to us and started dancing, talking and asked to exchange e-mail addresses. They try to speak English. They are hospitable and try their best to satisfy you. It’s not like that in Germany. You go dancing with one of your friends, but you’re not able to establish any contacts. Here, they even “get to know someone” on the street. I actually happened to see the people I had met at the club on the streets. We exchanged e-mails again, after which they asked to call us and invite us for coffee. That’s very unusual for me. You won’t see anything like that in Germany. Armenian youth is very generous. It’s interesting to see how Armenian women dress. It’s like (she smiles), I don’t know how to say it, they attract your attention. They dress very nice. All women wear high-heeled shoes, they wear nice clothes, put on a lot of make-up…not everyone, but there are women with make-up. In contrast to German women, Armenian women try to look their best. That’s what impressed me the most. Men only wear the “tsitsak” (long-pointed) shoes. They mainly dress in black. Almost all Armenian men dress like that. I wouldn’t say that they dress in only one color; colors change. But the style is the same. I like it, they look good.
Enrico joined our conversation.
– I can say the same thing that Beanne said concerning women. They dress very “lightly”, they show a lot of skin, especially if we take into consideration the fact that this is a Christian country. I got the impression that even the “needy” people dress nicely, it seems as though they place high emphasis on clothes, their physical appearance. Nobody cares about what you wear in Europe. I ask myself the following when I see the Armenian women: what do they wear when going to a play or a concert? But that’s not my problem (he smiles); let them decide.
– It seems as though Enrico knows more about Armenia.
– This is my fourth visit to Armenia and each time they tell me that Armenia is the most ancient Christian country, even older than Christ himself. They tell me that coffee was discovered here and that the Armenian alphabet is older than the Georgian alphabet. But when you go to North Caucasus, you find out that that’s not true, that Georgia is the most ancient Christian country, coffee beans first grew there and that the creator of the Armenian alphabet Mesrop Mashtots first created the Georgian alphabet. Of course, as a visitor to Armenia, I stay loyal and believe what the Armenians have to say, which doesn’t really mean anything because I still have to make room for more things to see and get more impressions. What pleases me the most is to hear sellers at the Vernisage bargain in English and then Russian, during which you find out that the difference in the prices is 300%. Of course, I don’t get mad because like Americans, I am ready to spend my income. I praise Armenian cuisine, despite the fact that not everyone eats Khash (stewed cow legs). In Armenia, you can always find new types of food that are fresh and easy to digest.
– What’s the biggest difference between Armenian and German realities?
– In my opinion, the one thing about Armenian reality that can set an example is the bond between family members. For example, if the elder child is, let’s say, sixteen or twenty years old, and the younger child is two, the two are still close together despite the big difference in age. It’s not like that in Germany. Take my sister for example. When we used to play with the boys, she had to stay outside. Germans can learn a lot from the relations between Armenian family members. I must also say that Armenian families are multi-member, whereas there are practically no children born in Germany,” says Enrico.
– You studied “administrative law” in Armenia. What can you tell us about that kind of law as future lawyers?
– I don’t know if I can take on that responsibility and tell you what that is because I’m taking a practice course and I’m not an expert. In any case, I think that “Administrative Law” gives courts and judges the opportunity to reach a verdict based on the case. You get the impression that some things are planned out beforehand. As for the system of the law, I must say that it’s very close to that of Germany,” says Enrico.
– I know that Germans love to hear the jokes told on “Radio-Yerevan”. You can purchase the German version of those jokes in German stores. Will you tell us one joke?
– With pleasure. So, they ask “Radio-Yerevan” if a woman can turn a man into a millionaire. “Radio-Yerevan” replies yes, if the man is a billionaire.”