Hey everyone,

First off, thank you to everyone who left me  comments.  I really miss and love all of you and can’t wait to see you.  Ani, Lake Sevan does have jet ski’s, but I decided not to rent one because it wouldn’t be the same as Crooked Lake.  Anyway, Artsag/Karabagh was really amazing.  It was one of the most memorable exeperiences of the trip.  The people there are different.  They seem more humble.  The guys and I played soccer with some kids for an hour or so and they kicked our butts.  The best part was probably the war museum.  Its amazing that the Armenians used homemade weapons and fixed enemy tanks and heavy artillery  and still won the war.  I really felt a connection with the Armenians there, more so than I have in Yerevan.

One thing more than anything struck me as odd this trip.  We went to the Genoicide memorial with the international ACYO group.  While the Americans (me included) were very emotional and teary eyed, the others didn’t seem sad.  I even over heard some people from other countries mocking us in Armenian for crying.  Maybe its because in America, the Genocide still isn’t recognized so we are constantly fighting to get recognition.  That probably has helped us to not forget what happened and be more in tuned with our history.  Maybe its really a blessing in disguise that we are forced to continue fighting for recongition.  It has brought the American Armenian community together and has kept the memory of the genocide and the stories of our loved ones fresh in our minds.

This is probably going to be my last blog as it is nearly impossible to get on this computer.  We’re going out to dinner tonight and hopefully will find a place to do some Armenian dancing. I love all of you and miss you and will see you soon.

mark

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