Author: nina hovnanian

The Daily Star, Lebanon
July 28 2014

Iraqi Christians find little help

by Rayane Abou Jaoude & Venetia Rainey| The Daily Star

BAABDA, Lebanon: Joseph Toman leaned on the heavy wooden door of St.
Raphael Chaldean Cathedral and sighed in exasperation.

He wore a dirty shirt and his weathered feet peered out of a pair of
tattered sandals, a far cry from the rest of the well-dressed Lebanese
church attendees that milled around to discuss the morning’s Mass.

“I am going to starve to death,” he said, half to himself, as his eyes
pricked with tears.

The 80-year-old Christian, who grew up in Mosul, left his home in
Baghdad just 15 days ago. He heard about the advancing forces led by
Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS) – a religiously
intolerant and violent extremist group that recently took over huge
swaths of northern Iraq – and decided to use all of his savings to
flee to Lebanon.

He is now renting a small apartment in Dikwaneh north of Beirut, but
with no work and no family to help him, he is quickly running out of
money. “We need help, we can’t pay rent,” Toman said, referring to
other Iraqi Christians who have made the same journey as him out of
fear for their lives.

Although he was barely able to afford the taxi ride from his home to
the cathedral in Baabda – the Lebanese headquarters of the Chaldean
sect that many Iraqi Christians are part of – he felt it was important
that he attend Sunday’s Mass anyway, especially as it was held to show
solidarity with people exactly like him.

“I only have God and the church,” he added.

ISIS, which recently changed its name to Islamic State, gave
Christians in Iraq’s northern city an ultimatum last week to convert
to Islam, pay a religious tax or be killed, forcing hundreds of
families to flee and tearing apart a community that has existed since
the earliest days of Christianity.

The militants spray-painted Christian houses with the Arabic letter
“N” for “Nasrani,” or “Christian,” to identify them.

To symbolically counteract this surge in religious intolerance,
children at the cathedral Sunday held up signs of words beginning with
“N” that represent Christian values: “narham,” we are merciful;
“nashkor,” we are thankful; “nousalli,” we pray; and “naghfor,” we
forgive, among others.

Many also carried Vatican flags in an appeal to the highest church
authority to provide support.

Estimates for how many Iraqi Christians have fled to Lebanon in the
last few months are hard to come by and likely to be an underestimate.
UNHCR said it had not registered any, while Caritas Lebanon Migrant
Center, part of the international Catholic relief agency, said it had
been approached by two families from Mosul, one in Sin al-Fil and one
in Sidon.

Father Youssef Denha, an Iraqi Chaldean priest at the Mass Sunday,
said he only knew of one such family from his sect, but was not sure
about those from the other churches of Christianity present in Iraq,
such as Assyrians, Syriacs and Armenians, to name a few.

“Between 2013 and 2014 around 500 Iraqi families have come to
Lebanon,” he said, referring to those who have fled the country to
escape a growing level of violence, extremism and religious
intolerance. “But our concentration now is on the families that were
forced to leave Mosul.

“And we are expecting their number to increase.”

Part of the problem is that, like Toman, many Iraqi Christians used
what little they had to escape the brutal grip of ISIS and the
prospect of living life either as a second-class citizen or being
killed.

Sabri Risheresh and his wife managed to grab their passports before
leaving their home in Mosul two months ago, but their son and his
family were not as lucky, and now find themselves trapped in northern
Iraq, unable to leave the country.

“They threatened to kill us, so we had to leave,” Risheresh says as
his wife weeps silently beside him. “We left with only our clothes on
our backs – we were lucky we got our passports.”

Many of the families The Daily Star spoke to said they had little hope
that they would be able to return to their homes any time soon. There
have been a number of reports of ISIS rehousing displaced Muslims in
local buildings owned by Christians who have fled.

None of those interviewed said they had been able to find work in
Lebanon, despite many having college degrees. They bemoaned that they
had received little to no help from non-governmental organizations,
the United Nations, or the church.

Zina, a 24-year-old engineer from Baghdad, and her sister, a qualified
dentist, have found no work in the eight months they’ve been in
Lebanon.

“We left [Iraq] because the situation is bad,” she explained with a
rueful smile. “Christians are suffering so much, their livelihoods are
at stake. Life is very difficult for them.”

The most important thing their community needed at the moment was aid,
she said, whether monetary or in-kind. As she spoke, other Iraqis
approached to echo the plea, their expressions anxious and weary.

“What we have is very little,” said one woman on the verge of tears.
“There is no work for us here,” added another. “Please, we need help,”
pleaded a third.

But although their calls for official assistance are likely to fall
largely on deaf ears in a country that is already hosting well over a
million Syrian refugees, help in one form or another is exactly what
those gathered Sunday in Baabda had in mind.

While some of the worshippers at St. Raphael Cathedral were Iraqi,
most appeared to be Lebanese who had turned up to demonstrate their
support for their co-religionists.

Jacqueline Sarrouh had come from the nearby town of Hazmieh with her
young son to pray for – and with – Iraqi Christians.

“We are here to participate in prayer with our Christian brothers,”
Sarrouh said. “We already have friends here that we got to know.”

The Mass was led by Chaldean Bishop Michel Kassarji.

“Our struggle today is with futile, deviated ideologies that do not
know the meaning of human pride nor freedom of belief nor difference
of opinion,” he told a packed church. “History will record that
Christians were forced out of their lands just because they were
Christians.”

Rodrigue Khoury, leader of the Levant Party, who helped organize the
event, said Christians in the Middle East “would never bow” and “would
never forsake their faith.”

“We are not Lebanese expressing solidarity with Iraqis, we are one
body shouting out,” he said.

Khoury’s speech was met with general enthusiasm, and was interrupted
by an Iraqi Christian who stood up and exclaimed, “Long live Iraq!” to
widespread applause.

But Father Denha said what was most needed was material support.

“We have helped them by welcoming them in the archbishopric and Michel
[Kassarji] is trying to raise funds,” he said. “Some people have been
donating clothes, but we would prefer if they could help financially
by paying for rent or health care.”

The Sunday Times (London), UK
July 27, 2014 Sunday

We’re all doomed

The end of the world looks like Connemara – at least in one film.
Pavel Barter explores Ireland’s post-apocalyptic visions

by Pavel Barter

Last month a film crew assembled in a forest near Ballymoney, Co
Antrim, to tell a story about a man struggling to survive in the
aftermath of the apocalypse. The Northern Irish actor Martin McCann
lost weight in preparation for his role and was fresh from a
survivalist course, during which he learnt to cut down trees and skin
rabbits. Actresses Olwen Fouéré and Mia Goth, who play mother and
daughter drifters, stayed in character by isolating themselves from
the crew during their time off.

While writer and director Stephen Fingleton was making The Survivalist
in the wilds of Co Antrim, another crew in Ireland was climbing
mountains, crossing bogs and scurrying through forests. Cattle Raid,
Liza Bolton’s independent film, was inspired by an ancient Irish myth,
but set in a desolate 2120. Connemara was chosen for the
post-apocalyptic background. “Empty, barren,” explains Bolton. “I can
do a 360-degree view from a field and see nothing except stone for
miles. It gives us a chance to recreate a world.”

Ever since Noah built his ark, apocalyptic fiction has used mankind’s
fears for the future as high-concept entertainment. Nowadays biblical
prophecy seems as outlandish as a zombie armageddon (The Walking
Dead), ape evolution (Dawn of the Planet of the Apes) or James Franco
vehicles (This Is the End). Yet we are living in a new age of
paranoia, with global warming, political instability, wealth disparity
and terrorism seemingly putting Earth on a knife edge. Accordingly,
writers and film-makers are responding to these cultural anxieties.

Collider, this year’s Irish multiplatform story, was set in a
post-apocalyptic 2018. The Quiet Hour, which premiered at the recent
Galway Film Fleadh, was shot in Co Tipperary. Hollywood is continuing
the theme with The Rover, a post-apocalyptic thriller with Robert
Pattinson and Guy Pearce, due out next month. Ireland’s first
significant foray into the genre came in 2009 with One Hundred
Mornings, a harrowing story about a small band of survivors after the
collapse of civilisation. Its director, Conor Horgan, was inspired to
make the film after seeing Margaret Atwood, author of dystopian novel
The Handmaid’s Tale, speak in Dublin. Atwood, whose father is a
natural scientist, dwelt on the planet’s future. “She talked about the
amoeba equation,” says Horgan. “There’s a test tube filled with amoeba
food, with one amoeba in it. The amoeba divides and replicates every
minute. There becomes less food until it is 100% amoebas. That’s the
situation we find ourselves in. She said, ‘Any species that outgrows
its resource base won’t survive.’ You could feel a sharp intake of
breath in the audience. I was terrified because it is inarguable.”
Fingleton was inspired to make The Survivalist after seeing Collapse,
a documentary about the decline of fossil fuels. “We are in the middle
of the Anthropocene age,” he says. “It’s a geologist term, meaning the
age of man. We will last a short amount of time: a subsection of a
tree ring in terms of the Earth’s history. We have such a tremendous
effect on our environment, it is equivalent to the asteroid strike
that wiped out the dinosaurs. This is an age, and it will come to an
end.” While previous end-of-day myths – whether Y2K paranoia or Mayan
prophecies – might have spoken to deep psychological needs, the
concept of a global catastrophe because of climate change seems more
real.

“There will be some kind of trouble ahead – that is unavoidable,” says
Horgan. “This is now not so much a matter of speculation, opinion or,
in some cases, wishful thinking, as fact. Any idiot can look at the
energy that goes into keeping a society afloat versus the energy that
goes out.

Something has got to give – the only question is when.”

Post-apocalyptic fiction is no fun, as anyone who read Cormac
McCarthy’s The Road will testify. But there has been a shift in
concern from the nuclear threat (Nevil Shute’s novel On the Beach, for
example) to natural resources and the environment. Irish director
Jason Figgis throws a global pandemic into the equation in Children of
a Darker Dawn. In his post-apocalyptic horror, an epidemic has wiped
out the planet’s adult population, leaving only children behind.

Figgis is not overly optimistic about the future. “Humanity has relied
too long on synthetic solutions for treating illness,” he says. “We
are biologically changing DNA and messing up the world. Humans are
evolving to a state where antibiotics are no longer having an effect,
so any kind of strain of virus can mutate into a super-virus.

“In my film the virus starts out with flu-like symptoms, as a lot of
diseases do, then rapidly evolves into something horrific. I asked a
few doctors if there are any viruses that will attack a fully formed
adult but leave children and teenagers unharmed. One guy said, ‘I have
four or five I could tell you about.'” For many post-apocalyptic
storytellers, the causes of a global catastrophe are less important
than how humanity deals with the aftermath. Kevin Barry’s novel City
of Bohane is set in a futuristic west of Ireland. “When I started
writing, I had no idea it was set in the future until I started the
first chapter,” says the Limerick-born writer. “My intention was just
to build a demented Irish city of my own. The setting meant I could
invent at will – I could make up all the rules. I didn’t want to
explain how it got to the condition it was in. I wanted to present
this world as a fait accompli, where they have Irish accents, but that
is at much as we know.”

Film-makers and writers agree that a post-apocalyptic world would not
be pretty. All the characters in The Survivalist are killers.
Fingleton’s film has references to the Armenian genocide of the First
World War and the death camps of Nazi Germany. By Fingleton’s
reckoning, human morality is just a means of social control. When all
hell breaks loose, morality dissolves. New Orleans in the aftermath of
Hurricane Katrina and the riots in England in August 2011 are prime
examples.

“There’s a theory that genocides are precipitated by fluctuating
population ratios within ethnic groups,” says Fingleton. “If you look
at every major sectarian conflict of the 20th century – Rwanda,
Northern Ireland, Germany – populations were changing rapidly at the
point violence broke out. This suggests we have an alternately
co-operative and violent strategy to survive.

“Right now we are in a cooperative phase of civilisation. At the same
time, there is an advantage to being the first person to take out the
machete. Chimpanzees behave in this fashion – they form alliances,
break alliances, wipe out other tribes. It’s extremely violent.”

Post-apocalyptic fiction looks to the future but perhaps says more
about the present. Only Ever Yours, the debut novel of Co Cork author
Louise O’Neill, explores a time after environmental collapse, in which
females are no longer born naturally but genetically engineered for
the purpose of pleasing men.

“Dystopian fiction such as Nineteen Eighty-Four or The Handmaid’s Tale
takes elements of our culture today and pushes them to the Nth
degree,” explains O’Neill. “It acts like a fable, a warning. It makes
people examine their own social morals and ideas about culture. My
book is primarily concerned with feminist issues, the role of women in
society. I tried to take problematic elements from society we accept
as normal – casual sexism, the objectification of women – and push
them as far as I could.”

Although City of Bohane is set in 2053, Barry considers it his Celtic
tiger novel. “It’s a response to those mad, crazy, vulgar new energies
that were sweeping over tormented little Irish cities at the time I
was writing it, in the late Noughties,” he says. “At some level you
are always responding to the world around you.”

” Post-apocalyptic fiction ultimately leaves its audience with a
question: would you have what it takes to survive when civilisation
goes down the tubes? “Not a chance,” says Horgan, laughing. “Someone
who makes films in a world where you need to make fires?chan Som worl
If everything falls down tomorrow, I’m somebody’s breakfast.”

tomo breakf Fing surviv woul ” Fingleton agrees. “I wouldn’t survive –
I’m a writer. My skills wouldn’t be well suited. The reins would be
handed over to people who are disenfranchised. In a future calamity,
they will inherit the earth.” peop inheri

Dystopian fiction acts as a fable, a warning

South Pars monthly exports up 49% yr/yr: official
Economic Desk

On Line: 27 July 2014 15:47
In Print: Monday 28 July 2014

TEHRAN – The value of exports from Iran’s South Pars gas field rose 49
percent in the fourth Iranian calendar month of Tir (June 22-July 22)
compared to the same month last year, an Iranian senior customs
official said.

Iran exported over $1.821 billion worth of petrochemical products from
the gas field to 29 countries in the mentioned month, the IRNA news
agency quoted Pars Special Economic Energy Zone (PSEEZ) Customs Office
Director Khodadad Rahimi as saying on Sunday.

More than 2.2 million tons of products, mainly heavy polyethylene,
methanol, butane, diethylene glycol, propane, and gas condensate, were
exported from PSEEZ in the calendar month of Tir, showing 45 percent
rise compared to the same month in the previous yea, Rahimi said.

China, Japan, the UAE, India, Turkey, Iraq, Taiwan, Thailand,
Malaysia, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Armenia, Russia, Mozambique,
Egypt, Syria, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Ukraine, Qatar, Tanzania,
Philippines, Ghana, Kenya, Azerbaijan, Georgia, South Korea and Mexico
were the destinations for the exported goods, he added.

Gas condensate accounted for 58 percent of the worth and 54 percent of
the weight of total exports from the gas field, he added.

Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh has said the South Pars gas
field’s output will be increased by 100 million cubic meters per day
in the current Iranian calendar year, which began on March 21.

The country will triple natural gas production at the gas field to one
billion cubic meters per day in the next three years, Zanganeh said.

Iran is currently producing 320 million cubic meters of gas per day at
the South Pars gas field, he added.

The South Pars/North Dome gas field covers an area of 9,700 square
kilometers, with 3,700 square kilometers of it, which is known as the
South Pars gas field, in Iran’s territorial waters in the Persian
Gulf.

The remaining 6,000 square kilometers, i.e. the North Dome gas field,
are in Qatar’s territorial waters.

Young Gyumri boy falls and dies under train tracks

11:47, 25.07.2014

The boy, who had fallen and died under the Yerevan-Gyumri train in
Armenia’s Gyumri city on Thursday at around 10pm, was approximately 16
or 17 years old.

Forensic expert Libarit Ghugasyan told the aforementioned to Armenian
News-NEWS.am.

In his words, the young boy’s identity is not yet determined, and no
one has come to the morgue up to this point. That is why the police
have issued a statement and asked those who have lost loved ones to
contact the police.

The train conductor had managed to stop the train solely about 200
meters after the initial impact, and the young boy’s body was torn
apart.

An eyewitness to the incident told Armenian News- NEWS.am that the
young man was walking on the railway tracks wearing earphones, and he
had not heard the train’s signal. The eyewitness added that the train
was traveling within the speed limit, at approximately 60 km/hour.

ARMEE ARMENIENNE
Serge Sarkissian au 20ème anniversaire de l’Institut militaire Vazken
Sarkissian dit Serge Sarkissian.

Krikor Amirzayan

dimanche 27 juillet 2014,
Krikor Amirzayan (c)armenews.com

Interfax, Russia
July 25 2014

Armenia may abort sale of Vorotan Cascade of HPPs to U.S. company – PM

YEREVAN. July 25

Armenia may abort the sale of the Vorotan Cascade of Hydropower Plants
to the U.S. company ContourGlobal, as the deal contains some clauses
unacceptable to Yerevan, Armenian Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan told
journalists on Friday.

In particular, the Armenian government disagrees with the cascade
profitability threshold of 23.5% as being too high, he said.

“The 23.5% profitability threshold is too high, and I am personally
against it. There can be no deal in which a potential buyer would have
such profitability. There has been no such a deal in our country,”
Abrahamyan said.

The prime minister denied media reports alleging that the government
is considering the annulment of the deal with the U.S. company and the
cascade’s transfer to Russia.

The government attaches great significance to U.S. investments and is
doing all it can to make sure that the deal is completed, but this
should be done in favor of the country’s interests, he said.

“We have put forward some terms and conditions for the Americans, and
if they accept them, the deal will take place, and if they don’t, it
won’t, but we won’t transfer the cascade to Russia,” he said.

It was reported earlier that the Armenian government had sold 100%
shares in the Vorotan Cascade of Hydropower Plants to ContourGlobal
Hydrocascade, a ContourGlobal subsidiary, for $180 million. The
purchase and sale contract was signed on January 29, 2014, but the
deal has not yet been completed legally.

The investor committed to invest about $70 million in the cascade’s
maintenance and modernization within the next six years. The Armenian
Public Services Regulation Commission endorsed the tariff plan the
company would have to adhere within the next 25 years.

ContourGlobal is headquartered in New York, and its assets include 33
power plants in 17 countries with aggregate capacity of 3,500 MWt. The
company also owns a number of wind and solar power plants.

The Vorotan Cascade of Hydropower Plants includes the Spandarian HPP
(76 MWt), Shamb HPP (171 MWt), and Tatev HPP (157.2 MWt). The cascade
generates about 16% of all power in the country and about half of
power generated by all Armenian HPPs.

Sydney Morning Herald, Australia
July 26 2014

En eye-opening tour through the hidden worlds of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia

Travel
DateJuly 26, 2014

Expect the unexpected when you venture to the ancient Caucasus, writes
Isobel King.

I stare at the wizened old leather shoe in the history museum in
Yerevan and lean in again to double check the date: 3500BC. I do the
sums – that’s more than 5500 years old. I was taken by the
mint-condition clay vessels that are 4000 years old and the fully
intact wagons and chariots dug up from the shores of Lake Sevan.

But this little moccasin, sewn from one piece of leather, has me
mesmerised. It’s a lasting reminder of just how ancient, yet
relatively little known, this part of the world is.

Haydar Aliyev Cultural Centre in Baku, Azerbaijan. Photo: Getty Images

For me, it’s the final day of an eye-opening tour through Azerbaijan,
Georgia and Armenia, former Soviet republics that are part of a region
known as the Caucasus.

Peregrine Adventures spent a year putting together the 17-day
itinerary and we are on the maiden tour. It’s a group of 13, including
two spirited women in their 70s, and we represent seven different
countries between us, not including Bob, our Russian guide, proving
curiosity has no barriers.

The capital of Baku is the base for most of our four days in
Azerbaijan, where the expedition begins. It’s a city dripping in oil
wealth, with a mishmash of architectural styles that’s oddly
compelling.

Peasant woman sitting on road with dog in Georgia. Photo: Getty Images

There are the majestic buildings dating from Azerbaijan’s days under
the Russian tsars, just blocks away from drab Soviet towers awaiting
“beautification”. The inventive approach is to dress their facades in
stone, attach ornate balconies – et voila, as good as old.

Wandering around the cobbled streets of Baku’s mediaeval walled
centre, taking in the Palace of the Shirvanshahs and other historic
sites, the Dubai-like glass Flame Towers beyond the walls lend the
perspective a science-fiction quality.

The newly completed Heydar Aliyev Cultural Centre is a showstopper, an
astounding piece of modern architecture designed by famous Iraqi-born
British architect Zaha Hadid. It’s like a white serpent rising from a
grassy knoll that suddenly livens up the trip in from the airport.

Tsminda Sameba Church. Photo: iStock

Life on the streets of Baku feels similar to a modern city anywhere.
Islamic Azerbaijan is a historically tolerant society. Cafes,
restaurants and shops are buzzing, and in the boulevards and parks by
the waterfront, adjoining the Caspian Sea, the world’s biggest salt
lake, burqa-clad women can be seen strolling alongside young things in
the latest fashion. At night, the city is beautifully lit, reminiscent
at times of strolling around Paris. Hence its name, Paris of the East.

Well, not quite.

We take the hour’s trip to Qobustan, past endless oil rigs, and
clamber up a rocky path in the heat to inspect ancient rock engravings
in nooks and crannies everywhere.

Vardzia cave city, Samtskhe-Javakheti, Georgia. Photo: Getty Images

Civilisation in this UNESCO-protected region has been traced back
40,000 years, and the fascinating on-site museum captures slabs of it
in highly informative and interactive displays. At the foot of the
hill, I stop at a fenced-off rock engraving made by a passing Roman
officer. It dates from AD90. Graffiti spans all the centuries.

On the road north-west to Georgia, as we watch the amazing transition
from dry, salty plains to the first few sprigs of green inland, to the
incredibly lush countryside that abruptly springs from nowhere all in
a matter of hours, we stop in Sheki, visiting the 18th-century Shaki
Khan Palace.

It’s a marked departure from the elaborate mosques and stone tombs
seen earlier. This was the summer palace of the local ruling Shaki
Khans. Its intricate, timber-framed stained-glass windows, still
hand-crafted locally, are apparently popular with wealthy sheiks.
Inside, every room is lined with vibrantly coloured frescoes.

Mtkvari River as it runs through Tbilisi. Photo: Getty Images

The palace and Baku’s mediaeval city are Azerbaijan’s historical
highlights for me.

In our seven days in Georgia, it seems as if we have criss-crossed its
entire 70,000 square kilometres in our little minibus, when in reality
we have managed a select grab bag of highlights, including half a
dozen or so UNESCO World Heritage sites. Georgians adopted
Christianity in the early 4th century, so historic churches and
monasteries are regular stops.

The whole country feels freshly renovated, from cities, to roads, to
hotels, to tourist attractions. Scaffolding and road works are as
etched in my memory as the mountains, rivers, fields of wild flowers
and endless green vistas that have accompanied our travels.

Gobustan mud volcanoes. Photo: Getty Images

The 10-year presidency of pro-western Mikheil Saakashvili, which ended
with the elections last November, has marked the country’s economic
rejuvenation after a decade of chaos.

We have driven through winemaking regions in Georgia’s south and had
our first introduction to chacha, the local rocket fuel, courtesy of
farmer Simon and his family entourage.

In their purpose-built stone cellar in the small town of Sighnaghi, a
stone’s throw from the Azerbaijan border, we are shown a contraption
that looks positively mediaeval. It’s the chacha maker, the “grape
vodka” found everywhere. It’s wincingly potent and sets the mood for a
lively cellar feast. That lunch was our first introduction to
khachapuri, the devilishly moreish flat cheese bread that’s on every
menu.

Wine lovers should note: Georgia’s winemaking tradition goes back 8000
years. An official wine map reveals snaking trails everywhere and a
baffling 437 different grape varieties. If in doubt, the ever-popular
Saperavi reds and Rkatsiteli whites are sound bets.

We have gone north and climbed into the heart of Europe’s highest
mountain range – the snow-capped Greater Caucasus. It stretches for
1200 kilometres, forming the border with Russia to the north.

Our destination for two nights is the remote ski resort of Gudauri,
heaving with skiiers in winter apparently, but a desolate spot in
summer: a scattering of buildings on austere, grassy slopes. The lone
supermarket proves the main social hub on our visit.

At 2196 metres, Gudauri is the highest village on the famous Georgian
Military Highway, an ancient north-south trading route that has been
recently upgraded into a flawless stretch of road.

It’s the launch pad for a day trip to nearby Kazbegi, where a one-hour
hike up the steep, rocky foothills (jeep optional) is rewarded with
hauntingly beautiful views from the remote 14th-century Gergeti
Trinity Church. No invader was going to take this prize easily.

The clouds clear to offer a perfect view of Mount Kazbeg, at 5047
metres, one of the higher glaciers in the Caucasus.

We have gone west as far as Kutaisi, the country’s second largest
city, stopping on the way at Stalin’s birthplace in Gori. His humble
family home lies in the grounds of the Stalin Museum, where rooms of
black-and-white photographs, news clippings and memorabilia document
not just the rise of a dictator, but graphic examples of hardships and
horrors.

And, of course, we have spent time in the charming capital of Tbilisi,
an easily walkable city of 1.2 million divided by the Mtkvari River.
It’s in the final throes of an extensive renovation.

The UNESCO-protected old district has had most of the buildings’
crumbling facades replaced. They contrast with contemporary structures
nearby.

It’s a laid-back city, where most of the action centres around the
main thoroughfare, Rustaveli Avenue and the lively network of streets
in the old town.

The pace has been fast and furious, with a couple of 10-hour days on
the road. Framed by the bus window are watchtowers and forts,
crumbling stone houses and defunct old factories, new buildings with
shiny tin roofs, and the drab, grey apartment blocks that dot the
landscape everywhere in this part of the world, legacies of the Soviet
era.

I’m still prizing the grit out of my hair from a visit to the
12th-century cave city of Vardzia, in the south-west. I conclude that
tunnels, perilously steep steps, low rock ceilings and a power
blackout are not a good combination. The city was carved into a
mountain, stretching across 500 metres, a feat of human endeavour.

Nino, our bubbly Georgian guide, succinctly sums up her country’s
history: “So many times, occupied, destroyed, rebuilt . . . occupied,
destroyed, rebuilt”. She may as well have been talking about any of
the countries we visit. Preserving their architecture against the
constant onslaught has been challenging. Mongols, Persians, Russians
and Ottomans have all fancied their chance in this strategic
crossroads of Europe and Asia. Many of the historic sites we visit
have been rebuilt from ruins.

I have seen so many monasteries and churches that they have merged
into a glorious pastiche of soaring stone structures, frescoes,
brightly coloured icons and priests in black robes going about their
business, seemingly impervious to the coachloads of tourists.

Mostly I tend to remember them by their locations: behind protective
walls, such as the magnificent Svetitskhoveli Cathedral in the centre
of historic Mtskheta, where Christ’s robe is allegedly buried; on
remote hilltops, such as the 6th century Jvari Church peering down
over Mtskheta; and in Kutaisi, the collection of beautiful stone
buildings that make up Gelati Monastery, where of one of the greatest
Georgian kings, David the Builder, has his tomb.

The trio of countries was part of the Soviet Union up until their
independence in 1991. The itinerary has been carefully mapped to avoid
any potential hot spots (see trip notes). For us, everywhere we travel
feels safe and welcoming.

Russian is the de-facto second language and English can be patchy
outside the capitals, so although independent travel is possible, I
imagine it could be tricky, once the complication of visas and long
border crossings are taken into account.

On day 11, Armenia greets us across the Bavra border crossing from
Georgia late afternoon with rough roads, thunderous black clouds and
the bleak, barely habitable landscape of this northern region. It’s a
fittingly atmospheric entry to a country that lies in the shadow of
Mount Ararat, where Noah’s Ark is said to have come to rest after the
flood.

En route to the capital, we stop at Gyumri, the country’s
second-largest city, which was devastated by an earthquake in 1988 and
is still struggling to get rebuilt. We park in the main square and
wander through the back streets, past half-crumbling stone buildings
that are still beautiful, but just skeletons now. Some have been
rebuilt, but there’s a long way to go.

The gritty capital of Yerevan, on the other hand, is bristling with
energy and artistic life, with signs of progress everywhere. The
transition from the relative stability of the Soviet period to now has
been rocky. The country isn’t flush with funds, but the large Armenian
diaspora is generous.

The Armenian Genocide Museum is closed until April 2015 for an
extensive renovation. A new mall in the city centre is almost
finished. There are sculptures and statues everywhere, many recent,
that salute famous Armenians.

Edgy bars and restaurants all over the city are packed with chatty,
locals fluent in English, eager to exchange stories.

We take the 20-kikometre trip to see Etchmiadzin Cathedral, Armenia’s
answer to Vatican city. Armenia was the first country to adopt
Christianity as its official religion, in 301AD, and this is its
expansive headquarters: clipped lawns, trees and newly laid paths
leading to an assortment of buildings. The central Mother Cathedral is
covered with scaffolding on our June visit.

Inside, through an arch, we visit the small museum, which houses
sacred relics, including the lance that supposedly pierced the side of
Christ and a petrified splinter of Noah’s Ark. Whether myth or fact,
I’m again enthralled by random fragments of history.

For me, the trip ended in Yerevan, leaving the posse to take the
overnight trip to the mediaeval town of Goris. I would have loved to
explore Armenia more, but this trip has been an absorbing introduction
to a trio of countries geographically close but unique, and all
embracing the tourist wave. I felt lucky to beat the hordes.

The writer was a guest of Peregrine Adventures.

FIVE MORE SIGHTS TO SEE IN THE CAUCASUS

ATESHGAH FIRE TEMPLE, BAKU

A short drive along the Absheron Peninsula, this recently restored
open temple, complete with mannequins recreating temple life, sheds
light on how the fire-worshipping Zoroastrians lived. An
English-speaking guide is essential, as there’s little information on
site.

YANAR DAG (FIRE MOUNTAIN), BAKU

Nor far from the fire temple is this intriguing natural phenomenon.
Even when the snow falls, natural gases from the earth keep these
flickering flames alive.

UPLISTSIKHE CAVE CITY, GEORGIA

A series of caves cut into a mountain are what remain of this small
3000-year-old complex. It’s interesting to scramble around and picture
life as it was then. The museum below is well worth visiting for its
archaeological finds and information.

FINE ARTS MUSEUM, TBILISI

The Treasury section of this small museum holds one of the finest
collections of Georgian icons and crosses, retrieved from churches and
monasteries everywhere.

MASHTOTS MATENADARAN, YEREVAN

This ancient manuscripts museum contains room after room of sublimely
intricate and richly coloured manuscripts, including a whopper
weighing in at 27 kilograms. There’s also maps and other historical
documents to inspect.

TRIP NOTES

GETTING THERE

>From Australia, one option is to fly Emirates to Dubai from where it’s
under three hours to Baku or Yerevan, the start/end points of the
featured trip. Azerbaijan Airlines has regular flights to Dubai-Baku.
Fly Dubai has regular flights to Yerevan-Dubai.

See emirates.com; azal.az.

TOURING THERE

Peregrine Adventures has five departures for the 17-day Azerbaijan,
Georgia and Armenia tour in 2015, the first is on May 10. Tours start
from $3575 a person including a local tour leader, arrival transfer,
transportation, accommodation, some meals and activities.

Phone 1300 854 445; see peregrineadventures.com.

TRAVELLING THERE

Australians require visas for Armenia and Azerbaijan, which can be
applied for online. As there are ongoing tensions in the border region
between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the Australian government advises
travellers to avoid Nagorno-Karabakh and the military occupied area
surrounding it. In Georgia, the government cautions against visiting
the disputed regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, as well as Pankisi
Gorge north of Akhmeta.

Armenian soldier awarded medal posthumously

14:42 26/07/2014 » POLITICS

On 26 July Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) Republic President Bako Sahakyan
signed a decree on awarding posthumously NKR Defense Army’s N
division’s private Khachatour Badasyan for bravery shown during the
defense of the NKR state border with the “For Courage” medal, the
press service of the Artsakh Republic President reports.

Source: Panorama.am

MEP urges to release Levon Hayrapetyan

17:05, 26 July, 2014

YEREVAN, JULY 26, ARMENPRESS. The Member of the European Parliament,
Czech Senator Jaromà – r Ã…tÄ?tina touched upon the issue of arrest of the
friend of his childhood, Armenian businessman and benefactor Levon
Hayrapetyan and expressed his concerns regarding this on Facebook. As
reports `Armenpress’, Jaromà – r Ã…tÄ?tina underscored: `Levon is my
childhood friend.

We have crossed the Siberian rivers together. I am afraid for his
life.’ Also, Jaromà – r Ã…tÄ?tina issued a statement calling upon the
President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin to release Levon
Hayrapetyan.

The health conditions of Armenian businessman and benefactor Levon
Hayrapetyan are assessed as satisfactory. Levon
Hayrapetyan’s friend Matsak Poladyan stated this in a conversation
with `Armenpress’.

Among other things, Levon Hayrapetyan’s friend Matsak Poladyan noted:
`Today in the morning I learnt that Levon Hayrapetyan’s health
conditions are assessed are satisfactory. This gives us hope. They
also promised to take him to a civil hospital or place him under house
arrest in coming days.’

Levon Hayrapetyan suffers from diabetes and he needs insulin. Also,
Levon Hayrapetyan has recently had a stroke.

Previously it was reported that the Federal Security Service of the
Russian Federation arrested Russia-resident rich Armenian businessman
Levon Hayrapetyan. As reports `Armenpress’ citing `Rosbalt’, Levon
Hayrapetyan was detained on July 15 in Domodedovo Airport, where the
airplane landed from Monaco.

The investigators transported the Armenian businessman to the
Investigation Committee of the Russian Federation under special
surveillance, where he was officially informed about the arrest.

The law enforcement authorities suspect Levon Hayrapetyan of having
connections with the band led by criminal authority Sergey Finagin.

Azerbaijan attempts saboteur raids in two directions, Armenian soldier dead

Saturday, July 26, 2014

The Azerbaijani side today attempted saboteur reconnaissance raids in
the northern and northeastern directions of the Line of Contact
between Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan, according to the press
service of Defense Ministry of Nagorno Karabakh Republic.

The frontline units of the NKR Defense Army noticed in time
Azerbaijani troops and repelled them. The Azerbaijani forces
retreated, suffering losses and leaving behind large amounts of
technical equipment.

Unfortunately, an Armenian serviceman, 20-year-old Khachatur Badasyan
was shot dead in the attack.

The NKR Defense Ministry shares the pain of bereavement and expresses
its condolences to K. Badasyan’s family and friends.

An investigation is underway.

TODAY, 13:17
Aysor.am