Author: jlennon2

While studying in Yerevan, I signed up for a gym. While I was using the squat rack, I noticed a few people standing very close to me while I performed my exercises. While I wasn’t hogging the squat rack, I generally do around 5 working sets of squats per workout, which can take a while. I was concerned that they had been waiting for me to finish for a while, so I rushed through my remaining sets. After completing my squats and moving on to my other exercises, I looked back and realized that no one was using the squat rack. People had just been minding their business, doing their exercises, or loitering on their phone (albeit very close to me). 

 I was admittedly annoyed with their proximity and that I felt rushed, but also felt a bit silly for feeling pressured. Similar circumstances have happened to me on a few occasions in Yerevan. Classmates have also brought up how close people get to them in public. In America, such proximity would usually signal that one wanted to be noticed. If I stood that close to someone trying to work out in America, I would expect them to have some words with me. Drawing from the Iceberg metaphor, physical proximity to others in public or busy spaces seems to be one of those unspoken norms which we take for granted.

While I wouldn’t claim to know the reason why Armenians are comfortable being close to strangers in public, I suspect it has something to do with the traditional multi-generational families in Armenia and more communal living practices. Armenia has a population of around 3 million people. Over one million live in Yerevan. Further, Armenian families are often multigenerational. Many people still live in large, soviet-era apartment buildings we Americans pejoratively call “commie blocks.” Simply, I think people in Yerevan are much more used to living and being close to others than Americans. Although even my Armenian professor has remarked that she often feels like people stand much too close to her!

Like I previously did on canvas, I will refer to the onion metaphor. On the surface, people are comfortable being within close physical proximity of each other. When one peels back the layers, this comfortability with proximity reveals a deeper aspect of the culture–the centrality of a strong and multigenerational family and more communal living practices.

After a few weeks, I got more used to people’s proximity to me, it and it no longer distracted me from my work in the gym. Ultimately, I learned not to stress or create problems that haven’t surfaced. If there is an issue, people will generally tell you directly.

I remember sitting in the Warsaw airport. My layover was just long enough to get bored waiting in the airport, but just too short to feel like I could spend time in town and make it through security in time to board my flight. I tried to make the most of my layover by reviewing the Russian textbook I used last year and reading Bournoutian’s A Concise History of the Armenian People. I also tried to listen in on conversations in Polish. Other than a few simple sentences, I didn’t have much luck with understanding what people were saying. To me, the structure of sentences or patterns of speech seemed similar to Russian, but there were plenty of times where I was completely lost.

The Warsaw airport intrigued me. The color scheme and architecture seemed unlike any I had seen in an American Airport. I was surprised how simple aesthetic choices made it apparent to me that I was no longer home. I was amused by the indoor smoking boxes. If I recall correctly, they weren’t entirely sealed off. They sold cigarettes on the flights, but smoking was still not permitted on board.

I had a memorable and slightly uncomfortable experience waiting for my flight to Yerevan: I was at my gate as soon as it was available for my flight. I sat and continued to read Bournoutian’s A Concise History of the Armenian People. It’s a decent-sized book and is the colors of the Armenian flag. After around an hour of reading, I noticed that many people at my gate kept glancing at me. I also noticed that the people I had originally been sitting with were no longer at my gate. I checked the screen above the jet way and realized that my gate had changed. I was now sitting at the gate for a flight to Baku, Azerbaijan. What are the odds?

While no one said anything to me and I felt completely safe, I found the experience rather awkward. The war is so recent, and small skirmishes still occur along the borders of Armenia and Azerbaijan. I wondered how open people would be to talking about the war in Armenia.  From my experience, Russians are generally comfortable asking direct questions and talking about serious political or religious topics that Americans like to avoid in “polite company.” I wondered if Armenians would be similar in this regard. I hoped to find a balance between being curious and open,and respecting people’s boundaries regarding sensitive topics.

I am very excited to study Russian in Yerevan, Armenia this summer. In preparation for my time in Armenia, I have been reading George Bournoutian’s A Concise History of the Armenian People to gain basic knowledge of the region and Armenian history. While I am most interested in Armenia’s past under the Russian Empire and Soviet Union, I am aware that Armenia has an incredibly rich and distinct history. Bournoutian notes that Armenia was positioned as a “corridor between Asia and Europe” (7). As a result, “Assyrians, Scythians, Greeks, Romans, Persians, Arabs, Kurds, Turks, and Mongols have all left their impact on the land and people” (7). Yerevan is almost thirty years older than Rome!

I have three primary goals for this trip. The first is to improve my Russian language skills. The second is to gain a greater appreciation and understanding for Armenian culture. I think I can concretely move toward this goal by visiting cultural and historical sites and reading books on my own about Armenian culture and history. I also will learn some basic Armenian and use it when out and about. While they were a part of the Soviet Union, many in the country are looking past their soviet past. Armenia has a rich and distinct culture and I wish to show it respect by learning the language and history of the people here. 

My third goal is to get more comfortable with direct speech. In America, we tend to beat around the bush or fear offending others by being direct or demanding. From what I understand about post-soviet countries, this is less the case. That is not to say the people are rude. I want to make my thoughts or needs clearly known and not feel offended or put off when people are direct with me. This will come as I speak more with people and make an effort to clearly understand the situations I find myself in. This may entail asking people to repeat themselves or becoming comfortable with saying “I do not understand.”

While I am excited to spend 20 hours a week in class improving my Russian language skills, I am most excited to be in a Russian-speaking environment. From what I have been told, English, Russian, and of course, Armenian, are widely spoken in Yerevan. I hope to avoid using English as much as possible but may default to it in case of emergency or if I am really struggling to get my point across.

 In a word, I am very excited to engage with both Armenian and Russian culture, especially while reading Bournoutian’s book. Although I’ve traveled and even lived abroad, I occasionally get nervous about my trip (I never cease to be excited about it). I want to use the time as productively as possible to grow in my goals and to develop my language skills. I may even come across senior thesis material while I am abroad!