Barev dzez, hello, bonjour,

Writting my book “an Armenian job for Felix Leiter” I have to make researches about Armenia. So far I have discovered a wonderful country with a huge history, beautiful landscapes, and a marvellous people with a great sense of exchange. Today I want to share some information with you and may be as it is for me a strong desire to go to visit this country. An Armenian friend of mine who lives in Paris has flats in Yerevan and he lend me one when I want, it is probably my next destination of travel.

In my book Felix is fliyng to Armenia for a mission and he is reading travel guides to have an idea of the country so let me read with him, it is for you and to make Mr Hedison’s roots best known. From time to time I will come and make this text growing, I will explore Armenian culture like geography, history, cooking, language, environment and so on…At the end I will give you a little bibliography, some websites dedicated to Armenia. Here we go…

Introduction:

Ancient highland Armenia is probably the safest and easiest Caucasus country to visit. Armenians combine the sturdiness of mountain folks with an expressively Mediterranean mindset.
Armenia is a landlocked mountainous country in south Caucasus between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea. Located at the juncture of eastern Europe and western Asia, it boarders Turkey to the west, Georgia to the north, Azerbaidjan to the east and Iran to the south. Armenia’s landscapes span bare rocky highlands, mossy hornbeam, oak forests, stony pastures, gorges cut through layers of volcanic rocks, fast flowing rivers and the vast and beautiful lake Sevan, the largest lake in this mountain range. The land is studded with ancient churches, and very interresting stone crosses.

Armenia prides itself on being first nation to formally adopt christianity as their religion in AD 301. A country with a vast and very rich history. A first population emerged in the 6th century before Christ, historians believe that local advances in mining, chemical, and metallurgical technologies were major contributions to civilisation.

It is a continental climate with four distinct seasons:

-Icy winters with a lot of snow 14/23°F -10/-5°C
-Hardened summers, dry ans sunny 71/97°F 22/36°C
-Very short springs, sudden downpours, cloudy days. The country is covered with Very beautiful wildlflowers.
-A very long autumn often pleasant with colourful foliage.

At the beggining of 2000 Armenia had the fastest growing economy in Europe 15% by year, a real challenge for this country often wounded during his past by numerous wars, big earthquakes, freezing winters and lack of jobs. From the genocide to nowadays a big part of the population keeps on going abroad to make a better living.

Population:

-Estimation in 2009 2,967,004

-Age structure 0-14 years: 18%
14-64 years: 71,1%
65 and over: 10,6%

Population growth rate: -0,03%
Net migration rate: -4,56/1000
Birth rate: 12,53/1000
Death rate: 8,34/1000

Tsavuht danem, let me take your pains is the local good to see you.

Armenians remember the denial and unanswered prayers of their long history but they always put on a good face for visitors. If you are ever someone’s guest at home, you can see how quickly a table is set with fresh produce, wines, vodkas and cognac…Armenian cuisine is a national treasure, it combines elements from the neighbours countries Turkish, Russian, Greek and Persian.

Love, Patricia.